2024Centenaire de la médaille d’or olympique de John B. Kelly - Enveloppes de Premier Jour

John Brendan (known as "Jack") Kelly Sr. is probably the greatest rower the United States has ever produced. Born in Philadelphia on October 4, 1889 to Irish parents, he learned to row on the Schuylkill River. While starting work as a mason, he won many victories in rowing but also excelled in basketball and American football. Enlisted in the American army during the First World War, he created his own construction company in 1919 following his demobilization. He achieved a unique feat at the 1920 Olympic Games in Antwerp by winning the single sculls in half an hour, then the double sculls with his cousin Paul Costello. He would be crowned gold again in 1924 in Paris. He would become the father of four children including John Kelly Jr., also an Olympic medalist in rowing, and Grace Kelly, a famous American actress who became Princess of Monaco.