# Sy Mah

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'''Thian K. "Sy" Mah''' (August 2, 1926 &ndash; November 7, 1988)<ref name="Blaikie">{{cite journal|last=Blaikie|first=David|date=February–March 1989|title=Sy Mah, 1926-1988|journal=Athletics Magazine|location=Toronto, Ontario, Canada|url=http://edm.ouser.org/02/statue/n14se98d-symahstory.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090218011613/http://edm.ouser.org/02/statue/n14se98d-symahstory.htm|archive-date=2009-02-18|url-status=dead}}</ref> was an [assistant professor](/source/assistant_professor) of [physical education](/source/physical_education) at the [University of Toledo](/source/University_of_Toledo) and a [Canadian](/source/Canadians) [long-distance runner](/source/long-distance_runner) who held a [Guinness World Records](/source/Guinness_World_Records) mark for the most lifetime [marathon](/source/marathon)s (524).<ref name="Blaikie"/><ref name="Rowe">{{cite journal |last=Rowe |first=William J. |date= May 1991 |title=A World Record Marathon Runner with Silent Ischemia without Coronary Atherosclerosis |journal=Chest |volume=99 |issue=5 |pages=1306–1308 |issn=0012-3692 |pmid=2019205 |doi=10.1378/chest.99.5.1306 }}</ref>{{#tag:ref|The University of Toledo states Mah's official position as "assistant professor of health promotion and human performance".<ref name="Endowment">{{cite web |url=http://www.utoledo.edu/foundation/pdfs/endowmentreport2009.pdf |title=The University of Toledo and UT Foundation: 2009 Endowment Report |author=The University of Toledo Foundation |year=2009 |publisher=The University of Toledo Foundation |location=Toledo, Ohio |page=30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110725185545/http://www.utoledo.edu/foundation/pdfs/endowmentreport2009.pdf|archive-date=2011-07-25|access-date=December 26, 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref>|group="nb"}}

==Early life, education, and career==
The son of a [Chinese immigrant](/source/Chinese_immigrant) family, Mah was born in [Bashaw, Alberta](/source/Bashaw%2C_Alberta) in 1926.<ref name="Blaikie"/><ref name="Fu">{{cite web |url=http://edm.ouser.org/02/statue/kcfu_talk.htm |title=KC Fu's remarks - Sy Mah Statue dedication |work=Sy Mah Statue Dedication, Sept 13, 2002 |publisher=Esmond Mah |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021205052824/http://edm.ouser.org/02/statue/kcfu_talk.htm|archive-date=2002-12-05|access-date=December 26, 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> [English](/source/English_language) was his native language and he did not speak [Mandarin](/source/Mandarin_Chinese), but he was able to write his [Chinese](/source/Chinese_language) name.<ref name="Fu"/> He earned an [arts degree](/source/arts_degree) from the [University of Alberta](/source/University_of_Alberta) in 1952, a physical education degree from [McMaster University](/source/McMaster_University) in 1960, a [Bachelor of Education](/source/Bachelor_of_Education) from the [University of Toronto](/source/University_of_Toronto) in 1962, and a [master's degree](/source/master's_degree) in education from the University of Toronto around 1970.<ref name="Blaikie"/> Mah [taught](/source/taught) in [Ontario](/source/Ontario) from 1955 to 1970.<ref name="Blaikie"/> From 1970 to 1988, he also established and taught exercise and cardiac rehabilitation classes at the University of Toledo where he was a physical education instructor.<ref name="Blaikie"/><ref name="Plaque">{{cite web |url=http://edm.ouser.org/02/statue/6417a.jpg |title=Plaque Describing Statue |work=Sy Mah Statue Dedication, Sept 13, 2002 |publisher=Esmond Mah |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030606043345/http://edm.ouser.org/02/statue/6417a.jpg|archive-date=2003-06-06|access-date=December 26, 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="Monroe">{{cite news |title=Late UT teacher recalled, taught marathoning, finished 524 races |first=Mark |last=Monroe |url=http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081106/NEIGHBORS05/811050413 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130204234425/http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081106/NEIGHBORS05/811050413 |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 4, 2013 |newspaper=Toledo Blade |date=November 6, 2008 |access-date=December 26, 2010 }}</ref>

