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{{other people|James Sullivan}}
[[File:James Edward Sullivan.jpg|thumb|James Edward Sullivan, 1909]]
[[File:Schnall 1912.png|thumb|[[Ida Schnall]] in the [[The New York Times|''New York Times'']] in 1912|alt=]]

'''James Edward Sullivan''' (18 November 1862 &ndash; 16 September 1914) was an American sports official of Irish descent. He was one of the founders of the [[Amateur Athletic Union]] (AAU) on Jan 21, 1888,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://mastershistory.org/x-aau-convention-locations/|title=x AAU Convention Locations|website=mastershistory.org|accessdate=Jul 27, 2022}}</ref> serving as its secretary from 1889 until 1906 when he was elected as [[President of the Amateur Athletic Union]] from 1906 to 1909. He declined a fourth term and was re-elected to his former position as secretary-treasurer until his sudden death which followed an emergency operation. Sullivan also served as the chairman of the [[Irish American Athletic Club|Greater New York Irish Athletic Association]] in 1903 and on the [[New York City Board of Education]] from 1908 to 1912.<ref name=obit/> In 1911 he served as chairman of the [[New York State Athletic Commission]].<ref>{{cite news |title=J.E. Sullivan Quits Boxing Commission |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=September 6, 1911}}</ref>

==Biography==
He was born on 18 November 1862 in [[New York City]].

His business career began in 1878 at [[Frank Leslie]]'s publications.<ref name=obit/> In 1880, he started a paper ''The Athletics News''. His career continued in sports publishing, and sporting goods businesses. His athletics on the track had started in 1877 as a member of the Pastime Athletic Club. In 1888 and 1889 he won the all round championship of the club.

He also was one of the most influential people in the early [[Olympic Games|Olympic]] movement, although his relationship with [[International Olympic Committee|IOC]] president [[Pierre de Coubertin]] was tense. Sullivan was also an organizer of the [[Seward Park (Manhattan)|Outdoor Recreation League]] and served as its second president. Sullivan was the advertising representative of [[Spalding (company)|Spalding]], which provided running shoes, implements, balls and gloves for many sports.

==1904 St. Louis Olympic Games==
Sullivan was a chief organizer of the [[1904 Summer Olympics]].  He decided to allow only one water station on the 24.85-mile course of the [[Athletics at the 1904 Summer Olympics – Men's marathon|marathon]] even though it was conducted in {{convert|32|C|F}} heat over unpaved roads choked with dust.  His ostensible reason was to conduct research on "purposeful [[dehydration]]," even though dehydration is potentially fatal.  The marathon ended with the worst ratio of entrants to finishers (14 of 32) and by far the slowest winning time, 3:28:45, almost 30 minutes slower than the next slowest winning time at the [[Athletics at the 1900 Summer Olympics – Men's marathon|1900 Summer Olympics]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-1904-olympic-marathon-may-have-been-the-strangest-ever-14910747/?no-ist |title=The 1904 Olympic Marathon May Have Been the Strangest Ever |last=Abbott |first=Karen |date=August 7, 2012 |website=[[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian Magazine]] |access-date=October 25, 2020}}</ref> He also organized the [[Anthropology Days]], a racist and cynical attempt to demonstrate athletic [[White supremacy|white superiority]].<ref>{{Cite book|title=Power Games: A Political History of the Olympics|last=Boykoff|first=Jules|publisher=Verso|year=2016|isbn=9781784780722|location=London|pages=30–35}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-08-06 |title=The Unbelievable True Story of the Craziest Olympic Marathon |url=https://www.runnersworld.com/runners-stories/a37039437/1904-olympic-marathon/ |access-date=2024-08-31 |website=Runner's World |language=en-US}}</ref>

==1912 Olympic Games==
The 1912 Summer Olympics allowed female divers and swimmers, but Sullivan, on behalf of the United States Olympic Committee, barred American women from participating even though there were capable women willing to participate.

American athlete of Indian origin [[Jim Thorpe]] competed in the 1912 games and won gold medals in the [[pentathlon]] and the [[decathlon]]. However, those medals were stripped by the AAU and the USOC, with Sullivan playing a prominent role in the decision,<ref>Schaffer, Kay and Smith, Sidonie. ''The Olympics at the Millennium: Power, Politics and the Games''. Rutgers University Press, 2000. {{ISBN|978-0-8135-2820-5}}. p. 40.</ref> following reports that Thorpe had previously played semi-professional baseball.  There is evidence that the AAU was aware of Thorpe's status before the games<ref>Buford, Kate. ''[[Native American Son: The Life and Sporting Legend of Jim Thorpe]]''. Lincoln: [[University of Nebraska Press]], 2010. {{ISBN|978-0-8032-4089-6}}. p. 162.</ref><ref>Dyreson, Mark. ''Making the American Team: Sport, Culture, and the Olympic Experience''. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1998. {{ISBN|978-0-252-06654-2}}. p. 171.</ref> and allowed him to compete, only to rescind his medals afterward. Thorpe's gold medals were posthumously restored to him in 1983 and presented to his children in a solemn ceremony.<ref>{{citation|url=https://olympics.com/en/athletes/jim-thorpe|title=Jim Thorpe Biography|publisher=International Olympic Committee|access-date=9 May 2024}}</ref>

