James connolly boston

James Brendan Connolly

American triple jumper

For other people named James Connolly, see James Connolly (disambiguation).

James Brendan Bennet Connolly (Irish: Séamas Breandán Ó Conghaile, October 28, 1868 – January 20, 1957) was an American athlete and author. In 1896, he became the first modern Olympic champion.[1][2]

Early life

Connolly was born to poor Irish immigrants from the Aran Islands, fisherman John Connolly and Ann O'Donnell, as one of twelve children, in South Boston, Massachusetts. Growing up at a time when the parks and playground movement in Boston was slowly developing, Connolly joined other boys in the streets and vacant lots to run, jump, and play ball.

He was educated at Notre Dame Academy and then at the Mather and Lawrence grammar school, but never went to high school. Instead, Connolly worked as a clerk with an insurance company in Boston and later with the United States Army Corps of Engineers in Savannah, Georgia.

His predisposition to sport also became apparent. Calling a special meeting of the Catholic Lib

The first Olympic champion / by James B. Connolly

Connolly, James Brendan

The excerpt is from "Sea-borne: thirty years avoyaging" (Doubleday, Doran and Company, Inc., Garden City, NY, 1944) by James B. Connolly, the first Olympic champion of the modern Olympic Games. In this autobiography Connolly recounts his experiences in the 1896 Athens Olympic Games. This excerpt, submitted by Rusty Wilson, begins with his seeking permission to leave Harvard University to participate in the Games of the 1st Olympiad in Athens.

See the issue of the journal "Journal of Olympic history, 8.1, 2000"

Other articles in issue "Journal of Olympic history"

Note
  • IN: Journal of Olympic history, vol. 8, no 1, 2000, pp. 14-21.
  • James Brendan Connolly participated in the 1896 Athens Olympic Games and won the gold medal in the triple jump event.
Langue
English
Description physique
8 p.
Date de publication
2000
Published in
Journal of Olympic history, 8.1, 2000
Sélection

Connolly, James B. (James Brendan), 1868-1957

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Dates

Biographical Note

Born to Irish immigrant parents, James Brendan Connolly attended Harvard, and won an Olympic medal in 1896. He later settled in Gloucester, MA and wrote many stories of the sea. Connolly served in the Ninth Massachusetts Infantry during the Spanish American War and was present at the Siege of Santiago. He died on January 21, 1957, at the age of 88 in Brookline, Massachusetts.

Found in 3 Collections and/or Records:

Boston College collection of James B. Connolly

 Collection

Identifier: MS-1986-192

Abstract

The collection contains materials about James Brendan Connolly (1868-1957), an Irish-American athlete and author. It includes writings by and about him, newspaper clippings and ephemera, and a full run of Limelight magazine for which he served as an editor.

Restrictions on access

Collection is open for research.

Dates: 1914 - 1965

James B. Connolly, 1905 March 11

 File — Box 1: Series I; Series II, Folder: 4

Identifier: I

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