Jack Caffery (athlete)

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Jack Caffery

Jack Caffery (actually: John Peter Caffery ; born May 21, 1879 in Hamilton (Ontario) ; † February 2, 1919 ibid) was a Canadian athlete who was one of the world's best marathon runners at the beginning of the 20th century. He is known in Canada as the "Most Forgotten Hero" in Canadian sports .

Caffery's greatest sporting successes were his victories at the Boston Marathon in 1900 and 1901. This made him the first to win there twice in a row. His track record from 1901 in 2:29:23 over 24.5  miles (39.42 km) was impressive. The attempt in 1902 to achieve victory for the third time in a row failed because Caffery had to cancel his participation at short notice due to persistent stomach cramps the night before the start. Another attempt in 1903 also failed. After 25 km he had to give up this time because of a strain .

Caffery belonged to the St. Patrick's Athletic Club in his hometown Hamilton, which was considered a stronghold of long-distance runners at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries , not least because the oldest long-distance run in North America and one of the oldest long-distance competitions ever took place here to this day, the Around the Bay Road Race . Caffery won this run twice, in 1898 and 1900. His opponent during this time was his clubmate William Sherring . Together with him, Caffery wanted to take part in the Olympic Intermediate Games in Athens in 1906 . After problems with funding, Caffery withdrew his participation. Sherring, on the other hand, who won the money for the trip in a horse race, eventually became Olympic marathon champion.

Encouraged by the success of his club mate, Caffery, who in the meantime suffered from a lung disease, tried a comeback with the aim of participating in the 1908 Olympic Games in London . Although he had to retire from a qualifying race with foot problems, he was accepted into the team of Canadian marathoners for the 1908 Olympics. This team was coached by William Sherring. They traveled to London with 12 runners, because they really wanted to defend the Sherring Olympic victory in 1906. It shouldn't work. Caffery was able to finish the run, but the 11th place and fourth best Canadian was not only a disappointment for him.

Caffery tried his hand at coaching for some time, but then withdrew from sports, especially since his lung disease now tied him to bed more often. The great epidemic of the Spanish flu in 1918 also made Caffery sick, from which he could no longer recover. In the obituary of his companions, Caffery would have had the potential to become an Olympic champion and great champion . His lung disease and untimely death were the reasons why he could only use his running skills at the beginning of his career and was quickly forgotten. Proof of this are the numerous book and newspaper articles in which his name is misrepresented. Even in the official publications about the Boston Marathon he is called "Caftery" , "Caffrey" or even "McCaffrey" and his first name "James J." or "John J." called.

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SURNAME Caffery, Jack
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Caffery, John Peter
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Canadian marathon runner
DATE OF BIRTH May 21, 1879
PLACE OF BIRTH Hamilton (Ontario)
DATE OF DEATH February 2, 1919
Place of death Hamilton (Ontario)