Mah joined the Chinese Association of Greater Toledo in 1970 and later served as its [program director](/source/program_director).<ref name="Fu"/>

==Running==
Mah, described as "an ordinary runner of ordinary speed", did not begin running marathons until he was 40.<ref name="Blaikie"/><ref name="Rowe"/> He reportedly took up the sport to prevent [heart disease](/source/heart_disease) that ran in his family.<ref name="Monroe"/> In 1964, he formed the Metro Toronto Fitness Club with three others, and later started the North York Track Club where he coached [Maureen Wilton](/source/Maureen_Wilton).<ref name="Blaikie"/><ref name="MTFC1">{{cite web |url=http://www.mtfc.ca/history.html |title=MTFC - History |author=Metro Toronto Fitness Club |publisher=Metro Toronto Fitness Club |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090504054402/http://www.mtfc.ca/history.html|archive-date=2009-05-04|access-date=December 29, 2010 |quote=It began as a suggestion at the quarter-mile track of a Toronto High School on Dominion Day where the four founding members Sy Mah, Don Farquharson, John Raymer and Roger Whittaker were competing with other adults. |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="Sutcliffe">{{cite web|url=http://irun.ca/issues/article.php?id=200&intIssueID=12|title=The Pioneer|first=Mark|last=Sutcliffe|date=November 2009|publisher=iRun|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706183502/http://irun.ca/issues/article.php?id=200&intIssueID=12|archive-date=2011-07-06|access-date=December 26, 2010|url-status=dead}}</ref> That club was considered one of the best in North America and Wilton was one of its star athletes.<ref name="Sutcliffe"/>

Mah and the 13-year-old Wilton both ran their debut marathons on May 6, 1967, at [York University](/source/York_University) in [Toronto](/source/Toronto), [Ontario](/source/Ontario).<ref name="Sutcliffe"/><ref name="IAAF">{{cite web |title=12th IAAF World Championships In Athletics: IAAF Statistics Handbook. Berlin 2009. |url=http://www.iaaf.org/mm/document/competitions/competition/05/15/63/20090706014834_httppostedfile_p345-688_11303.pdf |publisher=IAAF Media & Public Relations Department |location=Monte Carlo |page=653 |year=2009 |access-date=December 26, 2010}}</ref><!-- Second reference does not mention Mah, but it confirms the date of the marathon in which Wilton set her record. --> Wilton ran the first three laps of the five lap course with Mah and she went on to finish in a time of 3:15:23, a performance recognized as a [world best](/source/marathon_world_best_progression) by the [International Association of Athletics Federations](/source/International_Association_of_Athletics_Federations).<ref name="Sutcliffe"/><ref name="IAAF"/>{{#tag:ref|The Association of Road Racing Statisticians notes Maureen Wilton's official time as 3:15:22.8.<ref name="ARRS1">{{cite web |title=Marathon List for 1967 |url=https://www.arrs.run/MaraList/ML_1967.htm |work=Association of Road Racing Statisticians |access-date=December 26, 2010 }}</ref><ref name="ARRS2">{{cite web |title=World Marathon Rankings for 1967 |url=https://www.arrs.run/MaraRank/ATM_Mara1967.htm |work=Association of Road Racing Statisticians |access-date=December 26, 2010 }}</ref><ref name="ARRS3">{{cite web |title =World Best Progressions- Road |url=https://www.arrs.run/RecProg/RP_wwR.htm |work=Association of Road Racing Statisticians |access-date=December 26, 2010 }}</ref>|group="nb"}} Invited by Mah, [Kathrine Switzer](/source/Kathrine_Switzer) also ran that day – only sixteen days after her historic run at the [Boston Marathon](/source/Boston_Marathon).<ref name="Sutcliffe"/>

