Today is Tom Longboat Day in Canada. Thomas Charles Longboat, Iroquois name Cogwagee, was an Onondaga distance runner from the Six Nations Reserve near Brantford, Ontario. Longboat, born in 1887, would go on to become the most globally known Canadian athlete of the first half of the 20th century. His dominant victory at the Boston marathon in 1907, with a lead of 5 minutes over the 2nd place finisher, was reported and celebrated around the world. Marathon racing at the time holding global cache.
In February 1916 Longboat enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Forces running messages between military posts, earning the nickname the “Bulldog of Brittania”.
After a tumultuous adulthood back in Canada, Longboat would pass away in 1949 at 61 on the Six Nations Reserve of his birth.
June 4th in Canada is Tom Longboat day.