2026 Winner

CASE SUMMARY

In 1980, Terry Fox's Marathon of Hope not only united Canada in the fight against cancer, it laid the groundwork for the Terry Fox Foundation (TFF), which remains a beacon of hope and innovation in cancer research 45 years later. The Marathon of Hope Cancer Centres Network (MOHCCN) unites Canada's top cancer centres to accelerate precision oncology, ensuring every Canadian cancer patient receives personalized treatment. While most Canadians know the Foundation, they weren't aware of MOHCCN and TFF’s broader contributions to revolutionizing cancer research.

To drive awareness, the Foundation created a bold brand platform and short film, “Finish It”. But with limited marketing funds, earned media would be the primary channel to reach Canadians.

The agency examined “Finish It” to identify storytelling angles that would drive maximum conversation. From general news to entertainment, health, and culture, they built a robust outreach strategy with layered story angles. The film used advanced technology to bring Terry to life in an unprecedented way, offering opportunities to lean into not only Terry’s story and legacy, but the story of the film itself.

Beyond Terry's legacy, they had another compelling story to tap into: the one of Gord Downie of The Tragically Hip. A never-before-heard version of Courage by The Tragically Hip served as the film's emotional backdrop and anthem, providing another avenue to attract attention and insert messaging about TFF's work. With Canadian pride at an all-time high amid trade war threats, the agency amplified the Canadian-ness of the campaign and the Canadian-first research contributions of MOHCCN and TFF.

On World Cancer Day 2025, they hosted a media event to premiere the film, creating a catalyst moment to own the news cycle. The event brought together the siblings of both Terry Fox and Gord Downie for the first time in public, alongside remarks from top cancer researchers and cancer survivors.

They trained numerous spokespeople for national interviews, as well as created a bank of regional spokespeople in key media markets throughout Canada, to drive a local connection. They secured embargoed interviews with top broadcast and print outlets, including an exclusive premiere on Your Morning, ensuring “Finish It” dominated the news cycle.

The campaign achieved record-breaking success for TFF, reaching national, regional, and community publications with over half a billion earned media impressions (501,128,000), 980 placements, and more than 20 spokesperson interviews that raised awareness for TFF and MOHCCN's work.

The launch event attracted cameras from every major broadcast network including CTV, CP24, Global News, and CBC, leading to coverage across major publications including CityNews, Postmedia, and The Globe and Mail.

Highly influential Canadians including Ryan Reynolds, Michael Bublé, Matty Matheson, Steve Nash, and Celine Dion organically reshared the film on social channels, reaching millions at no cost. This generated 15 million organic views across social platforms and a 900% increase in web traffic to the Terry Fox Foundation website, driving greater awareness and education about MOHCCN and the need to support this important cause.

Credits

Agnostic: Sarah Crabbe (President), Sherri-Lyn Brown (Senior Vice President), Mackenzie Biddie (Account Director), Jessica Hoffeldt (Associate Director), Alex Wilcox (Account Manager), Ricardo Fartura (Account Executive)

Terry Fox Foundation: Denise Dias (Chief Marketing & Communications Officer), Liam Hlynialuk (Manager, Marketing & Communications, Justine Moore (Designer), Melissa Woudstra (Digital Marketing Manager), Kris Wallace (Senior Writer)

Diamond: Peter Ignazi (Chief Creative Officer), Jordan Cohen (Group Creative Director), Mark Holden (Group Creative Director), Mark Graham (Head of Production), Lori Davison (Chief Strategy Officer), Rebecca Flaman (EVP, Client Partner), Erin Banting (VP, Strategy), Larissa Varga (Program Director), Evelyn Wong (Designer)