Joseph

[DoubleRBar]

Happy birthday today (Monday) to an Olympic champion with three Olympic gold medals in the same event. This champion athlete was born the same day that Emperor Napoleon III died. The day our birthday athlete died, the Philadelphia Phillies lost to the St. Louis Cardinals eight to seven in St. Louis.

This athlete was born in a country which is a little smaller in area than the state of South Carolina. Our birthday champion died in the same country.

A member of the NYPD, this athlete had the same middle name as did John F. Kennedy's father's first name. Our birthday person died fifteen years after the athlete's father died.

Winning Olympic gold medals in three consecutive Olympic Games, we celebrate this champion's birth some 139 years ago today.

Name our birthday athlete for this ninth day of January.

[dukehjsteve]

too tough this time... I had to look it up. Could pretty much figure out the years, and the probable birth country, but that was it for me this time.

[DoubleRBar]

You're right. This is not an easy one, however it's an athlete who does not get a lot of recognition because these gold medals came so long ago. An excellent athlete, our birthday person deserves the recognition.

[richh1948]

John Jesus Flanagan? if it is, there is a problem with the birthdate, as I've seen more than one version of the date (if not, I'm just babbling)

[DoubleRBar]

Good job, rich1948, it is John Flanagan, however his middle name was Joseph. It has been reported as Jesus, but Joseph it was. Yes, his birth date has been recorded as 1868, but I went with the 1873 date I have seen many more times.

Flanagan won the Olympic hammer throw three times: 1900, 1904, and 1908. He was an amazing athlete. I think he could have been a pretty good decathlete. Born in Ireland, Flanagan came to the U.S., competed for the U.S., and then returned to Ireland where he died in 1938.