Presidents Day: How US leaders fared in the sporting arena

A look at the presidents from Abe Lincoln to Donald Trump

President's Day is used every year to celebrate the birthdays of all US presidents and George Washington, with some states also celebrating the birthday of President Abraham Lincoln.

As the U.S. US Respects leaders, it's fun to look back on the sporting achievements of some presidents.

Read on below to see how some former presidents fared in the athletic field.

President Abraham Lincoln

The History Channel notes that President Lincoln was an amateur wrestler in the 1830s. "Abraham Lincoln: The Prairie Years, Volume 1" gives a detailed account of Lincoln wrestling and beating Jack Armstrong, a champion from a nearby town.

The National Wrestling Hall of Fame honored Lincoln as an "Outstanding American" in 1992.

President Theodore Roosevelt

President Roosevelt has been described as the ultimate sportsman. He was a boxer and wrestler, and played tennis and polo. He boxed regularly at the White House and was wounded in a combat session by his military aide, Colonel Daniel T. Moore.

His sporting legacy has left a mark on one of the greatest superstars of any professional sport - Tom Brady. The seven-time Super Bowl champion cited Roosevelt's "Man in the Arena" speech and used the speech as the title of his ESPN documentary.

President William Tafte

President Taft attended Yale in 1874 and participated in intramural wrestling. He was the heavyweight champion at one point during his time in school.

According to the Miller Center, Taft was also a solid baseball player.

President Herbert Hoover

President Hoover attended Stanford University and became the student-manager for the baseball and football teams. He helped organize the rivalry football game between Stanford and the University of California-Berkeley, known as The Big Game.

The first game was played on March 19, 1892. Stanford won 14-10.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt

President Roosevelt attended Harvard and served as a cheerleader on the team to help support the football team. He is among several presidents who served as cheerleaders during their time in college.

Roosevelt attended Harvard from 1900 to 1903.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower

President Eisenhower was a running star at West Point back in 1912, but he injured his knee in a game and never took the football field again.

He was also a boxer, cheerleader and fencer. He practiced gymnastics during his time in college. Eisenhower said later in his life that not making the baseball team was one of his biggest regrets, according to Baseball Almanac.

President John F Kennedy

Leaving Princeton, President Kennedy went to Harvard.

Kenny made the swim team but was not a memorable athlete. In 1970 his trainers told The Crimson that Kennedy was "rather weak". He competed in the 100m backstroke and 300m medley.

He also tried football and golf when he was a member of the school.

President Richard Nixon

President Nixon attended Whittier College in California in 1930. Nixon played for the school's basketball team and was a bench player for the football team, according to the book "The Contenders", which details Nixon's congressional years.

Nixon is in the Whittier College Athletics Hall of Fame.

President Gerald Ford

President Ford was a standout center, linebacker and long snapper at the University of Michigan in the 1930s. Wolverine was the national champion during the 1932 and 1933 seasons. He won the Meyer Morton Prize in 1932. The award was given to a Michigan player who showed the best development and promise in spring practice from 1925 to 1949.

Ford was a part of the 1934 East–West Shrine Game and the 1935 Collegiate All-Star Game.

President Ronald Reagan

President Reagan excelled in football and swimming when he attended Eureka College in Illinois. According to the Miller Center, he was able to attend school on a partial football scholarship.

Reagan played George Gipp in the 1940 film Newt Rockne All American.

President George H.W. bush

President Bush was the team captain of the Yale University baseball team. He was on the team as a first baseman and helped the team to its first two College World Series in 1947 and 1948.

According to the National Archives, Bush was able to meet with Babe Ruth before a game during his senior season at Yale.

President Bill Clinton

President Clinton played two games when he attended Oxford University.

He was a member of the Oxford University Basketball Club and the rugby union team. He is one of the many great and former NBA politicians to have played on the team.

George W Bush

President Bush, like his father, was a cheerleader at Yale and also played on the rugby union team. He played fullback for the team in the late 1960s. Bush's teammate Britt Kolar described Bush's abilities to the Yale Daily News in 2006.

"What was interesting was that he was such a good athlete that he could play a skill position in rugby with relatively little experience," Kolar said. "He had running skills, tackle skills and especially kicking skills."

Bush was also a part-owner of the Texas Rangers in 1989 and sold his shares in 1998.

President Barack Obama

President Obama was a major sports fan. As a senator, he threw the first pitch in the 2005 Chicago White Sox playoff game. By the time he took office in 2008, he had set up a basketball court at the White House. Kevin Durant and Scottie Pippen were among those who attended the Games at the White House.

He invited the 1985 Chicago Bears Super Bowl winning team to the White House because they were not able to leave because of the Challenger Disaster, two days after the team won Super Bowl XX.

President Donald Trump

Before becoming president, Trump was a three-sport athlete at the New York Military Academy. According to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, one of the sports in which he excelled was football.

Trump was later the majority owner of the New Jersey Generals of the United States Football League. In one of the most shocking moves in the brief battle between the NFL and USFL, the Generals were able to bring high-profile running backs Herschel Walker and Mike Rogier, as well as quarterback Doug Flutie, into the league.

Trump was to blame for the collapse of the league. According to ESPN, he urged the league to move the schedule in the fall and a subsequent anti-trust lawsuit against the NFL. The USFL won the case but was given a final award of $1, which was later tripled to $3. The league folded before the 1986 season.

Trump also featured in several major boxing fights at his Atlantic City, New Jersey, casinos and pro golf championships at his resorts. He almost bought the Buffalo Bills in 2014.

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