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FORT MCMURRAY — Fort McMurray residents will join communities across Canada this Sunday for the annual Terry Fox Run, raising money for cancer research and continuing a tradition that began with Fox’s Marathon of Hope.
The Fort McMurray run takes place Sept. 20 as part of a national event held in hundreds of communities across the country.
Participants can register individually, join or create a team, sponsor runners or volunteer as part of the event.
The Terry Fox Foundation says the runs are entirely volunteer-driven and remain one of the country’s largest grassroots fundraising efforts for cancer research.
Fox was 18 and living in Port Coquitlam, B.C., when he was diagnosed with osteogenic sarcoma above the knee, leading to the amputation of his leg.
His experience with cancer and other patients inspired him to begin the Marathon of Hope in 1980, with the goal of raising $1 from every Canadian for cancer research.
Fox died on June 28, 1981, but had reached that fundraising goal before his death.
The movement that followed has since grown far beyond the original Marathon of Hope.
The Terry Fox Foundation says more than $1 billion has now been raised since Fox began his cross-country effort.
In 2025 alone, more than $51 million was raised to advance cancer research.
The Foundation says 859 researchers and 269 research projects across Canada were supported during the year.
Community Terry Fox Runs raised about $13 million in 2025, while school events raised another $15.75 million.
The network is focused on areas including precision oncology, artificial intelligence and data-driven cancer research aimed at improving how cancer is prevented, diagnosed and treated.
The Foundation says more than 6,000 teams and 10,000 schools participated in Terry Fox initiatives during the past year, with events also held in 40 countries.
The Terry Fox Run takes place Sunday, Sept. 20.
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