The Swiss city of Lausanne — Jim Thorpe’s gold medals for the 1912 Olympic pentathlon and decathlon in Stockholm were taken away from him nearly 110 years ago for breaches of the strict amateurism requirements of the time.
Thorpe’s decathlon triumph and subsequent recognition by King Gustav V of Sweden as “the best athlete in the world” were commemorated on Friday with a statement by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Thorpe, a Native American, made a triumphant return to New York City in a ticker-tape procession. In the months following, it was uncovered that he had been paid to play minor league baseball for two summers, which is a breach of the Olympic amateurism criteria. His gold medals were seized in what has been dubbed the first major international sports corruption scandal.
Thorpe is regarded as one of the best athletes of all time by some. He was named Athlete of the Half Century in 1950 by the Associated Press after a public vote.
A replica gold medal was awarded to Thorpe’s family in 1982, 29 years after his death, by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Not even his Olympic records or status as the only gold medalist in the two competitions were reinstated.
Campaigns for Thorpe to be recognized as the indisputable winner of the 1912 pentathlon and decathlon were launched by Bright Path Strong a few years ago. The International Olympic Committee recognized him as a co-champion in the official record book.
“We commend the fact that thanks to the amazing engagement of Bright Path Strong, a solution could be reached,” said IOC President Thomas Bach. What you’re saying is that this is a truly unique situation and that the National Olympic Committees who were engaged have shown an incredible level of fair play in dealing with it.
A native American name, Watho-Huk, translates to “Bright Path,” which is Thorpe’s meaning. Anita DeFrantz, a member of the International Olympic Committee, assisted the organization in reaching out to the Swedish Olympic Committee and Hugo Wieslander’s family. The decathlon gold medal went to Hugo Wieslander in 1913.
Helping You Understand the World Through the Olympic Medal Table The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Swedish Olympic Committee both agreed that Wieslander never received the Olympic gold medal that had been assigned to him.
An official from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) stated, “The same declaration was acquired from the Norwegian Olympic and Paralympic Committee and Confederation of Sports.” “Ferdinand Bie was designated as the gold medallist when Thorpe’s pentathlon title was stripped,” the IOC stated.
Both the pentathlon and the decathlon will be won by Bie and Wieslander, who will each receive a silver medal.
Track and field’s governing organization, World Athletics, has also agreed to make changes to its records, according to the IOC.
Thanks to the IOC for “setting the record straight” on Sac, Fox, and Potawatomi, Bright Path Strong expressed its gratitude to the IOC.
Taffy Abel won a gold medal for the United States in the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris. Few people knew he was of Native American ancestry.
A member of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation and one of the organization’s co-founders, Nedra Darling, said the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation is “very grateful this nearly 110-year-old injustice has now been addressed, and there is no mistake about the most outstanding athlete in history.”
For years, the fact that Jim Thorpe had been the first Native American to win an Olympic gold medal had encouraged our people, according to the president of the National Congress of American Indians, Fawn Sharp.
During the Stockholm Games, Thorpe’s pentathlon score was three times higher than his nearest competitor’s, while his decathlon score was 688 points more than the runner’s score. up’s
King Gustav V told Jim Thorpe, “Sir, you are the best athlete in the world,” during the award ceremony. This praise meant a lot to Thorpe, who was overcome with emotion.