Show NV the best allaround all around athlete FOR this nation has produced well still string with jim thorpe this angle came back to us as we ran into the big indian a few days ago just after he had finished a series of lectures to kids around the country on the matter of competition and physical development im still all for the Ind indians lans jim said but im only part indian im five eighths indian two eighths irish and one eighth french frenc li if you want to go into details maybe that just makes me anamer ican airedale over 30 years have passed by since pop warner saw a skinny young indian playing games around carlisle grantland rice abound alis at that time pop says 1 I never figured him tor for any coming star lie was a kid who ho weighed around pounds they told me he was fast but he be looked too thin how good was thorpe As a starter jim thorpe was the best allaround all around foote football all player I 1 ever saw 1 he was one of the best of all the running backs 2 he was one of the best of all the kickers punting place kicking and drop kicking 3 he was a high class blocker 4 he was a fine forward passer for those early days and a good pass receiver 5 he was a terrific defensive man tackling in the open or backing up a line 6 he was the most durable of the entire lot As I 1 recall it jim never took out a seconds time in many years I 1 once asked him it if he had ever been hurt in a game I 1 still recall his answer how can anybody get hurt playing football track and field we big jim won the decathlon the allaround all around championship in track and field back in the 1912 olympics xe ne was a high jumper a broad jumper a sprinter a weight man anything you might ask for and I 1 dont believe he trained 10 hours for the big show and they took away all 11 II his medals because he had bad played a game or two of semipro semi pro baseball this was completely unjust for thorpe was never a field or track professional at that time he wa was s not even listed as a pro ball player on the boat taking the team to sweden thorpe was seen one night sitting and looking along the deck someone asked him what he was thinking about im m just measuring the broad jump he said this is my training for that event I 1 figure I 1 can do 22 23 feet 8 inches which is just about what he did thorpe as a ban ball player was at least good enough to crash into the big leagues with the new york giants this fellow would be a great bau ban player mcgraw once told me except tor for one thing he cant learn to hit a curve bau ball and something no one can teach another all around stars there have been others who could do more things well than thorpe could do or ever had the chance to do but not on the big time for example harry fisher of williams was a star in at least eight baseball basketball tennis hockey squash swimming and one or two more elmer oliphant bant 0 of purdue and west point was another allaround all around brilliant at many games so was neil snow of michigan one of the best so was roy mercer of pennsylvania vie vic hanson of syracuse was another but none of these quite reached the heights in three major sp sports orts that big jim gained in the palmy palm y days of his career a career that extended over 15 years what gave thorpe these winning qualities in the first f place he was amazingly 9 quick and amazingly strong in the second place he was as durable as iron you hurt him with a crowbar in the third place he had a keen quick competitive brain in the fourth place he was completely fearless in the fifth place he was at his peak under pressure he reveled in the tougher going there was nothing that could make him tighten up heres one example exa mlle ln in one of the hardest ot of all the west point carlisle games played at the point thorpe was standing on his own goal line the signal had been beeam iven given g for a kick and his team was expecting it thorpe turned to the referee bill langford as I 1 recall it with this remark they think im going to kick but I 1 am not he faked a kick and ran the ball 85 yards down the field maybe there have been greater great er allaround all around stars with greater na natural tu qualities than the american airedale I 1 doubt it |