Jim Thorpe, without a doubt. They don't come any more "all-around" than Thorpe.
Thorpe (May 28, 1887 – March 28, 1953) is considered one of the most versatile athletes in modern sports. He won Olympic gold medals in the pentathlon and decathlon, starred in college and professional football, played Major League Baseball, had a career in basketball, and played lacrosse.
He gained nationwide attention for the first time in 1911. As a running back, defensive back, place-kicker, and punter for his school's football team, Thorpe scored all of his team's points—four field goals and a touchdown—in an 18-13 upset of Harvard. His team finished the season 11-1. The following year, he led Carlisle to the national collegiate championship. Carlisle's 1912 record includes an impressive 27-6 victory over Army. Thorpe won All-American honors in both 1911 and 1912.
In the Olympics, Thorpe entered the decathlon and pentathlon as well as the long jump and high jump competitions. The first event scheduled was the pentathlon. Thorpe was the class of the field, winning four events. He placed only third in the javelin, an event he had not contested before 1912. Thorpe scored points more than the runner-up
The same day he won the pentathlon gold, Thorpe qualified for the high-jump final. In that final, he placed fourth, and took seventh place in the long jump. Thorpe's final event was the decathlon, where Thorpe finished 700 points ahead of the second place athlete. Thorpe placed in the top four of all ten events.
Daley Thompson was a great decathalete, but he failed to match Bob Mathias' feat of winning two consecutive Olympic decathalons.
2006-07-17 06:01:46
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answer #1
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answered by chairman_of_the_bored_04 6
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