Book Review: Jim Thorpe Legendary Athlete

Native American Biographies: Jim Thorpe Legendary Athlete, Barbara Long, Enslow Publishers, Springfield, NJ, 1997.

When Jim Thorpe participated in the 1912 Olympics in Sweden, the king of Sweden declared Thorpe the greatest athlete in the world.  He won the pentathlon and the decathlon.  He came home and proved his athleticism by being a pioneer in professional football, and also playing professional baseball.  Thorpe excelled at football, at Carlisle University, playing for Pop Warner.  He would play defense, offense and kick.  He excelled at kicking.  As a result he scored more points than the normal athlete.  He would run for a touchdown, and also kick field goals.  Even after retiring he entertained crowds at halftime by showing his kicking prowess, standing in the middle of the field and kicking in turn both directions. 

Jim Thorpe was of Fox and Sauk ethnicity.  He is a descendant of the famous Sauk Chief Black Hawk.  He had a twin brother, but when he went hunting with his father his brother was left behind because he was ill.  He would die before they could see him again. 

Thorpe would marry three times, and was the father of 8 children.  His oldest son died of juvenile paralysis and Thorpe described this as the hardest time of his life.  He had three more daughters with his first wife, four sons with his second.  When he was elderly he remarried his third wife.  His first two marriages ended in divorce.  It is hard to maintain a family and travel as much as is required of an athlete. 

A few years after winning the two Olympic gold medals, it was discovered that Thorpe had been paid a nominal fee to play baseball.  As a result he lost his amateur status and the medals were taken away.   They were given back to the family after his death, and an appeal based on the Olympic rules that medals could not be taken away so long after they were given. 

At times Thorpe struggled to make a living after he retired form sports. 

Native American Biography: Jim Thorpe: Athlete

Canton Bulldogs

Miss-matched socks and shoes, 1912 Olympics

An argument could be made for Jim Thorpe as the greatest American athlete of all time.  He could do so many things and do them well.  He is of Sauk and Fox descent, and the great-grandson of Black Hawk, The Chippewa War Chief.  Both his parents were half Caucasian but he was raised in an Indian household.  He began his career on the football field, playing for "Pop" Warner at Carlisle Institute.  He then played semi-professional baseball (he was paid to play) a couple years and then returned to Carlisle for football.  In 1912 his football team won the national championship with an 11-1 record.  Thorpe played running back, defensive back, punted and kicked.  He scored 25 touchdowns and 198 points.  President Eisenhower, while a youth played against Thorpe, playing for Army.  Of Thorpe he said, "Here and there, there are some people who are supremely endowed. My memory goes back to Jim Thorpe. He never practiced in his life, and he could do anything better than any other football player I ever saw." In the game he ran a 93 yard touchdown, called back for a penalty, and he ran 97 yards for a touchdown the next play.  At the 1912 Olympics he showed his versatility.  He won the pentathlon and the decathlon.  He not only won the events but dominated.  Taking first in 8 of the 15 individual events.  He also competed well in the long jump and the high jump.  An interesting side note, Thorpe's shoes were stolen.  He competed in the decathlon in shoes he found in a trash can.  Because they were mismated, he wore heavy socks on one foot so they would fit.  He was also given two special awards, by the King of Sweden and the Czar of Russia.  Upon given him the award the Kind of Sweden reportedly said, "You are the Greatest Athlete in the World."  Thorpe replied, "Thanks Coach."  (This maybe anecdotal but the feeling was accurate.)  Thorpe was greeted by a ticker tape New York parade upon his return to America.  Later his gold medals were taken away because of his time playing professional baseball.  They were returned to his family in 1982.

With the New York Giant

He played basketball, baseball and football professionally, and retired in 1929.  He organized a professional Indian football team at one point, and although they didn't win many games, Thorpe played well and was honored as an all league player in the league which became the NFL.  DUring his career, when racial issues were prevalent, his race was sometimes an issue, particularly in the newspapers.  The papers would say such things as He passed away in Lomita, California in 1953.