Even after he was wronged by his coach, the American Athletic Union, and many others, he never gave in to bitterness and led with a spirit of generosity and kindness.”

The reference to “his coach” is an allusion to Pop Warner’s role in the situation.

Warner, who coached Thorpe at Carlisle and was instrumental in steering him toward the Olympics, has been the subject of varying assessments of his culpability.

The prevailing view among Thorpe’s biographers is that Warner knew about the baseball playing and chose not to disclose it — that his silence was strategic, keeping his most valuable athlete eligible for the Olympics rather than risking his disqualification before the Games.

Warner received a payment from the Giants when he steered Thorpe toward that contract after the Olympic scandal.