User:Tomomalley222/Thomas O'Malley (boxer)

Thomas William O'Malley. Born Sept 18th 1895 in Philadelphia. Died October 10th 1971. He was my grandfather. He was the Amateur Lightweight AAU Boxing Champion. He was the captain of University of Pennsylvania's Boxing team. He later transferred to Villanova University where he was the captain of their team. He graduated from Villanova in 1922. He went on to a career in journalism. He broke the Lindbergh Baby kidnapping when he was the police reporter for the Evening Bulletin. He later started the first tax accounting firm in Philadelphia and possibly the country. He was born at 272 S. 3rd St in Philadelphia. When he was a teenager he was attacked in his kitchen by a sailor from Norway who had a knife. He fought off the attacker, but sustained numerous stab wounds, including multiple wounds to his hand when he pried the knife out of his attackers hand by the blade. He was told he would never walk again. He underwent a groundbreaking surgery at Pennsylvania Hospital (the country's first hospital) which was a few blocks from his house. The surgeon spliced a nerve. He not only regained his ability to walk but went on to success in boxing. He was known as the amateur who could lick all the pros. He was also known as the Bobby Jones of boxing. In 1920 he fought in the Olympic trials. In the finals he knocked out the Navy Champion, breaking his jaw, but in the process he broke his hand. The runner up was Sam Mosberg whom he had knocked out in the previous bout. Mosberg went on to win the Lightweight title in the 1920 Olympics in Antwerp. Mosberg later sent him a note saying - "Thanks for the Gold" According to my Dad he was undefeated as a boxer. One of the people he fought and beat was Frank Cassidy, who was the AAU lightweight Champ in 1919.