James Francis "
Jim"
Thorpe (
Sac and Fox (Sauk):
Wa-Tho-Huk, translated as "Bright Path";[SUP]
[1][/SUP] May 28, 1888 – March 28, 1953)[SUP]
[2][/SUP] was an American athlete of both Native American and European ancestry. Considered one of the most versatile athletes of modern sports, he won Olympic gold medals for the 1912
pentathlon and
decathlon, played
American football (collegiate and professional), and also played professional baseball and basketball. He
lost his Olympic titles after it was found he was paid for playing two seasons of semi-professional baseball before competing in the Olympics, thus violating the
amateurism rules. In 1983, 30 years after his death, the
International Olympic Committee (IOC) restored his Olympic medals.
Of Native American and European American ancestry, Thorpe grew up in the
Sac and Fox Nation in
Oklahoma. He played as part of several All-American Indian teams throughout his career, and "
barnstormed" as a professional basketball player with a team composed entirely of American Indians.
He played professional sports until age 41, the end of his sports career coinciding with the start of the
Great Depression. Thorpe struggled to earn a living after that, working several odd jobs. Thorpe suffered from
alcoholism, and lived his last years in failing health and poverty.
In a poll of sports fans conducted by
ABC Sports, Thorpe was voted the Greatest Athlete of the Twentieth Century out of 15 other athletes including
Muhammad Ali,
Babe Ruth,
Jesse Owens,
Wayne Gretzky,
Jack Nicklaus, and
Michael Jordan.[SUP]
[3][/SUP][SUP]
[4][/SUP]
