Jim Thorpe was born into the Sauk and Fox Native American nation in 1888. His parents named him Wa-Tho-Huk, which means “Bright Path.” From a young age, he enjoyed hunting, riding horses, and playing outdoors on his family’s farm in Oklahoma. At sixteen, Thorpe went on to the Carlisle Indian School in Pennsylvania. As he was passing by the track field one day, he saw the team practicing the high jump. Thorpe stopped to ask if he could try. As a joke, the members of the team put the bar higher than anyone had ever jumped. They were shocked when Thorpe cleared the bar. Thorpe had broken the school record on his very first attempt! Thorpe’s jump also earned him a spot on the school’s track team, and he was soon winning events in the high jump,