The Greatest American Athlete
The railroad station was jammed. Students from Lafayette College were crowding onto the train platform eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Carlisle Indian School's track and field squad. NO one would have believed it a few months earlier. A school that nobody had heard of was suddenly beating big， famous colleges in track meets. Surely these Carlisle athletes would come charging off the train， one after another，like a Marine battalion .
The train finally arrived and two young men——one big and broad，the other small and slight——stepped onto the platform.
“Where is the track team?” a Lafayette student asked.
“This is the team，” replied the big fellow.
“Just the two of you?”
“Nope ， just me，”said the big fellow.“This little guy is the manager.”
The Lafayette students shook their heads in wonder. Somebody must be playing a joke on them. If this big fellow was the whole Carlisle track team， he would be competing against an entire Lafayette squad.
He did. He ran sprints， he ran hurdles， he ran distant races.He high-jumped， he broad-jumped.He threw the javelin and the shot. Finishing first in eight events， the big fellow beat the whole Lafayette team.
The big fellow was Jim Thorpe， the greatest American athlete of modern times.
火车站挤得水泄不通。拉斐德学院的学生们一齐拥上站台，热切地等待着卡莱尔印地安人学校田径队的到来。倘若在几个月前，准没有人相信，一个谁也没听说过的学校，会在田径场上突然大败许多有名的大学。不用说。这些卡莱尔的运动员抵达后，准会象一营海军陆战队队员那样，一个接一个冲下火车。
火车终于到站了，两个年轻人——一位，个儿高，体态魁梧;另一位，个儿矮，长相瘦弱——踏上了站台。
“田径队在哪儿?”一位拉斐德的学生问道。
“就在这儿，”大个子回答道。
“就你们两个?”
“不，就我一个，”大个子说。“这位小兄弟是领队。”
拉斐德的学生们诧异地摇摇头。一定有人在和他们开玩笑。如果卡莱尔田径队就只有大个子一人，那他就得和整个拉斐德田径队比试高低了。
确实如此。他短跑、跨栏、长跑、跳高、跳远。他又投标枪又掷铅球。大个子赢得八项第一，一个人击败了整个拉斐德田径队。
这位大个子就是美国现代最伟大的运动员吉姆。索普。
（责任编辑:doublejp）