==Death and funeral==
[[File:James Edward Sullivan funeral 01.jpg|thumb|Funeral on 19 September 1914]]
In 1911 he was injured in a [[train wreck]] in [[Fort Wayne, Indiana]].<ref name=obit/>  He died on 16 September 1914 at [[Mount Sinai Hospital, New York]], after an operation on his intestines.<ref name=obit>{{cite news |title=J.E. Sullivan Dies After an Operation. America's. Foremost Leader in Athletics and Recreation Work III Few Days. Did Much to Revive Classic Olympic Games and Was Strong. Factor In Public School Athletics |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9D03E2DB1638E633A25754C1A96F9C946596D6CF |newspaper=[[New York Times]] |date=September 17, 1914 |accessdate=2009-11-23 }}</ref> For the funeral on 19 September 1914, his body was conveyed from his home, 540 West 114th Street, to [[St. Aloysius Gonzaga's Church (New York City)|St. Aloysius Gonzaga's Church]], at 132d Street and [[Seventh Avenue (Manhattan)|Seventh Avenue]], where a [[requiem Mass]] was held.<ref>{{cite news |title=J. E. Sullivan's Funeral. 60,000 Schoolboys Will Line Route of the Procession |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1914/09/18/archives/j-e-sullivans-funeral-60000-schoolboys-will-line-route-of-the.html |quote=Between fifty and sixty thousand boys, members of the Public Schools Athletic League, an organization originated and fostered by the late James E. Sullivan, will line the route to be taken by the funeral procession when the athletic leader's body is conveyed from his home, 540 West 114th Street, tomorrow morning to the Catholic Church of St. Aloyslus, 132d Street and Seventh Avenue, where a solemn high mass of requiem will be celebrated. ... |newspaper=[[New York Times]] |date=September 18, 1914 |accessdate=2011-09-23 }}</ref>

==Legacy==
James E. Sullivan created ''The Athletic News'' in 1880.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://shr1.org/?page_id=40|title=Athletics T&F Publications |website=shr1.org|accessdate=Jul 27, 2022}}</ref> The 1914 National Outdoor Track and Field Championships were postponed (Sept 19 to Oct 3) in his honor (after his death).  In 1930, the AAU established the [[James E. Sullivan Award]] in his honour. It is awarded annually to the best amateur athlete in the US. In 1977, he was inducted into the [[National Track & Field Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.usatf.org/HallOfFame/TF/showBio.asp?HOFIDs=163|title=James Sullivan|publisher=USA Track & Field, Inc.|work=usatf.org|accessdate=2009-04-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080918205431/http://www.usatf.org/HallOfFame/TF/showBio.asp?HOFIDs=163|archive-date=2008-09-18|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Sullivan was also the Records Chair for the [[Amateur Athletic Union]] (AAU).<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=HeBDAQAAMAAJ&q=J+E+Sullivan+Records+Chair%2F%2F&pg=PA336-IA15 Outing, January, page 73.] Retrieved Dec 18, 2020]</ref>

==Publications==
*[https://archive.org/details/olympicgamesatat00sullrich ''The Olympic games, Athens'', Spalding Athletic Library] (1906)
*[https://archive.org/details/olympicgamesstoc00sullrich ''The Olympic games, Stockholm'', Spalding Athletic Library] (1912)
*[http://www.survivorlibrary.com/library/an_athletic_primer_1907.pdf "An Athletic Primer", Spalding Athletic Library] (1907)
*[https://library.si.edu/digital-library/book/spaldings-official-athletic-almanac "Official Athletic Almanac", Spalding Athletic Library] (1905 to 1922)

Sullivan was the first President of the American Sports Publishing Company<ref>Library of Congress. Spalding.{{cite web|url=http://www.memory.loc.gov/service/gdc/scd0001/2013/20130904007ho/20130904007ho.pdf|title=How to Run 100 Yards|author=J.W. Morton|accessdate=December 19, 2020|website=www.memory.loc.gov|archive-date=July 27, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220727040739/http://www.memory.loc.gov/service/gdc/scd0001/2013/20130904007ho/20130904007ho.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> which published the [[Spalding Athletic Library]].  Sullivan was editor of several publications.

Sullivan created The Athletic News in 1880.<ref>[https://aausports.org/news.php?news_id=1836833// AAU Sports. Retrieved Dec 19, 2020]</ref>  The Athletic News in 1880 was the first USA track and field publication.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=bExjiTnMoXgC&q=James+Sullivan+The+Athletic+News+1880%2F%2F&pg=PA31 GoogleBooks. Patriotic Games: Sporting Traditions in the American Imagination, 1876-1926. Page 31. Retrieved Dec 19, 2020]</ref>

==See also==
{{portal bar|Biography|Sports|New York}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Commonscatinline}}
* {{Librivox author|id=11613}}
* {{USATF Hall of Fame|163|James Sullivan}}

{{New York State Athletic Commission Chairs}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sullivan, James E.}}
[[Category:1862 births]]
[[Category:1914 deaths]]
[[Category:American people of Irish descent]]
[[Category:New York state athletic commissioners]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from New York (state)]]
[[Category:Presidents of the Amateur Athletic Union]]