 Burke in 1918 | |||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | Thomas Edmund Burke January 15, 1875 Boston, Massachusetts, United States | ||||||||||||||
| Died | February 14, 1929 (aged 54) Boston, Massachusetts, United States | ||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | Boston University School of Law | ||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight | 146 lb (66 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||
| Sport | Athletics | ||||||||||||||
Event | 100-800 m | ||||||||||||||
| Club | Boston Athletic Association | ||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||||||||
| Personalbest(s) | 100 m – 11.2 (1895) 200 m – 22.6 (1897) 400 m – 48.5 (1896) 800 m – 1:55.9 (1897)[1] | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Thomas Edmund Burke (January 15, 1875 – February 14, 1929) was an American sprinter. He was the first Olympic champion in the 100 and 400 meter sprint races.[2]
Burke was born inMassachusetts in 1875. He competed for the Suffolk Athletic Club in South Boston and theBoston Athletic Association (BAA).[3]
Burke, a student atBoston University School of Law, was a reputed runner in the 400 meters and 440 yards, having won theAAU title (440 yards) in 1895. He had no such reputation for the first event he entered in theinaugural modern Olympic Games inAthens, 1896. With many top sprinters absent, Burke surprisingly won the 100 meters. He was also noted for his "crouch start", which was uncommon at that time but in standard use now. His time in the final was 12.0 seconds. In the preliminary heat, he had an even better time – 11.8 seconds.[4]
At the same Olympics, Burke also won the 400 meters, his top event. His times for that event were 58.4 seconds in the preliminary heats and 54.2 seconds in the final, in both of which Burke finished first.[4]
Later in his career, Burke specialized in the longer distances, winningIC4A titles in the 440 and 880 yards events. In 1897, he was one of the initiators of the annually heldBoston Marathon, inspired by the success of themarathon event at the 1896 Olympics.[1][4]
Burke later became a lawyer, but was also an athletics coach and a part-time journalist, writing forThe Boston Journal and theBoston Post.[4]
DuringWorld War I, at an age when most soldiers had long since retired from active duty, Burke earned his aviator’s wings at 43, making him the oldest man in the U.S. military to achieve this distinction. Burke died in 1929, aged 54.[3]
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