Surely Tendulker should at least be on that list for cricket?
The Greatest Sportsman Ever™
- Thread starter Handjob Bob
- Start date
Michael Jackson, he deserves it!
Dancing counts under Sport
Dancing counts under Sport
don't be silly.
As for boxers. Joe Louis, Duran, Leonard all should be in there ahead of Marciano.
What more could Marciano do?He beat everyone they put up against him
Taken Marciano off but Tendulker can stay.
Yes, but he's not regarded in the top ten heavyweights(, let alone in the whole of boxing history. Best three fighters of all time are Sugar Ray Robinson, Muhammed Ali and Joe Louis. (btw Louis came out of retirement to fight Rocky, at the age of 43.)
No chance. Unless you'ev only been watching cricket in the last 5 years.
I thought so.
Yelena Isinbayeva - Pole vault?
The IAAF dope testing circus in the 80's under Samaranch was a big joke, first it was the Soviet-American-Canadian-East German rivalries that fuelled it with loads identified as banned substances and reverted back for some weird reasons. Lewis when compared to the likes of Burrel, Ben Johnson, Powell, Christie, Michael Johnson etc survived with less blows and took his domination in the field of athletics on 100M, 4X100 relays,Long jump for more than a decade and still respected in that field.
Is she worth a place? I suppose holding a world record means that you have achieved something that no-other has, in that case She'll be added, but we may get to the stage of adding every Tom, Dick & Harry who holds a current world record.
Greatest Sportsman of all time can be rated on the following facets apart from obvious talent and medals.
1) Contribution to the success of their nation in Olympics or World Cups/Championships or clubs etc
2) Contribution to the popularity of the sport, being a role model, leadership qualities etc
3) Whether he/she were revered by the fans and critics alike.
4) Has an indefinable aura about him/her not necessarily the most talented sportsman in their respective fields.
5) And most importantly, the type of legacy the player left in the wake of his/her career.
Boxing - Ali
Football - Di Stefano.
Maradona ability wise he's unmatched but he falls short in many other facets. Pele inspite of Havelenge and his cronies feeding him, his name completely evoparated from football map from 80-91 until Maradona was around. He surfaced back only prior to the 94 WC when he started his political career and played his footballing gambit. The more Fifa churns out some spastic lists for the sake of keeping his name on top the more stupid he looks.
I would pick DiStefano over both, he was neither controvorsial like Maradona nor damanged his reputation like Pele although he played for a club under the patronage of a legendary despot.
Olympic sports: Jesse Owens, Flo-Jo, Sergei Bubka, Comaneci
F1: Fangio
Like Maradona, Senna falls short on many facets although abilitywise he should be the greatest ever and had he been alive would've made it over Fangio.
Cricket: Sir Don Bradman.
Swimming: Phelps
Close call between Phelps and Spitz. Spitz seven gold medals and seven world records in the Munich Olympics but Phelps can go even further.
Hockey: Dyan Chand. The only other coloured athlete along with Jesse Owens who pissed of Hitler and also went a step further by owning him completely. After the Berlin Olympics, Hitler even offered him a post of Field marshal and a German citizenship which he refused. Hitler also renamed a road in Berlin to honour him.
Tennis: Pete Sampras and Billie Jean King the inspiration to the likes of Martina, Evert, Graf and others.
Yank Sports: Babe Ruth and Jordan.
Chess: Mikhail Botvinik, no point in talking about him here.
Ali, Fangio, Di Stefano, Dyan Chand, Pete Sampras, Owens, Flo Jo, Phelps, Bubka, Camoneci, Bille Jean King, Botvinik, Jack Nicklaus, and Yank sport legends make the grade and my choice would be Ali.
1) Contribution to the success of their nation in Olympics or World Cups/Championships or clubs etc
2) Contribution to the popularity of the sport, being a role model, leadership qualities etc
3) Whether he/she were revered by the fans and critics alike.
4) Has an indefinable aura about him/her not necessarily the most talented sportsman in their respective fields.
5) And most importantly, the type of legacy the player left in the wake of his/her career.
Boxing - Ali
Football - Di Stefano.
Maradona ability wise he's unmatched but he falls short in many other facets. Pele inspite of Havelenge and his cronies feeding him, his name completely evoparated from football map from 80-91 until Maradona was around. He surfaced back only prior to the 94 WC when he started his political career and played his footballing gambit. The more Fifa churns out some spastic lists for the sake of keeping his name on top the more stupid he looks.
I would pick DiStefano over both, he was neither controvorsial like Maradona nor damanged his reputation like Pele although he played for a club under the patronage of a legendary despot.
Olympic sports: Jesse Owens, Flo-Jo, Sergei Bubka, Comaneci
F1: Fangio
Like Maradona, Senna falls short on many facets although abilitywise he should be the greatest ever and had he been alive would've made it over Fangio.
Cricket: Sir Don Bradman.
Swimming: Phelps
Close call between Phelps and Spitz. Spitz seven gold medals and seven world records in the Munich Olympics but Phelps can go even further.
Hockey: Dyan Chand. The only other coloured athlete along with Jesse Owens who pissed of Hitler and also went a step further by owning him completely. After the Berlin Olympics, Hitler even offered him a post of Field marshal and a German citizenship which he refused. Hitler also renamed a road in Berlin to honour him.
Tennis: Pete Sampras and Billie Jean King the inspiration to the likes of Martina, Evert, Graf and others.
Yank Sports: Babe Ruth and Jordan.
Chess: Mikhail Botvinik, no point in talking about him here.