Mah ran the [Glass City Marathon](/source/Glass_City_Marathon) in [Toledo, Ohio](/source/Toledo%2C_Ohio) numerous times, his first at the inaugural event in 1971.<ref name="TRR-GCC History">{{cite web |url=http://www.toledoroadrunners.org/gcm/history.htm |title=Glass City Marathon Race History |author=Toledo Road Runners  |work=Toledo Road Runners |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010630040844/http://www.toledoroadrunners.org/gcm/history.htm|archive-date=2001-06-30|access-date=December 26, 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> By 1977, he completed his 100th marathon there with a 3:18:18 performance.<ref name="TRR-GCC History"/> Three years at the same race, his tenth on the Glass City course, Mah posted his 173rd.<ref name="TRR-GCC History"/> In 1981, Mah ran his 198th marathon to break the record for most marathons set by [Ted Corbitt](/source/Ted_Corbitt).<ref name="Blaikie"/> When possible, race directors would issue bib numbers to match his marathon total.<ref name="Blaikie"/> He would later run his 300th in Detroit (1983), his 400th in Virginia (1986), and his 500th in Boston (1988).<ref name="Blaikie"/> The 1984 [New York City Marathon](/source/New_York_City_Marathon) was Mah's 348th marathon and 35th of the year.<ref name="Bock">{{cite news |title=Marathon Week can be hazardous to health |first=Hal |last=Bock |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=O5IbAAAAIBAJ&pg=5808%2C8680238 |agency=AP |newspaper=Times-News |location=Hendersonville, North Carolina |date=October 26, 1984 |page=17 |access-date=January 11, 2011 }}</ref> At least one race director scheduled back-to-back marathons on Saturday and Sunday to help him add to his totals.<ref name="McNelly">{{cite web |url=http://edm.ouser.org/02/statue/emah_talk.htm |title=Don McNelly's remarks - Sy Mah statue dedication |work=Sy Mah Statue Dedication, Sept 13, 2002 |publisher=Esmond Mah |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021205053554/http://edm.ouser.org/02/statue/emah_talk.htm|archive-date=2002-12-05|access-date=December 26, 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Mah ran the Boston Marathon twenty times and was a regular participant in [ultramarathon](/source/ultramarathon)s and [triathlon](/source/triathlon)s as well as [cross-country skiing](/source/cross-country_skiing_(sport)) and [canoe](/source/canoe_sprint) races.<ref name="Blaikie"/><ref name="Rowe"/>

In recognition of his role in promoting the sport of [distance running](/source/distance_running), he was invited to participate in the 152-mile [Spartathlon](/source/Spartathlon) in [Greece](/source/Greece).<ref name="Mah">{{cite web |url=http://edm.ouser.org/02/statue/emah_talk.htm |title=I am Esmond Mah of Toronto, Sy's nephew |work=Sy Mah Statue Dedication, Sept 13, 2002 |publisher=Esmond Mah |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021205053554/http://edm.ouser.org/02/statue/emah_talk.htm|archive-date=2002-12-05|access-date=December 26, 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Although he did not finish the event, he was publicly honored by the Greeks for "his love of competition".<ref name="Mah"/> Mah's personal best over the marathon distance was 3:13, however, he felt he could go faster if determined to do so.<ref name="Blaikie"/> [Hal Higdon](/source/Hal_Higdon) commented that he believed Mah was capable of running a marathon under three hours if he trained for a specific race.<ref name="Higdon">{{cite book |last1=Higdon |first1=Hal |author-link1=Hal Higdon |title=Marathon: The Ultimate Training Guide |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J2q8mxzw6IsC |edition=3 |year=2005 |orig-year=1993 |publisher=Rodale, Inc. |isbn=9781594861994 |pages=20–21 }}</ref>

