James Edmound Shea Jr. (born June 10, 1968) is an American skeleton racer who won the gold medal at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
.jpg) Shea in 2002 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | James Edmound Shea Jr.[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | June 10, 1968 (age 56) West Hartford, Connecticut, U.S. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 10+1⁄2 in (179 cm) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 181 lb (82 kg) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Biography
editShea was the third generation of his family to take part in Winter Games. His father competed in Nordic combined and cross-country skiing events in the 1964 Winter Olympics, and his grandfather, Jack Shea, won two gold medals in the 1932 Winter Olympics at Lake Placid in speed skating.[1] His grandfather also recited the athlete's oath at the 1932 opening ceremony. He was born and raised in West Hartford, Connecticut, and moved to Lake Placid, New York, in his late teens.[2] He became the first American to win a World Cup race and a World Championship in the sport, and has won more World Cup victories than any other American. He retired in October 2005.
At the FIBT World Championships, Shea earned a complete set of medals in the men's skeleton event with a gold in 1999, a silver in 1997, and a bronze in 2000 (tied for bronze with Austria's Alexander Müller). His best overall seasonal finish in the men's Skeleton World Cup was third twice (1998–99, 2000–01).
Shea founded The Shea Family Foundation which raises money to help kids in sports. He currently serves on the Utah Board of Economic Development.[3]
Shea has two daughters and a son and lives in Park City, Utah.[4][5] In 2021, he was sentenced to two years of court-supervised probation for sexual misconduct.[6]
2002 Olympics
editAlong with his father, Jim Shea Sr., he passed the Olympic Torch to Cammi Granato and Picabo Street who then passed it to the 1980 U.S. Men's Hockey Team, who then ignited the Olympic Cauldron.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Jim Shea Jr". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on October 2, 2015. Retrieved August 24, 2015.
- ^ http://www.sheafoundation.com/meettheboard.cfm. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ Rhett Wilkinson (February 18, 2012). "Five memorable faces from the 2002 Olympics". KSL. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
- ^ "Lori Riley Column: The second of three generations of Olympians, Jim Shea Sr., is back in Lake Placid, where his dad, Jack, won two gold medals in 1932". Hartford Courant. Archived from the original on November 3, 2015. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
- ^ "Always about family with Shea". New York Daily News. February 27, 2010. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
- ^ "Jimmy Shea Sentenced To Two Years Probation". NPR KPCW. August 28, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
External links
edit- Jim SHEA at the International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation
- CBS Sports profile
- FIBT profile
- IOC 2002 Winter Olympics
- List of men's skeleton World Cup champions since 1987
- Men's skeleton Olympic medalists since 1928 Archived February 6, 2020, at the Wayback Machine
- Men's skeleton world championship medalists since 1989
- Olympian Shea talk raises eyebrows
- Shea's official 2002 Olympic website Archived March 12, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- U.S. Olympic Committee profile Archived March 25, 2006, at archive.today
