Thirty-five years ago, Terry Fox dipped his prosthetic leg into the Atlantic Ocean off St. Johns, N.L. and pushed forward to take the first steps on his Marathon of Hope.
Fueled by a desire to raise money and awareness for cancer research, the young Canadian athlete ran more than halfway across the country to share his message.
But with 5,373 kilometres behind him, his own bone cancer spread to his lungs, ending aspirations to finish his marathon 143 days after its start. He died at 22.
Now there’s a new heritage minute paying tribute to the B.C.-raised icon “whose importance seems to grow with each new generation,” Historica Canada president and CEO Anthony Wilson-Smith said on Tuesday.
The new video weaves together reenactments, Fox’s own words, and archival footage. In a statement, Fox’s brother Darrell reflected on the impact Terry’s Marathon of Hope has had on Canadians across the country.
“You could spend a lifetime standing on the shoulder of the roads of Canada watching Terry run and taking in the impact he was having on others with every step,” he said.
Watch the new heritage minute tribute to Terry Fox above.
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