Jim Thorpe the greatest athlete of the 20th Century

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1 Jim Thorpe Describing Jim Thorpe as a great athlete would be doing him a severe injustice. A better description would be calling him the greatest athlete of the 20th Century. This label will probably be debated by many, but Thorpe's accomplishments speak louder than words. King Gustav V of Sweden told Thorpe: "Sir, you are the greatest athlete in the world."

2 James Francis Thorpe was born on May 28, 1887 in a one-room cabin near Prague, Oklahoma. Although there is much confusion on Thorpe's date of birth, this is the date according to his estate. He was born to Hiram Thorpe, a farmer, and Mary James, a Pottawatomie Indian and descendant of the last great Sauk and Fox chief Black Hawk, a noted warrior and athlete. Jim was actually born a twin, but his brother Charlie died at the age of nine. His Indian name, Wa-Tho-Huk, translated to "Bright Path", something that Thorpe definitely had ahead of him. In 1904, Thorpe started school at Carlisle Industrial Indian School in Pennsylvania. The establishment offered American Indians the opportunity to gain practical training in over 20 trades, in addition to off-campus employment at local farms, homes or industries. Thorpe began his athletic career at Carlisle, both playing football and running track. He was triumphantly selected as a third-team All-American in 1908, and in 1909 and 1910 he made the first team. Iconic football legend Glenn "Pop" Warner coached Thorpe at Carlisle and was able to see the young phenomenon evolve in his pursuant excellence with athletics. At the tender age of 24, Thorpe sailed with the American Olympic team to Stockholm, Sweden for the 1912 Olympic Games. Remarkably, he trained aboard the ship on the journey across sea. He blew away the competition in both the pentathlon and the decathlon and set records that would stand for decades. King Gustav V presented Thorpe with his gold medals for both accomplishments. As stated in Bob Berontas' "Jim Thorpe, Sac and Fox Athlete": "Before Thorpe could walk away, the king grabbed his hand and uttered the sentence that was to follow for the rest of his life. Sir,' he declared, 'you are the greatest athlete in the world,' Thorpe, never a man to stand on ceremony, answered simple and honestly, 'Thanks King.'" Thorpe's glorious Olympic wins were jeopardized in 1913 when it came out that he played two semi-professional seasons of baseball. The Olympics Committee had strict rules about Olympians receiving monetary compensation for participating in professional athletics. Thorpe, who stated he played for the love of the game and not the money, was put under the microscope. Ultimately, it was decided that his baseball experience adversely affected his amateur status in the track and field events. His name was removed from the record books and his gold medals were taken away. Thorpe moved on after the Olympic ordeal and signed to play baseball for the New York Giants. He played outfield with New York for three seasons before relocating and playing with the Cincinnati Reds in He played 77 games with the Reds before finally returning to the Giants for an additional 26 games. In 1919 he played his final season in major league baseball, ending on the Boston Braves team. During much of his baseball years, Thorpe was also immersed in professional football. He played for the Canton (Ohio) Bulldogs from 1915 until 1920 and the Cleveland Indiana (Indians) in In the years following, he organized, coached and played with the Oorang Indians, a professional football team comprised completely of American

3 Indians. Additionally, he was instrumental in forming the American Professional Football Association, and eventually became the president of the group. Through the years, the association evolved into today's NFL. In all, Thorpe played with six different teams during his career in pro football, ending with a stint with the Chicago Cardinals in Life after professional athletics was exciting for Thorpe. He worked as an extra in movies, served as superintendent of recreation in the Chicago Park System and was also quite vocal with matters of Indian affairs. He also had stints as a public speaker/lecturer and even led an all-indian song and dance troupe entitled "The Jim Thorpe Show." The Merchant Marines even had the honor of Thorpe's presence, as he served with beginning at age 58. Two monumental honors were bestowed unto Thorpe in 1950 when he was named "the greatest American football player" and the "greatest overall male athlete" by the Associated Press. Thorpe died on March 28, 1953 of a heart attack. The New York Times ran a front page story, remembering the athlete, stating that Thorpe "was a magnificent performer. He had all the strength, speed and coordination of the finest players, plus an incredible stamina. The tragedy of the loss of his Stockholm medals because of thoughtless and unimportant professionalism darkened much of his career and should have been rectified long ago. His memory should be kept for what it deserves--that of the greatest all-round athlete of our time." Thorpe's medals were finally restored to him posthumously in In addition, and most importantly to his family, his name was put back into the record books. In 1950, the nation's press selected Jim Thorpe as the most outstanding athlete of the first half of the 20th Century and in , he was awarded ABC's Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Century.