Mah's last race was a [50 kilometer](/source/ultramarathon) event [Labour Day](/source/Labour_Day) weekend, 1988, in [St. Jacobs, Ontario](/source/St._Jacobs%2C_Ontario); he dropped out of the [Toronto Marathon](/source/Toronto_Marathon) three weeks later.<ref name="Blaikie"/> Mah's record would last until 1994 when broken by Norm Frank of [Rochester, New York](/source/Rochester%2C_New_York).<ref name="Higdon"/>{{#tag:ref|According to Hal Higdon, Norm Frank had run 870 marathons by the end of 2004.<ref name="Higdon"/>|group="nb"}}

==Death and legacy==
Following a lingering bout of [hepatitis](/source/hepatitis), Mah died of [leukemia](/source/leukemia) at the [St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center](/source/St._Vincent_Mercy_Medical_Center) in Toledo, Ohio in 1988.<ref name="Blaikie"/> Following his death, he was a subject of a [case report](/source/case_report) that appeared in the May 1991 issue of the [medical journal](/source/medical_journal) ''[Chest](/source/Chest_(journal))''.<ref name="Rowe"/> According to that report, Mah received a [cardiac stress test](/source/cardiac_stress_test) nine months prior to his death which found "[ischemia](/source/cardiac_ischemia) with [disseminated](/source/disseminated_disease) circadian variation suggesting possible <nowiki>[</nowiki>[coronary vasospasm](/source/coronary_vasospasm)<nowiki>]</nowiki> without [angina](/source/angina)."<!-- Wikiformatted this way because actual citation states "CV". --><ref name="Rowe"/> [Autopsy](/source/Autopsy) revealed localized [fibrosis](/source/fibrosis) of the left [papillary muscles](/source/papillary_muscles), but no evidence of [coronary atherosclerosis](/source/coronary_atherosclerosis).<ref name="Rowe"/>

Mah has been described as "an early leader of the modern running boom".<ref name="MTFC2">{{cite web |url=http://www.mtfc.ca/history_2.html |title=MTFC - History pg 2 |author=Metro Toronto Fitness Club |publisher=Metro Toronto Fitness Club |page=2 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706185915/http://www.mtfc.ca/history_2.html|archive-date=2011-07-06|access-date=December 29, 2010 |quote=Sy was indeed an early leader of the modern running boom and the MTFC would not exist if not for him. |url-status=dead }}</ref> [Joe Henderson](/source/Joe_Henderson_(runner)) wrote an editorial in tribute to Mah in 1989.<ref name="Knaack">{{cite journal |last=Knaack |first=Jean |author-link=Road Runners Club of America |date=Summer 2010 |title=Executive Director's Note |journal=Club Running |page=6 |location=Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin |publisher=Running Network LLC }}</ref> According to Henderson, Mah stated: "I believe Americans have been brainwashed with the idea that they must do less because increased age will result in less energy and diminished capacity. I have found this is simply not true if a person does not allow his mind to accept the traditional view of aging."<ref name="Knaack"/>

Along with [Dick Beardsley](/source/Dick_Beardsley), [Herb Lorenz](/source/Herb_Lorenz), and [Harold Tinsley](/source/Harold_Tinsley), Mah was a 1989 inductee of the [Road Runners Club of America](/source/Road_Runners_Club_of_America)'s Hall of Fame.<ref name="Benyo">{{cite book |last1=Benyo |first1=Richard |author-link1=Richard Benyo |last2=Henderson |first2=Joe |author-link2=Joe Henderson (runner) |title=Running Encyclopedia: The Ultimate Source for Today's Runner |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Kqc1SkRr9UwC |year=2002 |publisher=Human Kinetics |location=Champaign, Illinois |isbn=9780736037341 |page=132 |chapter=Road Runners Club of America Hall of Fame Inductees |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Kqc1SkRr9UwC&pg=PA132 }}</ref>

