Bruce Jenner.
Oh wait.
Bruce Jenner.
Oh wait.
Dave Winfield was drafted in the: MLB, NBA, ABA and NFL drafts. Not too shabby.
Ashton Eaton should certainly be in the conversation, but probably still behind the immortal Jim Thorpe. Jackie Robinson and Wilt Chamberlain should also be among the top.
For the women, Jackie Joyner Kersee, Babe Didrickson Zaharias and Simone Biles are a great top three.
Huapango wrote:
CartmanBrah wrote:
Alex Honnold. Perfect execution, or death.
Alex was the first name that came to my mind.
Third this. Balls of steel counts for a lot.
Honk Honk Goose wrote:
Huapango wrote:
Alex was the first name that came to my mind.
Third this. Balls of steel counts for a lot.
I guess I'm the fifth, not third. Yes, I know he isn't the strongest, I am a climber myself, but "greatest athlete" is open to interpretation.
Jim Thorpe
Josh Kerr
Noah Hansen wrote:
Discus
Rafael Nadal
Jimmy Gressier
John Lucas II was an amazing athlete. Very good NBA player who won the ACC first singles championships twice. Tough sports to pull off the double All American in.
I'm guessing he was great at golf, ping pong and any other sport requiring hand eye coordination and quickness.
yep......
Rafa Nadal
Leo Messi
Diego Maradona
A whole bunch of top soccer players are better athletes than most of those listed. Competition is much stronger in that sport.
Geezing Trump Supporter wrote:
DanM wrote:
His 31 length victory in the 1973 Belmont Stakes was the all time greatest performance by an athlete in a single event.
No it wasn't. That's what? 180 feet in a 1.5 or 2 mile race? BFD.
How far is a horse length, anyhow? How do they instantly tell the 2nd place horse is exactly 31 lengths behind?
They should measure it in meters like sensible people. A horse is like 3 or 4 meters long probably.
a regular guy wrote:
With all due respect, Americans will typically lack global awareness when answering that question.
First of all if it is a global question, all athletes from sports that are "niche" sports should not be considered. That includes american football, which hardly anyone in the world rather than americans care about. Also baseball is out. Ice hockey is out.
By far, the most popular and most important sport in the world is football, known is the US as "soccer".
And the most influential player ever, who is still alive (80 years old) is Pele. Not only because he was the greatest in the field, the only athlete to ever win three world cups, but because he was a truly global figure. Anyone in the world will know who he is - from Africa to Oceania and including places not historically related to football, the US being one (by the way Pele had a key role on developing the sport in the US). He is also known from stopping a war (very interesting read by the way).
Jordan is a decent answer, arguably the greatest ever in a global sport who had a key influence in modern sport from a marketing perspective.
Comparing Jordan with Pele is like comparing basketball with football. Both are the very best of truly global sports.
But Football is simply bigger and more influential in the vast majority of the world.
This is right except that damn few soccer experts rate Pele so high. Even the old Brazilians all say his teammate Garrincha was better. Lots of contemporaries thought di Stefano was better.
The top soccer players now are on another level. Messi is clearly an alien. There are the two Ronaldo's and Ronaldinho, Maradona, Zidane, etc.
Most Spanish speakers probably regard Messi or Maradona as the greatest. Messi is clearly the best ever in a pure playing sense, but Maradona had that Jordan thing and took a nothing team (Napoli) to the Italian league title and then took Argentina to the world cup final with two of sport's most iconic goals (scores) in the same game against England. Physically he was a beast, strong with tremendous balance and coordination. Physically Messi is similar. A guy like Cristiano Ronaldo is fast, can jump like an NFL cornerback, and can do it for 90 minutes. It's a full kind of athleticism.
The talent pool they are taken from is probably several times bigger inside than the next two, which are probably basketball and cricket.
George213 wrote:
Ronaldo. Dude has been at the top of his game for so many years and soccer is by far the most competitive sport on this planet.
Distance running is more competitive than soccer by a very long way. As a global sport soccer is fairly popular though.
I'm going to go out on a limb, I think Prince might be one of the greatest athletes ever! The guy could play some serious bball while wearing high heel boots. Imagine how good he would have been if he had high tops! Also one time during a concert he took a basketball out and started spinning it on his finger and even made a shot during a concert. I mean that doesn't prove he's the greatest ever but I'm just saying I mean , come on! Obviously he deserves consideration, at least top 10!
I’m of two minds when it comes to this question. When the OP says ”of all-time,” you would maybe think its dumb & biased that most ppl answer with athletes active during the last 30 years.
On the other hand, organized/standardized/globalized sport is really only... i dunno, 40-50 years old? So it makes sense the best athlete would come from this era.
Wider talent pool, modern coaching & competition, cultural values, financial incentives.. These are factors that make great athletes. Its just impossible to compare athletes from pre-modern era to today. Jim Thorpe was no question a supreme talent, but who was he really competing against? A bunch of hobbyists and dilettantes ;)
My answer is someone from the last 30 years, dominating a global sport (with a low barrier to entry). Thats really only soccer and basketball, right?
MidFootStriker wrote:
I'm going to go out on a limb, I think Prince might be one of the greatest athletes ever! The guy could play some serious bball while wearing high heel boots. Imagine how good he would have been if he had high tops! Also one time during a concert he took a basketball out and started spinning it on his finger and even made a shot during a concert. I mean that doesn't prove he's the greatest ever but I'm just saying I mean , come on! Obviously he deserves consideration, at least top 10!
Totally agree! Also in the top 10 should be Neil Armstrong, Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Tom Cruise, the pilot who landed that plane in the Hudson River! Seriously guys being a great athlete isn't just about running fast, someone who can fly a plane he's also a great athlete. And I mean how many incredible athletic performance is a did Sylvester Stallone give. Arm wrestling is sport I don't care what you say!
Ezrun wrote:
MidFootStriker wrote:
I'm going to go out on a limb, I think Prince might be one of the greatest athletes ever! The guy could play some serious bball while wearing high heel boots. Imagine how good he would have been if he had high tops! Also one time during a concert he took a basketball out and started spinning it on his finger and even made a shot during a concert. I mean that doesn't prove he's the greatest ever but I'm just saying I mean , come on! Obviously he deserves consideration, at least top 10!
Totally agree! Also in the top 10 should be Neil Armstrong, Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Tom Cruise, the pilot who landed that plane in the Hudson River! Seriously guys being a great athlete isn't just about running fast, someone who can fly a plane he's also a great athlete. And I mean how many incredible athletic performance is a did Sylvester Stallone give. Arm wrestling is sport I don't care what you say!
I agree with Neil Armstrong in his prime! Definitely top 10! I don't know about actors though I wouldn't put them in it. But I definitely would put Baryshnikov and Gregory Hines. Baryshnikov is definitely the best athlete in the last hundred years.
Has anyone mention Jesus? I mean fishing is a sport. And he was a pretty damn good fisherman. Not to mention he could to walk on water and raised himself from the dead. Pretty much an all-around stud!