4 Billy Mills Born June 30, 1938 in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, Billy Mills is an Oglala Sioux Indian whose given Native-American name is Loves His Country. Although an outstanding long distance runner, Mills' accomplishment at the 1964 Summer Olympic games in Tokyo, Japan stands as one of the most shocking upsets in modern sports.

5 Mills grew up on an Oglala Sioux Indian reservation and was orphaned at the age of 12. He first became involved with distance running while attending the Haskell Institute, an Indian school in the city of Lawrence, Kansas. He had taken up running as part of a rigorous training program to become a boxer. However, he abandoned boxing in favor of running. His talent and hard work made him a natural at several distance events. Mills entered the University of Kansas in the late 1950s and proceeded to improve upon the times he had posted at the Haskell Institute. He was a 1958 and 1959 All-American in cross country while at Kansas. In 1960, Mills won the individual title in the Big Eight Conference's cross country tournament. The following year, Mills was the conference champion in the twomile race with a time just over nine minutes. The Kansas team, filled with gifted track and field athletes, won the 1959 and 1960 NCAA outdoor national championships. Mills went on to become a marine lieutenant and briefly abandoned running for a time. He concentrated on military life, but the lure of running pulled him back into the fray. While serving in the Marine Corps, he returned to racing, posting times that were good enough to qualify him for the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo. Mills was one of three Kansas track legends at the games that year. Discus thrower Alfred A. Oerter, already a two-time gold medalist in the event, would win his third in Tokyo. Also in Japan was a slim 17 year old high school runner named Jim Ryun. Running in the first of his three Olympic games, Ryun would later set a world record in the mile. Mills was entered in the 10,000 meter run, a race which no American had ever won in an Olympics. He was far from a high profile entrant. Many of the media hardly focused on the fact that he was even in the race. The lion's share of the attention was going to Australia's Ron Clarke, who at that time held the world record in the event. Tunisia's Mohammad Gammoudi also received much press as he was expected to be the chief rival of Clarke for the gold. Noticing the amazing events transpiring before him, one commentator began screaming on television "Oh my God, look at Mills! He's gonna win!" Mills later said that he kept telling himself over and over that he could win. He broke the tape with a new Olympic record time of 28 minutes and 24 seconds. His last lap time had been a scathing 59.8 seconds, and his overall time was nearly a minute faster than his personal best time in the event. A stunned crowd could not believe their eyes. Mills' notoriety was so low that a news person ran up to him after the race and said "Who are you?" After the Olympics, Mills went on to set several other records in distance running before retiring from competition. In 1965, he set an outdoor world record in the six mile run, along with U.S. records in the 10,000 meter and three mile races. He remains active in native American causes today. The 1984 movie "Running Brave" was based on his victory. To date, no other American has won a gold medal in the 10,000 meters.

6 Notah Begay Notah Begay III, the only full-blooded Native American on the PGA Tour, was born and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Introduced to the game of golf by accompanying his father to a local municipal course in Albuquerque, Notah quickly became one of the top junior golfers in the country. A three-sport standout at the Albuquerque Academy High School, Notah combined his success on the golf course with his dedication to education and earned a scholarship to Stanford University.

7 A three-time All American at Stanford, Notah led the 1994 Men s Golf Team to a National Championship and set the record for lowest round (62) in the NCAA Tournament along the way. Notah graduated from Stanford in 1995 with a degree in Economics and continues to emphasize the importance of education through his Scholarship Fund for Native American students. A 4-time PGA Tour winner, Notah became only the third player in the history of professional golf to shoot 59 in a professional event at the 1998 NIKE Dominion Open. One of three players in modern history to win two PGA Tour events in each of his first two seasons on Tour, Notah earned the opportunity to represent the United States in the 2000 President s Cup where he paired with Tiger Woods to compile a 3-2 record and helped the US team to victory. Notah dedicates his time and effort off the golf course to two main causes: The Notah Begay III Foundation and Notah s golf course design consulting business, NB3 Consulting, LLC. The Notah Begay III Foundation delivers sustainable programming for Native American youth in the form of soccer & golf programs. The programming is designed by Native Americans for Native American youth and is working to get native youth up andactive to prevent the future spread of diabetes.