The Sy Mah Memorial Scholarship at the University of Toledo was established in 1990 by Mah's friend and family.<ref name="Endowment"/> In addition to meeting various academic standards, qualified recipients within the College of Health Science and Human Service are required to be "avid social runners".<ref name="Endowment"/> A portion of the proceeds from the annual Glass City Marathon go to fund this award.<ref name="Monroe"/> Participants in that race pass by a life-size statue of Mah that was dedicated September 13, 2002 in Olander Park in [Sylvania, Ohio](/source/Sylvania%2C_Ohio).<ref name="Monroe"/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.glasscitymarathon.org/index.php/race-and-entry-information/marathon/ |title=Marathon Event Details |author=Glass City Marathon  |year=2010 |work=Glass City Marathon |access-date=December 26, 2010 |quote=A tour through Sylvania leads you to Olander Park, passing the statue of Sy Mah then back down the bike trail to a short tour of the UT campus concluding with a grand finish in the Glass Bowl Stadium. }}</ref> The statue was created by Thomas Lingeman, a Professor of Art at the University of Toledo, who was commissioned by the Toledo Road Runners Club.<ref name="Plaque"/>

At the annual [Sri Chinmoy](/source/Sri_Chinmoy) [24-Hour Race](/source/24-hour_run) in [Ottawa, Ontario, Canada](/source/Ottawa%2C_Ontario%2C_Canada), the Sy Mah Award is given to the runner who completes at least 100 miles and runs the most even 50-mile splits.<ref name="St Amand">{{cite web |url=http://ca.srichinmoyraces.org/2010-6-12-24-hr |title=Self-Transcendence 6 Hr, 12 Hr & 24 Hr Race 2010, Ottawa |first=Utsahi |last=St Amand |date=December 19, 2010 |work=Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team - Canada |publisher=Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team |access-date=December 26, 2010 |quote=Sy Mah Award for the 24 Hour runner who completes 100 miles or more and whose first and second 50 mile splits are closest }}{{dead link|date=April 2018|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> The wood-carved trophy is shaped to resemble an [hourglass](/source/hourglass) symbolizing Mah's "balance and steadiness".<ref name="St Wilson">{{cite web |url=http://ca.srichinmoyraces.org/6-12-24-hr-2010-summary |title=Post Event Summary 2010: The 6, 12 and 24-hour Self-Transcendence Race Ottawa 2010 |first=Medur |last=Wilson |date=October 4, 2010 |work=Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team - Canada |publisher=Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team |access-date=December 26, 2010 |quote=The trophy is a wood-carved hourglass that depicts the balance and steadiness that Sy Mah, a pioneer ultra-runner, strove for. }}</ref>

[https://www.utoledo.edu/library/canaday/HTML_findingaids/UM_62.html Mah's papers] are held at the Ward M. Canaday Center at the University of Toledo.

==Notes==
<references group="nb"/>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-ach|rec}}
{{succession box|before={{flagicon|USA}} [Ted Corbitt](/source/Ted_Corbitt)|title=[Guinness World Records - Most marathons](/source/Guinness_World_Records)|years=1981 &ndash; 1994|after={{flagicon|USA}} [Norm Frank](/source/Norm_Frank)}}
{{s-end}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mah, Sy}}
Category:1926 births
Category:1988 deaths
Category:Canadian men long-distance runners
Category:Canadian men marathon runners
Category:Canadian ultramarathon runners
Category:Men ultramarathon runners
Category:Deaths from leukemia in Ohio
Category:McMaster University alumni
Category:Track and field athletes from Alberta
Category:Sportspeople from Toledo, Ohio
Category:University of Alberta alumni
Category:University of Toledo faculty
Category:University of Toronto alumni
Category:People from Camrose County
Category:Canadian sportspeople of Chinese descent
Category:20th-century Canadian sportsmen

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Sy Mah](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sy_Mah) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sy_Mah?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.