Thorpe honored as Athlete of the Century by ABC

Two daughters of Oklahoma native Jim Thorpe said they are thrilled he was named Athlete of the Century by ABC's Wide World of Sports before the Super Bowl. "I am absolutely super-plus delighted,"

Monday, January 31st 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

Two daughters of Oklahoma native Jim Thorpe said they are thrilled he was named Athlete of the Century by ABC's Wide World of Sports before the Super Bowl. "I am absolutely super-plus delighted," said 77-year-old Grace Thorpe, who with her sister Gail campaigned hard for her father to get Athlete of the Century honors.

The honor was voted on by visitors to ABC's Web site, who could read the biographies of the 10 finalists for the award and vote for their candidate. Thorpe garnered more than half of the vote, with basketball star Michael Jordan finishing a distant second. The title was announced before ABC's Super Bowl telecast.

The award was fitting, said Grace and Gail, since their dad was one of the first professional football players in the country and president of the league that would become the National Football League. The NFL's Most Valuable Player award is named in his honor. Thorpe was third on The Associated Press poll of Athletes of the Century and named AP's Top Athlete of the first half of the century.

The sisters were glad their father received the honor on national television in front of millions of viewers. "Dad is vindicated because it was the people who voted," said Grace. Thorpe was born into the Sac and Fox Nation in a one-room cabin in 1887 in Keokuk Falls, Okla., which later became Prague. His first job was running after horses, said Grace. His Indian name was "Bright Path."

In the 1921 Olympics held in Stockholm, Sweden, Thorpe became the only man to win gold medals in the pentathlon and decathlon. He was a world-class high jumper and three-time All-American in football. Thorpe also played professional baseball and was an outstanding golfer, swimmer, rower, gymnast and tennis player.