Jim Thorpe was an American Native athlete who achieved remarkable success in both track and American football. He is celebrated as one of the greatest athletes in Olympic history, having won five gold medals at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, including events in track and field and the pentathlon. Despite his athletic prowess, Thorpe's life was marked by controversy and hardship after his retirement. He was born on May 28, 1888, and died on March 28, 1953.