Ted Corbitt, 1919-2007
A Man Who Set the Standards

New York, December 12, 2007—Theodore (Ted) Corbitt, the founding president of New York Road Runners, a 1952 Olympian, a champion ultrarunner, and a pioneer in the field of course measurement and certification, died today at age 88. A longtime resident of Upper Manhattan, he had been ill with cancer, and he died peacefully, surrounded by loving friends and family members. NYRR mourns the loss of this extraordinary man and extends our condolences to Corbitt's family.

"It is with heavy hearts that we share that the first-ever president of NYRR and a 1952 Olympian passed away this morning," said NYRR president and CEO Mary Wittenberg. "But it is also with added inspiration that we forge ahead with our important work at NYRR. Ted was a quiet yet tremendous force at NYRR and in our sport. As pioneer, leader, and our first president he set the tone and tempo of making a positive difference for so many that we continue to promote today."

Corbitt was born on a cotton farm in South Carolina, the grandson of slaves. In his early childhood, he spent many hours listening to stories of his grandfather's running accomplishments. When Corbitt himself started running competitively in high school, in Cincinnati, his mother warned him not to run in the streets. No one—and especially no African-American man—ran through the streets in 1938. He later ran track for the University of Cincinnati, but he was sometimes barred from competing in track meets when white athletes refused to compete against a black man. After serving in the U.S. Army during World War II, Corbitt earned a graduate degree in physical therapy from New York University.

Despite discrimination and segregation, Corbitt won multiple American and Canadian championships, set numerous American track records, and finished the Boston Marathon in under three hours an incredible 21 times, a record that still stands. He represented the United States in the marathon at the 1952 Olympic Games in Helsinki. Through these and other accomplishments, he is considered to have played a crucial role in breaking down race barriers in the sport.

Corbitt's greatest running achievements, though, were at ultramarathon distances (beyond the 26.2 miles of the marathon). When training for ultras, he sometimes ran up to 300 miles per week, including 62-mile double-loops runs around Manhattan. When his body broke down, he took ice baths, practiced self-massage, and used experimental taping methods—all unusual practices at the time. Wherever he saw a need, he worked toward fulfilling it. "I tested theories and techniques on myself," he said. "If they worked, I'd pass them on to my friends. If they didn't, it was back to the drawing board." His running life was one long experiment to see how far and how fast the human body could go. He competed internationally in ultradistance events into his 80s.

Corbitt made revolutionary contributions toward professionalizing road racing as a sport, particularly by establishing standards for measuring and certifying courses. Frustrated by courses that were either too long or too short, he improved upon a calibration system that he imported from England that used a bicycle, not a car, as the measurement tool. In 1964, Corbitt's enhanced system was adopted by the national governing bodies of road racing and track and field, and it is still used today to sanction courses.

In 1958 the newly formed Road Runners Club-New York Association, which later became New York Road Runners, elected Corbitt as its first president. The organization numbered 40-odd members and had its first meeting at Macombs Dam Park in the Bronx. On the eve of its 50th anniversary, NYRR now has more than 45,000 members and is one of the world's foremost running organizations.

Despite his wide range of extraordinary accomplishments, Corbitt was a humble, quiet man who seemed almost embarrassed to attract attention. To him, his groundbreaking runs were something he did to see if they were possible. He also expressed surprise that the sport of running grew to such popularity. "To be honest, I was never that optimistic that running would grow the way it has to become our nation's favorite pastime," he said.

In November Corbitt received a "Heroes" Lifetime Achievement Award from Runner's World magazine. Until his final months, he was still living as though there wasn't enough time in the day to get things done. He had weekly appointments with physical-therapy clients, answered e-mails daily, and was working toward a goal of walking every street in Manhattan. (He had finished the north-south blocks and was working on the east-west ones.) This was a man about whom it could be said without exaggeration that nothing in life could stop him.

Ted Corbitt racing in Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx in 1957.
[Tribute Video]