Ted Corbitt Chronology
| 1919 | Born January 31st Dunbarton, South Carolina to Alma Bing & John Henry Corbitt |
|---|---|
| 1938 | Graduated Woodward High School – Cincinnati |
| 1942 | Graduated University of Cincinnati |
| 1944 | U.S. Army – World War 11 |
| 1946 | Married Ruth Eva Butler |
| 1947 | Joined the New York Pioneer Club |
| 1949 | Began a 44 year career at the Institute for Crippled & Disabled. |
| 1950 | Earned a Master's Degree – New York University – Physical Therapy |
| 1951 | Ran his first marathon at Boston. |
| Son Gary born | |
| 1952 | Represented the US Olympic Team in the Marathon at Helsinki, Finland. |
| 1953 | Our World article “Brighter Horizons” July |
| 1954 | U.S. National Marathon Champion |
| 1955 | Sports Illustrated article, April 18 |
| Radio interview with Chris Schenkel | |
| Ebony Magazine article, July | |
| Our World article “Life in Your Hands” July | |
| Alternate to 1955 Pan American Games Team | |
| Canadian National Marathon Champion | |
| 1956 | Alternate to 1956 Olympic Team |
| Set an American Record for the Marathon on the track – 2:42:25 | |
| U.S. National Champion at 30 Kilometers | |
| Studied Connective Tissue Massage from the originator of this technique Elizabeth Dicke in West Germany. | |
| 1957 | U.S. National Champion at 30 Kilometers |
| 1958 | First President New York Road Runners Club |
| Started a quarterly New York Road Runners Newsletter. Editor for 20 years. | |
| Personal best marathon time set in Philadelphia – 2:26:44 | |
| Finished an unofficial 6th place at the Boston Marathon after failing the pre-race physical. | |
| Al Confalone and John Lafferty also failed the pre-race physical. | |
| Began teaching at Columbia University. | |
| 1959 | Won the first ultramarathon conducted by the New York Road Runners club. The distance was 30 miles in 3:04:13. |
| 1960 | Became the third national president Road Runners Club of America. |
| Co-authored a book on Hydrotherapy. | |
| Started the National Road Runners Club Newsletter now called “Club Running” | |
| Studied PNF stretching (Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation with Margaret Knott and Boston University. | |
| 1962 | Made the first of six trips overseas to run London to Brighton 52.5 Mile Road Race. |
| Set a U.S. Road and Newcomer Record with a 4th place finish. | |
| 1963 | National RRC Ultramarathon 44 Mile Championship |
| 1964 | Wrote a book on Measurement of Road Running Courses. |
| 2nd place finish at London-to-Brighton 52.5 Mile race – set U.S. road record | |
| 1965 | First Chairman of the National Standards Committee which certified accurate distances of road race courses. |
| 2nd place finish at London-to-Brighton 52.5 Mile race | |
| 1966 | Ran 312.5 training miles for a 7 days - during a work week. |
| Set U.S. Record for 50 Miles on the track. | |
| 5th place finish at London-to-Brighton 52.5 Mile race | |
| Became the second runner in history to finish 100 marathons. | |
| 1968 | 13 year streak of running two workouts per day ended. |
| U.S. National 50 Mile Champion | |
| 1969 | Completed 132nd marathon to surpass Mike O’Hara and begin holding the record for 12 years of having run more marathons than anyone in the history of the sport. |
| Ran 1,002 training miles in July. | |
| Set U.S. Record for 100 Miles on the track. | |
| 2nd place finish at London-to-Brighton 52.5 Mile race – set U.S. and masters road record | |
| 1970 | At age 51, set an American age group record for 50 miles on the road of 5:34:01. The record still stands today 43 years later. |
| 1971 | Inducted to Road Runners Club of America Hall of Fame |
| 1972 | Tied the record of Clarence DeMar for most consecutive Boston Marathons run under 3 hours, at 19 times, from 1954 to 1972. |
| Studied PNF stretching (Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation with Dorothy Voss at Northwestern University. | |
| 1973 | Ran 207.2 training miles during a five day work week averaging 41.4 miles per day. |
| Ran 50 mile training runs (3 workouts), on a workday. This was done in August and October. | |
| Set U.S. Record for 24 Hours on the track. | |
| 1974 | Subject of a biography called Corbitt. |
| 1975 | Suggested the concept of a Five Borough race to celebrate the Bicentennial. This became the Five Borough New York City Marathon. |
| 1981 | Inducted to University of Cincinnati Athletic Hall of Fame |
| 1993 | Retired from The Institute for Crippled & Disabled. He continued to treat patients until September 2007. |
| 1998 | Inducted in the inaugural class Distance Running Hall of Fame. |
| 2001 | Set a World Age Record 303 Miles in a 6 Day Race at age 82. |
| 2003 | Walked 68.7 Miles in 24 Hours. The race celebrated the 30th Anniversary of his American Record. This was Ted Corbitt’s 223rd and last marathon/ultramarathon. |
| 2004 | Journeyed to Athens, Greece to see the birthplace of the Olympic Games. |
| 2005 | Returned to Helsinki, Finland to attend the World Track & Field Championships. |
| 2007 | Lifetime Achievement Award Runner’s World Heroes of Running |
| Life is the ultimate marathon; stay on the course and stay strong. | |
| December 12, 2007 |
Ted Corbitt's Last Speech
I ran and won my first race, 60 yards, in 1933. I wanted to be a sprinter but too frequent hamstring muscle injuries ruled that out.
In time, I became addicted to running long, long distance runs, and inspired others to do it better.
In addition to training extensive mileage, I spent years doing administrative stuff in the background, to help our sport survive and grow. At times I referred to myself as a reluctant dragon. I pulled this overloaded life off because I lucked out in my choice of a wife.
I had successes, but mistakes, and failing to master the art of tapering off between killing training and races, and lady luck, all affected race results.
In 2002, at age 83, I walked 303 Miles in a 6 day running race. I would have loved to have run in a couple of 6 day races in an effort to join the few men who have run 600 miles in 6 days.
Ted Corbitt
November 3, 2007
Acceptance Speech Runner’s World Heroes of Running Awards Ceremony