i86 



REVIEW OF REVIEWS. 



April 1, 1913. 



Vndenrood] 



THE GREATEST ATHLETE IN 

 THE WORLD. 



Considerable excitement has been 

 caused in international sporting circles 

 by the disqualification of "Jim" 

 Thorpe, the hero of the recent Olympic 

 games at Stockholm. Thorpe, who was 

 described by the King of Sweden as the 

 greatest athlete in the world, is a full- 

 blooded Indian from America, whose 

 achievements have been nothing short of 

 marvellous. No professional is allowed 

 to enter for the Olympic games, and it 

 now appears that Thorpe had received 

 money for playing baseball in some 

 minor games in the States This of 

 course made him a professional, and 

 he has been disqualified as a result, hav- 

 ing to return all the prizes he won at 

 Stockholm, and also at the Amateur 

 Athletic L'nion championships in the 

 States, where he swept the board. The 

 Viking Ship prize for the Decathlon, 

 presented to him by the Russian Govern- 

 ment, goes to Weislander, of Sweden, 

 who finished second ; while Bie, of Nor- 

 way, will receive the bronze bust of the 

 King of Sweden, the prize for the penta- 

 thlon. 



It is right that the amateur should 

 be really an amateur, and the suspen- 

 sion of Thorpe will no doubt go a long 

 way towards purifying the ranks of 

 amateurs, but it is pretty hard on the 

 Fox and Sac Indian himself. There is 

 no doubt that he was quite innocent of 

 any desire to deceive. He does not ap- 

 pear to have realised that the few dol- 

 lars he received for playing baseball 

 when he was at college disqualified him 

 for all time from competing with ama- 

 teurs. Had he dreamed that was the 

 case he would never have taken the 

 money. He did not need it, having a 

 private income from his land, but find- 

 ing that other college men received 

 money for playing he followed their 

 example. He, however, played under 

 his own name, whereas the others all 

 played under assumed cognomens. 

 They therefore escape, whilst the far 

 finer athlete is punished. 



There is no doubt that many Ameri- 

 can boys, in order to enable them to pay 

 their college fees, do become profes- 

 sionals in this way. Whilst the object for 

 which they do it is laudable, it is well 

 that they should have this lesson, show- 

 ing them that they cannot keep their 

 amateur status if they raise the fees in 

 this way. Thorpe himself has emerged 

 pretty well out of the business. He 

 erred in ignorance. The wrath of the 

 athletic world is poured out upon those 

 who knew quite well that he was techni- 

 cally a professional, and yet never said 

 a w^ord about his selection to represent 

 America at the Games. The American 

 Olympic Committee has apologised to 

 the nations represented at the Games, 

 and has returned the prizes. 



Although the loss of the points 

 gained by Thorpe will reduce the com- 

 manding lead of the States, they still 

 stand hrst of all the competing nations. 

 That Thorpe is not a professional in 

 spirit is shown by his having refused 

 almost fabulous salaries if he would 

 play in either of the principal baseball 

 leagues, preferring to play for an almost 

 unknown Southern team, for which he 

 received the £^ a week which has now 

 disqualified him. There is no doubt 

 that he is one of the most wonderful all- 

 round athletes the world has ever seen. 



