Both Trump and Biden have had their backgrounds completely scrutinized by the public for the sake of the upcoming election, and this, to an extent, is justifiable. However, one category of both candidates’ backgrounds remains a bit ambiguous and way less debated. Who is the better athlete? It’s a question that gets overlooked, but it needs to be answered, for the sake of closure for some voters, and just pure curiosity for the vast majority of all the others. 

Ground rules state that golf will not count for any consideration of athleticism, since this is a sport that both candidates pursue leisurely and it therefore does not accurately represent any athletic ability. Consideration for sports will start in the athletic high school careers for both candidates. 

Trump himself tweeted in 2013 that he “played football and baseball,” and that his coach, Ted Dobias, acknowledged him as the “best he’s ever coached”. On a 2010 MTV show titled “When I was 17,” Trump states that he “was supposed to be a professional baseball player,” however he “fortunately decided real estate instead.” Trump isn’t the only person who emphasizes his own athletic prowess. According to an article published by “sportscasting,” the catcher of Trump’s baseball team at the New York Military Academy, Ted Levine, described Trump as a “great athlete” who “could have probably played pro ball as a pitcher.” Trump’s roommate, Arthur Schoenewaldt, cited that he “heard from some of the coaches and stuff he could have played baseball professionally.” With this, however, comes other classmates of Trump who have a differing opinion. Dick Guido, a previous teammate of Trump, recalls hearing Trump say that he could make it to the MLB, but he responded to the thought with “He wasn’t that good.”

Joe Biden’s athleticism is one that closely relates to Trump’s, only he expressed his through football, not baseball. Biden attended Archmere academy, a private high school in Delaware. According to the “Daily Pennsylvanian,” in a report from 1960 about Archmere’s football team, Biden is acclaimed as one of the team’s “best receivers.” This was accurate, as Biden helped his team achieve a perfect 8-0 record and earned himself a spot amongst the top scorers in the state of Delaware, with 60 points to his name in one season. The real evidence of Biden’s athletic level came in his college debut, which was, to say the least, short lived. During his time at the University of Delaware, freshmen were not allowed to play in football games per NCAA regulations. Correspondingly, Biden could only play on Delaware’s freshmen team. This would be where his football career came to end, as after his first fall semester of college, he finished with a GPA of 1.9, causing him to quit the gridiron and focus on education. 

The Verdict? The only true way to measure the apex of someone’s skill in a sport is to consider the highest level of competition at which they played. For Trump, this is unfortunate because his athletic career is encompassed by his prospective ability to play at the professional level. The facts state that he did not do this. Trump’s highest level of competition was high school, Biden’s highest level was collegiate. Even though Biden’s level was a way less competitive collegiate level, it still is higher than high school. If there is a silver lining for Trump, however, it’s that he certainly knew how to balance school and sports better, as he did not earn nearly as low as a GPA while playing any sport during his career.