Cornell University Athletics

He captained the 1911 Cornell fencing team which went undefeated and won the National Intercollegiate Fencing Association championship, the first time in history that the national fencing title had been won by any college except Army or Navy. From 1914-17, he fenced for the New York Athletic Club, winning a place as a member of no less than eight national championship teams and placing in national individual championships in both foil and saber competition. At age 35, he made the United States Olympic team in two different sports, foil fencing and the modern pentathlon, at the 1924 Games in Paris, France. Because the two competitions overlapped, he had to choose between them. He chose fencing, and against the Olympic champion French team, he won one bout, lost two others by a single touch and was defeated 5-2 in the fourth bout. Allison was also a retired colonel in the U.S. Army.