Is Bolt the greatest athlete of all time, in any sport?

asker of stuff wrote:

Yes or no?

No.

He could have been, had he chosen his entourage a lot more critically. Not even considering his performances it's inconceivable he'd be clean throughout his career. When you are cleana nd committed to that, you don't go and paint such a poor picture of your actual stance.

(&%$^$ wrote:

800 On Pure Hate wrote:

NO

He's never gone out 100%. He's a lazy showboater. He does just enough to win. Never lived up to his potential. He'll regret when he's older.

If he wanted to really be the GOAT, he would've run the 400 too. But he's a lazy goofball.

Did you seriously just post that he's never gone out 100%? He does just enough to win? He holds TWO world records, 3 Olympic Gold medals in the 100m meters, etc. etc. All he needs to do is win. What potential are you even talking about? I am sure when he is old and sitting around looking at all of those Olympic Gold medals....he will say, man - wish I would have been better. You are an Idiot.

Have you even watched him run? He always shuts it down with 10 meters to go or more. He never worked on his start and drive in the 100. He just sits and kicks. He waits until the last 10 to 30 meters to pass everybody. He just wants to win and get the attention.

He could've gone sub 9.5 and sub 19 by now, but he is lazy. He even says so. He gets all the attention he wants already. He has left so much on the table. He'll never be able to know how fast he could've been if he was serious.

I'm not taking the wins away from him or the records. That doesn't mean anything in this context other than that was good enough for him, but he never pushed himself to see what his limits were. Winning was good enough him, not seeing how fast he could go. I don't respect that. I guess you do. I like this sport for the self-improvement and self-realization and maximizing potential.

Bolt and you are different. Attention is what you're after. You are Kardashians.

If what you're saying is true (and I don't really think it fully is), that makes his GOAT case even stronger. He is the WR holder and only 3x Olympic Champ at 100 meters WITHOUT EVEN TRYING? Wow!

Wowowowowow wrote:

Bolt is only the best athlete every four years. In other years, most people don't give a crap about olympics sports. After the olympics, people will turn their attention back to soccer, tennis, golf, etc.

You literally named sports that in the United States are basically niche sports. No one cares about soccer except during the World Cup and no one cares about tennis or golf till the major tournaments come around. Obviously soccer is the most popular sport in the world but to your premise is very flawed. After the masters/Wimbledon, interest in golf and tennis decline but that doesn't mean people don't care about them.

Depends on how one is categorized. Not to nitpick but in my opinion the "Best Track and Field athlete" since 2012 would have to go to Ashton Eaton.

We can warp words and choose different definitions all day long. That's why this is a debate. There is no absolute definition of GOAT.

To me, GOAT means, at least, you were more successful than any others in your events in the World Championships and Olympics, WRs, and you fulfilled your potential with full effort.

Bolt fails the last criterion, which you evidently do not require of a GOAT. That's fine. It's your opinion. We disagree.

800 On Pure Hate wrote:

NO

He's never gone out 100%. He's a lazy showboater. He does just enough to win. Never lived up to his potential. He'll regret when he's older.

If he wanted to really be the GOAT, he would've run the 400 too. But he's a lazy goofball.

This.

When he ran 9.58, with more application that or the next season he could have run 9.3x. He will regret that for ever.

The 9.58 is honestly amazing. The 19.19 is soft. But he could have run better if he was serious. Yeah, 9.3x. I could see that in his prime with full effort in a race and in training. I wish we could've seen that. Nobody else would come close to 9.3x for 50+ years, at least.

Muhammad Ali is the greatest. Pele and Bolt are right up there. No disrespect to either. But Ali was not only the best boxer, revolutionary in fighting, but he transcended sports into a movement and a world figure for peace and unity. Bolt still has time.

/thread

There was this kid in my high school that was great at Football/X-Country, Basketball, and Soccer/Track. He lettered in all 5 sports all 4 years. He retired rather than going pro, but he was BY FAR the greatest athlete the world has ever seen.

hopeless romantc wrote:

There was this kid in my high school that was great at Football/X-Country, Basketball, and Soccer/Track. He lettered in all 5 sports all 4 years. He retired rather than going pro, but he was BY FAR the greatest athlete the world has ever seen.

Name?

Yup. Five o'clock somewhere.

joe the burg wrote:

Muhammad Ali is the greatest. Pele and Bolt are right up there. No disrespect to either. But Ali was not only the best boxer, revolutionary in fighting, but he transcended sports into a movement and a world figure for peace and unity. Bolt still has time.

Not that I liked Ali that much, but this highlights the issue. Do you have to trancend your sport to be the GOAT? Problem is, you have to be 'lucky' to reach icon level. You have to have the timing and opportunity to do that, usually as part of an oppressed minority (Owens) or political victim (Zatopek). However I cannot think of anyone beating Ali for combo of domination/political impact.

Bolt, with his charisma, does have a chance, but it's his call. He could re-invent himself as a global do-gooder (not just 'coaching underpriviliged kids') but that requires, ya know...work.

hopeless romantc wrote:

There was this kid in my high school that was great at Football/X-Country, Basketball, and Soccer/Track. He lettered in all 5 sports all 4 years. He retired rather than going pro, but he was BY FAR the greatest athlete the world has ever seen.

I think practically everyone could say the same thing about someone in their HS.

I'd put him up there as one of the greatest sports PERSONALITIES of all time. Ali would have to be number 1, but in terms of international appeal he might be the most popular athlete in the world right now.

But, I don't think he'd be the top ATHLETE of all time. He has been the best sprinter in the world for 10 years or so. I don't even think Ali was the best boxer in the world for 10 years. Bekele was the best distance runner in the world for a decade and nobody lobbied for him as the best athlete of all time.

I hate to say it, but Phelps has him beat. He has been dominant for longer in his sport and across a wider range of events.

I'd put the following ahead of Bolt ... again, the criteria being how long the person was widely acknowledged as the best at his sport. Four years more and I think Bolt could take the crown though.

Michael Jordan

Babe Ruth

Carl Lewis (maybe)

Tiger Woods (if you count golf)

Wayne Gretzky

Pele

Michael Phelps

Yes!

Bolt is the fastest man that has ever lived...9.58!

He has also been the most dominant and clutch athlete in the most highly contested and most accessible event in all of sports for a decade.

Sprinting is the only sport / event that has been tried by every human on the planet that is physically capable. There is not a single school yard or isolated village in a remote part of the world where the community doesn't know who the fastest member is. Speed never goes unnoticed, and if its exceptional enough, it will be scouted, tested, and pitted against others until its limits have been observed...No other sport or event can even come close to making this claim...Not even close.

Yes, in a low impact sport that allows quick recovery when he can't even win the king of the events. How many freestyle? 1 or 2? He basically has the equivilent of 100m hopping Golds and 100m skateboarding golds

As for Lewis, he has 3 individual Oly track Gold's, Bolt currently has 5 and will probably go upto 6 this week. Maybe the greatest long jumper though with all due respect to him

Everyone forgets about him