Irish Whales John Flanagan Martin Sheridan James Mitchel

Martin John Sheridan (March 28, 1881 – March 27, 1918) was an

Irish-American Irish Americans () are Irish ethnics who live within in the United States, whether immigrants from Ireland or Americans with full or partial Irish ancestry. Irish immigration to the United States From the 17th century to the mid-19th c ...

athlete and three time

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

gold medallist in

discus throw The discus throw (), also known as disc throw, is a track and field sport in which the participant athlete throws an oblate spheroid weight (object), weight called a discus in an attempt to mark a further distance than other competitors. It is a ...

. Born in Bohola,

County Mayo County Mayo (; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, it is named after the village of Mayo, County Mayo, Mayo, now ge ...

, Ireland, he was a participant of both the

1904 Events January * January 7 – The distress signal ''CQD'' is established, only to be replaced 2 years later by ''SOS''. * January 8 – The Blackstone Library is dedicated, marking the beginning of the Chicago Public Library system. * ...

and the

1908 Olympic Games The 1908 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the IV Olympiad and also known as London 1908) were an international multi-sport event held in London, England, from 27 April to 31 October 1908. The 1908 Games were originally schedu ...

, and was part of a group of Irish-American athletes known as the " Irish Whales". He died on 27 March 1918, at St. Vincent's Hospital in

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, New York, the day before his 37th birthday, from the Spanish flu pandemic. He is buried in

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, New York.

Career

At 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) and 194 lbs (88 kg), Sheridan was the best all-around athlete of the Irish American Athletic Club, and like many of his team mates, served with the

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(from 1906 until his death in 1918). Sheridan was so well respected in the NYPD, that he served as the Governor's personal bodyguard when the governor was in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. A five-time Olympic gold medalist, with a total of nine Olympic medals, Sheridan was called "one of the greatest figures that ever represented this country in international sport, as well as being one of the most popular who ever attained the championship honor." He won the

event at the 1904, 1906, and 1908

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, then part of the King ...

as well as the

shot put The shot put is a track-and-field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical Ball (sports), ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. For men, the sport has been a part of the Olympic Games, modern Olympics since their 1896 Summer Olym ...

at the 1906 Olympics and the Greek discus in 1908. At the

1906 Intercalated Games The 1906 Intercalated Games or 1906 Olympic Games (), held from 22 April 1906 to 2 May 1906, was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated in Athens, Kingdom of Greece. They were at the time considered to be Olympic Games and were re ...

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he also won silver medals in the standing high jump, standing long jump and the stone throw. In 1907, Sheridan won the National

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 ...

discus championship and the Canadian championship, and in 1908 he won the Metropolitan, National and Canadian championships as well as two gold medals in the discus throw and bronze in the standing long jump at the 1908 Olympic Games. Two of Martin Sheridan's

gold medals A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have b ...

from the 1904 Olympic Games in

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, Missouri and one of his medals from the 1906 Olympic Games in

, Greece, are currently located in the

USA Track & Field USA Track & Field (USATF) is a United States national governing body for the sports of track and field, cross country running, road running, and racewalking (known as the sport of athletics outside the US). The USATF was known between 1979 and 1 ...

's Hall of Fame History Gallery, in Washington Heights, Manhattan.

Legacy

It is often claimed that Sheridan fueled a controversy in London in 1908, when flagbearer Ralph Rose refused to dip the flag to King Edward VII. Sheridan is supposed to have supported Rose by explaining "This flag dips to no earthly king," and it is claimed that his statement exemplified both Irish and American defiance of the British monarchy. However, careful research has shown that this was first reported in 1952. Sheridan himself made no mention of it in his published reports on the Games and neither did his obituary.Mallon & Buchanan, Journal of Olympic History, Sept 1999 The inscription on the granite Celtic Cross monument marking Martin Sheridan's grave in

, New York says in part: "Devoted to the Institutions of his Country, and the Ideals and Aspirations of his Race. Athlete. Patriot." According to his obituary in the New York Times, Sheridan was "one of the greatest athletes the United States has ever known".New York Times, March 28, 1918.

Notes

References

* * * * http://www.wingedfist.com/assets/Sheridan_from_Sprin_3100.pdf Police Athletes of the Past: Martin Sheridan - '' Spring 3100''

External links

*
New York Times obituary
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sheridan, Martin 1881 births 1918 deaths Sportspeople from County Mayo American Roman Catholics American male shot putters American male discus throwers American male high jumpers American male long jumpers Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in track and field Athletes (track and field) at the 1904 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1906 Intercalated Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1908 Summer Olympics Irish emigrants to the United States New York City Police Department officers Burials at Calvary Cemetery (Queens) Deaths from the Spanish flu pandemic in New York (state) Medalists at the 1908 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1904 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1906 Intercalated Games Track and field athletes from New York City People from Bohola Police officers from County Mayo American male triple jumpers American male pole vaulters Male weight throwers 20th-century American sportsmen