[quote]flipcollar wrote:
[quote]bluebrasil wrote:
[quote]flipcollar wrote:
[quote]bluebrasil wrote:
10 of the best, in no particular order:-
Sergei Bubka (polevalt)
Roy Jones Jr (boxing)
Daley Thompson (decathlon)
Roger Federer (tennis)
Ed Moses (400mhurdles)
Lance Armstrong (cycling)
Steven Redgrave (rowing)
Vasily Alexeyev (weightlifting)
Michael Jordan (basketball)
wayne Gretzky (ice hockey)[/quote]
lol wut? this is just a list of the best players in an assortment of sports/ track events. You seriously would put a rower, hurdler, cyclist, weightlifter, ice hockey player, and tennis player in your top 10 ATHLETES? I know it’s a broad question, but geez. Why no Jim Brown? Why are there zero multi-sport athletes on your list? (aside from the decathlete. and even that is splitting hairs.)[/quote]
to pick only american footballers or basketball players or whatever ignores the many many other gifted athletes out there who play other sports. Believe me, no-one round here plays american football.
all of the above athletes were supreme examples of athleticism as defined by the rules of their sport.
who is Jim Brown? let me guess? an american footballer or a basketball player?
(i just checked, he’s an american footballer)
you might want to check out the rest of the world when looking for the best athletes in the world
[/quote]
Jim Brown was also the best Lacrosse player of all time. His athletic talent transcended his profession. Can you say the same for anyone on your list?
My criteria for a great athlete is not just excelling at your chosen sport. Otherwise Jack Nicklaus would have been mentioned by now (or Tiger Woods for that matter).
For an athlete to make my top 10 list, he has to be a game-changer. Deion Sanders is an example in football. He changed the way you look at the cornerback postion (and he was a professional baseball player. that makes him exceptional). Lawrence Taylor had such an unusual combination of size, speed, and explosive power that he revolutionized the way football was played, and what stats were kept (sacks weren’t recorded pre-Taylor).
Multi-sport athletes rank high with me. Guys who were at the top of 2+ sports have to be absurdly athletically gifted. Some athletes make it in their sports based on sheer work ethic with only a modicum of athleticism. This is clearly not the case when players excel in multiple sports.
Guys like Federer, on the other hand, are just barely better at their sport than the previous bests (Sampras immediately comes to mind, and Nadal, a contemporary, is actually better than Federer on clay, and always has been). There’s nothing transcendent about Federer’s talent.
As far as the America-bias, I think that comes from A) I’m American, and have more awareness of what’s going on here, and B) athletes are paid the most here (soccer excluded). This means the greatest athletes have a reason to compete here.
A few international athletes who should get some props: Pele (we’re not talking about him enough), Dirk Nowitzki (he’s an athletic anomaly in his skillset/size combination), mariusz pudzianowski (because, well, look at him).
In summary: I just don’t think a guy who could do one thing really well, a la Lance Armstrong, should be on the list.[/quote]
that all seems entirely reasonable. so on the basis of those rules (which seem ok to me) I’ll change my picks to:-
Daley Thompson
Jeff Wilson (Rugby and Cricket for New Zealand)
Jonty Rhodes (cricket and hockey for South Africa)
Dennis Compton (football and cricket for England)
this isnt an easy list to make!!! 4 will have to do for me