Drilling Highlights:

Figure 1: Location of drill hole collars MA-19-374 to MA-19-393, Marathon Deposit. Figure 2: Cross section 17260E, Marathon Deposit, showing the 50 to 160 meter-wide, subvertical Main Zone corridor composed of thick and laterally extensive en-echelon and shallow SW dipping QTP-Au veining. Note the fire assay intervals of 3.37 g/t Au over 24.0 meters and 1.80 g/t Au over 12.0 meters in MA-19-373

The ongoing Marathon deposit infill drilling campaign is focused on penetrating down through the main mineralized corridor as well as into the hanging wall and foot wall zones of the open pit (Figures 1 and 2). The infill drill holes are designed to increase confidence in the lateral and vertical continuity of high-grade gold mineralization by drilling between adjacent drill holes, intersect gold intervals in the hanging wall and footwall regions where there is previous widely spaced drilling, and convert inferred into measured and indicated resource categories.

• Main Zone: MA-19-377 intersected 3.37 g/t Au over 24.0 meters with 32.64 g/t Au over 1.0 meter and 13.11 g/t Au over 1.0 meter, as well as 1.80 g/t Au over 12.0 meters with 6.97 g/t Au over 1.0 meter.
   
• Main Zone: MA-19-378 intersected 2.27 g/t Au over 29.0 meters with 11.66 g/t Au over 2.0 meters and 6.38 g/t Au over 3.0 meters, as well as 4.09 g/t Au over 3.0 meters and 2.06 g/t Au over 6.0 meters.
   
• Main Zone: MA-19-390 intersected 3.18 g/t Au over 14.0 meters with 15.05 g/t Au over 1.0 meter and 6.79 g/t Au over 2.0 meters, as well as 7.55 g/t Au over 4.0 meters.
   
• Main Zone: MA-19-393 intersected 3.14 g/t Au over 9.0 meters with 6.37 over 4.0 meters and 2.72 g/t Au over 15.0 meters with 6.31 g/t Au over 2.0 meters.
   
• Footwall Zone: MA-19-388 intersected 6.70 g/t Au over 7.0 meters, MA-19-380 intersected 5.04 g/t over 3.0 meters, MA-19-383 intersected 5.13 g/t Au over 3.0 meters, and MA-19-385 intersected 6.09 g/t Au over 3.0 meters.
   
• An updated 3D Model of the Marathon Deposit showing drill holes MA-19-374 to MA-19-393 is available on our website by clicking on the Corebox tab at the top of the main page and it is also available at www.corebox.net. 

Program Update:

• The 2019 infill drilling campaign at the Valentine Gold Camp is resuming after a brief spring break with three drills operating at the Leprechaun Deposit and a fourth drill starting on geotechnical and condemnation drilling in later June or early July. Marathon Gold has drilled 73 holes totaling 19,868 meters at the Leprechaun and Marathon  deposits, representing approximately 44% of the planned 2019 infill drilling campaign.
   
• An Environmental Assessment Registration / Project Description was submitted to Federal and Provincial regulators on April 5, 2019 a key step in the overall regulatory approvals process. A decision on this stage of the EA process is due on May 31, 2019 by both levels of government.
   
• Check out the new 3D video posted on our website www.marathon-gold.com detailing what the project will look like as a mine.            

TORONTO, May 22, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Marathon Gold Corporation (“Marathon” or the “Company”) (TSX: MOZ) is pleased to announce additional positive results from the ongoing infill drilling into the Main Zone as well as Footwall and Hanging Wall Zones of the Marathon Deposit.  The Main Zone drilling is intended to upgrade inferred resources into measured and indicated resource categories as well as further prove the lateral and vertical continuity of the high-grade gold between adjacent drill holes. The Footwall and Hanging Wall drilling is confirming the presence of significant gold on the flanks of the Main Zone corridor which will assist in reducing the strip ratio of the open pit.  

