On the anniversary of the first event held in Canada, Google Doodle pays homage to the famous Canadian runner and cancer activist Terry Fox. The DOODLE is a redesign of the regular Google logo and is seen as a picture of Terry running in a valley next to a lake by Toronto artist Lynn Scurfield. Over him, the sun rises and the clouds are “Google” in the sky.
This figure is a tribute to Terry’s initial “Marathon of Hope” which began 3 years after his bone cancer was detected on 12 April 1980. From St. John’s, N.L., Fox had been on his optimistic cross-country campaign to raise funds for cancer treatment by running almost 42 kilometers everyday for over four months. But cancer he battled was spreading to his lungs after he ran about 5,373 kilometers and he had to avoid running.
The last day of his Marathon of Hope was dated Sept. 1, 1980. At the age of 22 in the next year, Terry died in hospital. In his name, the first Terry Fox Run event took place in 760 locations throughout Canada on Sept. 13, 1981. The Terry Fox Run is also a global annual event as of now.
The Terry Fox Run will take place in Canada on Sept. 20 this year but it will be an online event this time. Participants are asked to make commitments and then go on a non-competitive run or stroll through their neighborhood. For this year’s race, nearly 14,000 athletes have raised more than $2 million. Fred told the audience that even though Terry couldn’t complete the “Marathon of Hope” on July 11th, 1980, Terry made a speech in Toronto “that other people have to continue this marathon”.
The initial goal of Terry was to generate $1 for every Canadian which is approx $24.17 million — just four months prior he died, the fundraising activities arranged the entire amount on his behalf. More than $800 million in the funding of cancer treatment in his honor has been collected ever since.
