Jack

Shea

Jack Shea was a two-time gold medalist in long track speedskating at the Olympic Winter Games Lake Placid 1932, becoming the first American to win two golds in a single Winter Games. A Lake Placid, New York, native himself, Shea was inspired by Charles Jewtraw, a fellow Lake Placid resident who triumphed in the 500-meter event of the Chamonix 1924 Games. Shea learned to skate on nearby Lake Mirror, and was crowned U.S. all-distance champion on the same lake in 1929. When the Olympic Winter Games arrived in Lake Placid in 1932, Shea was primed for gold. He won his first gold medal in the 500 with a time of 43.40 seconds, tying an Olympic record. The next day, Shea won his second gold in the 1,500, thus becoming the first American to win two golds in the same Winter Olympic Games. He chose not to defend his title at the Olympic Winter Games Garmisch 1936 out of principle, due to the direction Germany was heading politically. Decades later, Shea helped bring the Olympics back to Lake Placid as a member of the 1980 Olympic Organizing Committee. His family would continue his tradition of Olympic excellence as his son, Jim, competed in cross-country skiing at the Olympic Winter Games Innsbruck 1964, and his grandson, Jim Jr., won the gold medal in skeleton at the Salt Lake City 2002 Games. Shea passed away in January 2002 at the age of 91.