Jack Shea

Jack Shea

John Amos Shea (September 7, 1910 – January 22, 2002), better known as Jack Shea, was an American double-gold medalist in speed skating at the 1932 Winter Olympics. He was the first American to win two gold medals at the same Olympics ref|twogold, and the patriarch of what the BBC ref|bbc identified as the first family with three generations of Olympians.

Shea won gold medals in the 500-meter and 1500-meter events, in his hometown, Lake Placid, New York. Shea also recited the Olympic Oath at the opening ceremonies of those Olympic Games. Shea chose not to defend his Olympic titles at the 1936 Winter Olympics in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, at the request of a Lake Placid rabbi for it would be in poor taste to be so "over-zealous."

Decades later, he played a role in having the Winter Olympics return there in 1980. He served as vice chairman of the Olympic Regional Development Authority in New York, the organization that ran the sites for Lake Placid's 1980 Winter Olympics, and continues to run them to this day.

His son, Jim Shea, Sr., was a 1964 Olympian in Nordic skiing; his grandson, Jim Shea, Jr. was a 2002 Olympic skeleton gold medalist. Jack Shea carried the Olympic torch into the town of Lake Placid that year. Unfortunately, Jack was killed in a head-on automobile collision with a drunk driver just before his grandson won gold [http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/winter02/bobsled/story?id=1337449] [http://www.courts.state.ny.us/reporter/slips/15754.htm] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/winterolympics2002/hi/english/skating/newsid_1776000/1776146.stm] .

Outside of sports

Shea graduated from Dartmouth College and briefly attended law school, quitting to support his family in a series of jobs. From 1958 to 1974, he was a town justice, and from 1974 until his retirement in 1983 he was the supervisor of North Elba. ref|newsrelease

References

# [http://www.orda.org/newsite/about/annual_reports/200304.pdf 2003-04 Annual Report] (in PDF format) from the Olympic Regional Development Authority website
# [http://news.bbc.co.uk/winterolympics2002/hi/english/skating/newsid_1776000/1776146.stm Winter Olympic hero dies] , a January 2002 BBC article
# [http://lakeplacid.com/shared/media/press_release_articles.cfm?id=66 Jack Shea, Gold Medalist in 1932, Dies at 91] , a January 2002 news release from the Lake Placid/Essex County Visitors Bureau

External links

* [http://www.olympic.org/uk/games/past/index_uk.asp?OLGT=2&OLGY=1932 IOC 1932 Winter Olympics]
* [http://www.skateresults.com/skater/show/961 Jack Shea at SkateResults.com]
* [http://www.usolympicteam.com/26_577.htm Jack Shea's U.S. Olympic Team bio]


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  • Jack Shea — John Amos „Jack“ Shea (* 7. September 1910 in Lake Placid; † 22. Januar 2002 ebenda) war ein US amerikanischer Eisschnellläufer. Bekannt war er unter dem Namen Jack Shea. Er gewann bei den Olympischen Spielen 1932 in Lake Placid die Goldmedaille… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Jack Shea — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Shea.  Cette page d’homonymie répertorie différentes personnes partageant un même nom. Jack Shea (1910 2002) est un patineur de vitesse américain médaillé d or aux jeux olympiques de 1932. Jack Shea (1928 )… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Jack Shea (realisateur) — Jack Shea (réalisateur) Pour les articles homonymes, voir Jack Shea et Shea. Jack Shea est un réalisateur et producteur américain né le 1er août 1928 à New York, New York (États Unis). Sommaire 1 Biographie …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Jack shea (réalisateur) — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Jack Shea et Shea. Jack Shea est un réalisateur et producteur américain né le 1er août 1928 à New York, New York (États Unis). Sommaire 1 Biographie …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Jack Shea (réalisateur) — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Jack Shea et Shea. Jack Shea est un réalisateur et producteur américain né le 1er août 1928 à New York, New York (États Unis). Sommaire 1 Biographie …   Wikipédia en Français

  • shea — shea; jack·shea; …   English syllables

  • Shea, Jim, Jr. — ▪ 2003       Seventy years after his grandfather, Jack Shea, won two Olympic gold medals in speed skating, American skeleton slider Jim Shea, Jr., added another gold to the family collection when he claimed first place in his event at the 2002… …   Universalium

  • Shea — Cet article possède un paronyme, voir : O Shea. Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Shea peut désigner : Patronyme …   Wikipédia en Français

  • jack — am·ber·jack; ap·ple·jack; blue·jack; cro·jack; cross·jack; hi·jack·er; jack·a·legs; jack·a·napes; jack; jack·a·roo; jack·ass; jack·ass·ery; jack·ass·ness; jack·een; jack·er; jack·field; jack·fruit; jack·light·er; jack·man; jack·roll;… …   English syllables

  • Jack O'Shea's — is an international Irish butcher chain located in Knightsbridge in London and in the European district of Brussels, selling quality organic fresh meat.HistoryJack O Shea comes from 8 generations of Irish butchers but could not find an outlet to… …   Wikipedia

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