Our volunteer and event-based staff are associated with a local charity. Please consider making a donation to them, as a thank you for making this race possible. The Canadian Tulip Legacy was established to celebrate the historic Royal gift of tulips from the Dutch to Canadians immediately following the Second World War as a symbol of international friendship. The Festival preserves the memorable role of the Canadian troops in the liberation of the Netherlands and Europe, as well as commemorates the birth of Dutch Princess Margriet in Ottawa during World War II—the only royal personage ever born in Canada. The Canadian Tulip Legacy produces the Canadian Tulip Festival each Spring and has been celebrating the tulip, an international symbol of friendship and peace, since 1953.