Tom Longboat

Biography

A dominant long distance runner in the early 20th century, Tom Longboat is one of Canada’s most famed athletes. A member of the Onondaga First Nation, he won the 1907 Boston Marathon, taking more than five minutes off the course record. He entered the London 1908 Olympic marathon as a favourite, but while running in second place, he collapsed from exhaustion just six miles from the finish. After turning professional, he became world champion the following year. In 1912 he set the world record over 15 miles. In 1916, he enlisted to serve in World War I and became a dispatch runner with the 107th Pioneer Battalion. Despite being wounded twice, he returned home to Canada in 1919. Longboat passed way in 1949 at the age of 61. He was inducted to Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame in 1955 and Canada’s Olympic Hall of Fame in 1960.