John Joseph Magee (January 12, 1883 – January 1, 1968) was an American

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

. He was head coach at

Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. It was chartered in 1794. The main Bowdoin campus is located near Casco Bay and the Androscoggin River. In a ...

from 1913 to 1955 and assistant coach of the United States Olympic track and field team in 1924, 1928 and 1932.

Biography

Magee was born in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...

, on January 12, 1883, but grew up in

East Boston East Boston, nicknamed Eastie, is a Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States, which was annexed by the city of Boston in 1836. Neighboring communities include Winthrop, Massachusetts, Winthrop, Revere, Mas ...

, where he was a sprinter in school. He briefly coached at Powder Point School in

Duxbury, Massachusetts Duxbury (alternative older spelling: "Duxborough") is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. A suburb located on the South Shore approximately to the southeast of Boston, the population was 16,090 at the 2020 census. The tow ...

before moving to

in 1913. Magee was in charge of the Bowdoin track team for the following forty-two years, with some interruptions; in 1918 he received a year's leave of absence to train the American army in France, and was wounded during his time there. Magee's Bowdoin teams won the New England championship four times and the Maine state championship twenty times. His most successful pupil was 1924 Olympic hammer throw champion and long-time

Rhode Island Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...

track head coach Fred Tootell; other top athletes coached by Magee at Bowdoin included weight throw world-best holder

Niles Perkins Niles Lee Perkins, Jr. (July 1, 1919 – April 25, 1971) was an American athlete and physician. Perkins was United States champion in men's 35-lb weight throw in 1940 and held the weight throw indoor world record for nine years. He was also a go ...

and 1934 IC4A high hurdles champion Phil Good. Magee coached the American national team in dual meets against the British Empire in 1932 and 1933, as well as on tours of the Far East (1934) and Scandinavia (1937). He served as an assistant coach on the U.S. Olympic track and field teams of 1924, 1928 and 1932; he was also with the team in 1920, but was not one of the official assistant coaches that year. Magee lobbied for an American boycott of the 1936 Olympics, held in

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

; he turned down the opportunity to be an Olympic team coach again as a protest after the decision not to boycott was made. Magee was one of the founders of the Maine branch of the

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It h ...

(AAU); he was elected

vice president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

of the national AAU in 1932 and re-elected the following year. He also served as president of the Association of College Track Coaches of America and was a long-time member of the Maine State Boxing Commission. After his retirement in 1955 Magee was named

emeritus ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". In some c ...

director of track and field at Bowdoin; he died in

Brunswick, Maine Brunswick is a New England town, town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. Brunswick is included in the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan New England city and town area. The population was 21,756 at the 2020 United States Census. Part o ...

on January 1, 1968, aged 84.

Legacy

Magee was inducted in the Helms Hall of Fame in 1949. The track at Bowdoin's Whittier Field stadium is named after Magee, as is Jack Magee's Pub & Grill on the Bowdoin campus.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Magee, Jack 1883 births 1968 deaths Bowdoin Polar Bears football coaches Bowdoin Polar Bears track and field coaches People from East Boston Sportspeople from Newark, New Jersey