“The winter infill drilling of the Main Zone of the Marathon Deposit has returned excellent results to date; showing strong correlation between high-grade gold intercepts in adjacent holes while the Footwall and Hanging Wall drilling has intercepting new gold zones to contribute to the overall economics of the open pit”, said Phillip Walford, President and CEO of Marathon Gold. “The 45,000-meter 2019 infill drilling campaign is on track for completion in August. Resource estimation for the PFS will begin once the metallic screen assays are back for Leprechaun Deposit.”

TABLE 1: Most significant assay intervals, Marathon Deposit, Valentine Gold Camp.

* MZ = Main Zone, HW = Hanging Wall, FW = Foot Wall 

Figure 1: https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ef9aac12-ab63-4f36-92f9-32f99773a325

Figure 2: https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/3d20ae5e-55de-4da0-85eb-1dab1e184566

Acknowledgments

Marathon acknowledges the financial support of the Junior Exploration Assistance Program, Department of Natural Resources, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Quality Assurance-Quality Control (“QA/QC”)

Sherry Dunsworth, M.Sc., P. Geo., Senior VP of Exploration, Marathon’s Qualified Person, has reviewed the contents for accuracy and has approved this press release on behalf of Marathon. Thorough QA/QC protocols are followed including the insertion of blanks and standards at regular intervals in each sample batch. Drill core is cut in half with one half retained at site, the other half tagged and sent to Eastern Analytical Limited in Springdale, Newfoundland. All reported core samples are analyzed for Au by fire assay (30g) with AA finish. All samples above 0.10 g/t Au in economically interesting intervals are further assayed using metallic screen to mitigate the presence of coarse gold. Significant mineralized intervals are reported in Table 1 as core lengths and estimated true thickness (80-95% of core length).

About Marathon

Marathon is a Toronto based gold company rapidly advancing its 100%-owned Valentine Gold Camp located in Newfoundland and Labrador, one of the top mining jurisdictions in the world.  Marathon has confirmed the feasibility of the Valentine Gold Camp, which currently hosts four near-surface, mainly pit-shell constrained, deposits with measured and indicated resources totaling 2,691,400 oz. of gold at 1.85 g/t and inferred resources totaling 1,531,600 oz. of gold at 1.77 g/t.  The majority of the resources occur in the Marathon and Leprechaun deposits, which also have resources below the current open pit shell.  Both deposits are open at depth and on strike.  Gold mineralization has been traced down almost a kilometer vertically at Marathon and over 350 meters at Leprechaun.  The four deposits identified to date occur over a 20-kilometer long system of gold bearing veins, with much of the 24,000-hectare property having had only minimal exploration activity to date.

The Valentine Gold Camp is accessible by year-round road and is in close proximity to the provincial electrical grid.  Marathon maintains a 50-person all-season camp at the property.  Recent metallurgical tests have demonstrated 93% to 98% recoveries via conventional milling and 53% to 77% recoveries via lower cost heap leaching at both the Marathon and Leprechaun Deposits.

To find out more information on the Valentine Gold Camp project, please visit www.marathon-gold.com.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION
Except for statements of historical fact relating to Marathon Gold Corporation, certain information contained herein constitutes "forward-looking statements". Forward-looking statements include statements that are predictive in nature, depend upon or refer to future events or conditions, or include words such as "expects", "anticipates", "plans", "believes", "considers", "intends", "targets", or negative versions thereof and other similar expressions, or future or conditional verbs such as "may", "will", "should", "would" and "could". We provide forward-looking statements for the purpose of conveying information about our current expectations and plans relating to the future and readers are cautioned that such statements may not be appropriate for other purposes.  By its nature, this information is subject to inherent risks and uncertainties that may be general or specific and which give rise to the possibility that expectations, forecasts, predictions, projections or conclusions will not prove to be accurate, that assumptions may not be correct, and that objectives, strategic goals and priorities will not be achieved. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to those identified and reported in Marathon Gold Corporation's public filings, which may be accessed at www.sedar.com.  Other than as specifically required by law, we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which such statement is made, or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, whether as a result of new information, future events, results or otherwise.