History.com: How Jim Thorpe Became America's First Multi Sport Star

Decades before Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders starred in baseball and football, Jim Thorpe was America's original multi-sport athlete. A two-time college football All-American and charter member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Thorpe played six seasons of Major League Baseball and won two Olympic gold medals. The Native American excelled at nearly every sport he tried -- from basketball to lacrosse -- while breaking down barriers on and off the field.