Remembering Jim Thorpe

Now that China's obsessive compulsive disorder and U.S. commercialism are yet again in a tight race for Olympic medals let's remember how Jim Thorpe got screwed. Today, he would be raking in big bucks to promote hair care products, or whatever (he did have good hair).

Thorpe lost his 1912 Olympic titles because it was discovered he got paid to play semi-professional baseball before competing. You see, in those days the games were just for amateurs. These days, multimillionaire pros like Lebron James get to play, along with athletes who seem more loyal to their corporate sponsors than their native countries.

In 1983, 30 years after Thorpe's death, the International Olympic Committee restored his medals. While a good thing for his legacy it was more about finally and fully acknowledging the abandonment of the ideals that these games once represented.

Oh, and by the way, the modern day Olympic torch relay was started by the Nazis.

Craig blogs daily at craigcrawford.com