‘Jim Thorpe Gets His Gold’

This is all heart-warming but does this mean that all those who violated their ‘amateur’ standing will be retroactively awarded their medals, or is this only reserved for ‘Indigenous’ (American Indian) violators of the Olympic Code?

“Native American athlete Jim Thorpe was reinstated as the winner of the 1912 Olympic pentathlon and decathlon in Stockholm, after he was stripped of his gold medals for more than a century for violating amateur sports rules at the time.

“The International Olympic Committee declared Thorpe the winner of the events, which coincided with the 110th anniversary of his decathlon win. King Gustav V of Sweden proclaimed him as “the greatest athlete in the world“.

“Thorpe, a Native American, had his medal removed after he had been paid to play minor league baseball over two summers, an infringement of the Olympic amateurism rules. He was stripped of his gold medals in what was described as the first major international sports scandal.

“We welcome the fact that, thanks to the great engagement of Bright Path Strong, a solution could be found“,

IOC President Thomas Bach said.

“This is a most exceptional and unique situation, which has been addressed by an extraordinary gesture of fair play from the National Olympic Committees concerned.”

“Thorpe’s Native American name, Wa-Tho-Huk, means “Bright Path“. He was the first Native American to win an Olympic gold medal for the United States.”

–‘Native American Jim Thorpe Reinstated as Winner of 1912 Olympic Golds’,

Buffalo Tribune, July 17, 2022

https://www.newstbt.com/post/native-american-jim-thorpe-reinstated-as-winner-of-1912-olympic-golds

“…The International Olympic Committee made the announcement on Friday, the day of the 110th anniversary of his decathlon victory.

“The ‘Bright Path Strong’ organization, with the support of IOC Member Anita DeFrantz, reached out to the Swedish Olympic Committee and the surviving family members of Hugo K. Wieslander, the athlete who was given the Olympic title when Thorpe’s was taken away in 1913.

“Wieslander’s family confirmed that he never accepted that gold medal, and said they always considered Thorpe as the legitimate winner. The Norwegian Olympic and Paralympic Committee and Confederation of Sports gave the same confirmation regarding Ferdinand Bie, the man who was given Thorpe’s gold medal in the pentathlon event. Wieslander and Bie’s names will be displayed as silver medalists in their respective competitions…”

–‘Jim Thorpe reinstated as winner of the 1912 Olympics pentathlon and decathlon gold medals’,

Isabel Gonzalez, CBS Sports, July 15, 2022

https://www.cbssports.com/olympics/news/jim-thorpe-reinstated-as-winner-of-the-1912-olympics-pentathlon-and-decathlon-gold-medals/

See also:

‘Jim Thorpe‘ {Mar.1, 2021}

https://bloginsidesports.wordpress.com/2021/03/01/jim-thorpe/

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