Terry Stanley Fox

Born: July 28, 1958
Died: June 28, 1981
Place of Birth: Winnipeg, Manitoba

• In 1977 Terry Fox was a young athletic kinesiology student at Simon Fraser University.

• Finding he had pain in one knee, he was diagnosed as having a form of bone cancer.

• Prior to having his leg amputated above the knee, he read a story of an amputee who ran in the New York Marathon.

• At the hospital, he felt sorry for those who had related cancer problems, especially the children.

• He decided he would make a marathon run across Canada to raise money specifically for cancer research.

• With help from the Canadian Cancer Society, Fox began his "Marathon of Hope" run at St. Johns, Newfoundland on April 12, 1980.

• Covering 26 miles a day, he continued to run with a hop-skipping motion across six provinces.

• When Fox reached Thunder Bay, Ontario, it was discovered the cancer had spread to his lungs.

• Promising that he would fight his disease, Fox returned to British Columbia for further rest and treatment.

• Canadians responded by pledging to have the run on a yearly basis and numerous contributions started to come in.

• No individual in Canada ever had the impact on the status of "hero" as this young man.

• The Marathon of Hope idea has spread around the world and it is estimated to have raised over 300 million dollars and still growing.

• Prior to his death, he was given many awards and recognitions including the Lou Marsh award for athletic accomplishment.

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Last Updated: June 13, 2006
© Canada-Heros/Don Jones 2003