National Track & Field Hall of Fame Acceptance Speech on behalf of Ted Corbitt Thank you USATF and congratulations to all the inductees and award winners tonight. That was one special tribute tape – thank you. My father was influenced as a sprinter in high school and college by Ralph Metcalf and Jessie Owens. His introduction to the marathon came from seeing a newsreel of Tarzan Brown winning the 1939 Boston Marathon. I’m currently documenting my father’s story. I’d like for it to be part of a history preservation movement where the stories of all the pioneers of our sport are properly preserved. I’d like to highlight some names that are part of running history. Before Ted Corbitt - African American champion long distance runners Lou White and Frank Dixon were winning races. There was a time when the longest distance a female could compete in officially in the United States was 200 Meters. Ladies like Grace Butcher, Chris McKenzie and Julia Chase Brand fought to change this. Before Jeff Darman led the Road Runners of Club of America (RRCA) in the 1970s, there was Gar Williams and Browning Ross. We should never forget Browning Ross’s contribution to our sport. Before the integration of any of the professional sports leagues in this country, there was the New York Pioneer Club (NYPC) founded by three African Americans in 1936 in Harlem, New York. The team was led by Mr. Joseph Yancey, and Mr. Edward Levy. This integrated athletic team was making civil rights history in the 1940s and 1950s. A club that also fielded championship race walking teams led by Elliott Denman. Of the nine New York Road Runner Club Presidents over the years, four were New York Pioneer Club members including Allan Steinfeld. My father’s mentor in course measurement and co-founder of New York Road Runners Club, John Sterner represented the team as a runner and race walker. As a sport let’s do all we can to preserve this history. My father didn’t throw anything away and I’ve been able to put his life in running and physical therapy on-line at tedcorbitt and on Facebook at Ted Corbitt – Pioneer. Between 1954 – 1959 in National AAU championship races, he finished among the top five runners- 50% of the time. In New York Metropolitan AAU championship races, he finished among the top three runners – 90% of the time. For 12 years between 1969 – 1981, he held the distinction of having finished more marathon than anyone else in the history of the sport. He’s also been credited with coining the term ultramarathon which refers to races beyond 26.2 miles. At age 82 in 2001, he set an age group world record in a six day race covering 303 miles. My mother Ruth Corbitt gave so much love, support and encouragement to my father. His experimental training while working full-time included 300 mile training weeks, and 1,000 mile training months. His largest contribution to the sport was his pioneering work in establishing a certification process in the United States to ensure road running courses are accurately measured. My mother supported all the paperwork and time he put into being a “Founding Father of Long Distance Running in U.S.” Our kitchen table was often turned into print shop with a mimeograph machine publishing the New York Road Runners quarterly newsletters, the first national RRRCA Newsletters, race entry forms, and other collateral materials. When you look at how my father approached his career in physical therapy you gain a good understanding of who he was. He studied from the best including taking classes when he was his 80s. He taught generations of therapist at Columbia University and New York University. He applied the axiom “once you learn – then you teach.” He had an amazing success rate in healing people who were first told they needed surgery. In life it’s not the number of titles or records that count, but what your impact was on people. David Katz one our leaders in ensuring accurately measured road races are the norm said it well to me recently. My father didn’t speak with words but with actions. He set an example that inspired you to do better. You wanted to do better. I’m happy to share this evening with family members and we thank you for this honor. Gary Corbitt December 4, 2014
Posted on: Tue, 23 Dec 2014 17:06:49 +0000
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