Ali, Fangio, Di Stefano, Dyan Chand, Pete Sampras, Owens, Flo Jo, Phelps, Bubka, Camoneci, Bille Jean King, Botvinik, Jack Nicklaus, and Yank sport legends make the grade and my choice would be Ali.
Lester Piggott has to be included, if you see horse racing as a sport that is.
he rode 4493 winners, 24 Classic winners, 9 Derby winners and was Champion Jockey on 11 occasions.
And paid fook all tax.
he rode 4493 winners, 24 Classic winners, 9 Derby winners and was Champion Jockey on 11 occasions.
And paid fook all tax.
Jim Brown
Thanks for the input - had a Michael Jordan day yesterday, might opt for a Rinus Michels day today.
For the record, not adding Darts or Chess to the list, not sure about horse racing either?
For the record, not adding Darts or Chess to the list, not sure about horse racing either?
The Yanks covered it up. I have no idea how he's still respected, despite being a massive hypocrite.
Lewis was as dirty as Ben. He just got away with it somehow.
Surely its being a bit selective to include certain sports and dismiss others.
Is Ali's accomplishment more of an achievement than say Schumacher'S 7 world titles? or Viv Richards test match career etc.
In terms of worldwide acknowledgement, certain sports will gain more attention due to their Popularity and exposure.
what about Redgraves 5 olympic golds? Lara's 400? or Armstrongs tour de france victories.
Is Ali's accomplishment more of an achievement than say Schumacher'S 7 world titles? or Viv Richards test match career etc.
In terms of worldwide acknowledgement, certain sports will gain more attention due to their Popularity and exposure.
what about Redgraves 5 olympic golds? Lara's 400? or Armstrongs tour de france victories.
Well, Ali made boxing what it is today. He was so much bigger than the sport. As a sportsman he lost the best two/three years of his career (We all know his story, so I don;t need to say more). I don't think any sportsman can compare to him. Certainly not to the whole package.
And Senna should be on the list.
Worth considering cyclists - the likes of Armstrong and Indurain are just machines.
My vote goes to Gebrselassie though.
My vote goes to Gebrselassie though.
Without looking at the replies, here's my responses to the original post:
Swimming - Ian Thorpe
Boxing - Rocky Marciano
Golf - Severiano Ballesteros
Tennis - Bjorn Borg, Roger Federer, Steffi Graf, Billie Jean King
F1 - Michael Schumacher, Ayrton Senna
Football - Alfredo Di Stefano
Gymnastics - Olga Korbut
Darts - Phil Taylor
Snooker - Stephen Hendry, Steve Davis, Ray Reardon, Joe Davis
Billiards - Walter Lindrum
Motorcycling - Valentino Rossi, Giacomo Agostini
Rowing - Steve Redgrave
Squash - Jahangir Khan
Running - Haile Gabrisellasie
Downhill Skiing - Franz Klammer
Slalom Skiiing - Ingemar Stenmark
Disagree with Usain Bolt - he's had one season.
Swimming - Ian Thorpe
Boxing - Rocky Marciano
Golf - Severiano Ballesteros
Tennis - Bjorn Borg, Roger Federer, Steffi Graf, Billie Jean King
F1 - Michael Schumacher, Ayrton Senna
Football - Alfredo Di Stefano
Gymnastics - Olga Korbut
Darts - Phil Taylor
Snooker - Stephen Hendry, Steve Davis, Ray Reardon, Joe Davis
Billiards - Walter Lindrum
Motorcycling - Valentino Rossi, Giacomo Agostini
Rowing - Steve Redgrave
Squash - Jahangir Khan
Running - Haile Gabrisellasie
Downhill Skiing - Franz Klammer
Slalom Skiiing - Ingemar Stenmark
Disagree with Usain Bolt - he's had one season.
Jim Thorpe?
Two gold medals at the same Olympics in pentathlon and the decathlon, and played professional baseball, basketball and football (Hall of Fame American Footballer)
Two gold medals at the same Olympics in pentathlon and the decathlon, and played professional baseball, basketball and football (Hall of Fame American Footballer)
What exactly makes Ian Thorpe better than Michael Phelps?
Jim Thorpe has to be the greatest ever athelete...
In swimming I cant look past Phelps.
That record will never be broken.
In swimming I cant look past Phelps.
That record will never be broken.
Thats what I thought.
Ben Johnson...
just think how much dedication it took to take that many steroids...
just think how much dedication it took to take that many steroids...
Added Senna - dont really agree - but has been mentioned twice so I'll add him, would have Schumaker above him but he wouldn't be on my list.
It's got to be Woosnam; his CV is a bit special:
WAS HE THE GREATEST SPORTSMAN OF ALL TIME?; Max Woosnam won Olympic gold, a Wimbledon title, captained the England football team, scored a century at Lord's - and never asked for a penny. What a lesson for today's pampered stars
Britain once produced genuine sporting heroes, men whose sporting achievements went unpaid, who competed for the joy of the game and the glory of victory.
And of all these heroes, the most remarkable, yet least-known, was the extraordinary Maxwell Woosnam, whose tale is told in a new biography, All Round Genius: The Unknown Story Of Britain's Greatest Sportsman.
In his prime, Woosnam - who smoked Capstan Full Strength cigarettes all his adult life - won Olympic gold and silver medals, plus a Wimbledon title. He was captain of England's amateur and professional football teams and scored a century at Lord's. From his childhood, he played golf off a scratch handicap, and he once scored a perfect 147 break at snooker.
He was also a successful businessman and a war hero - a man who knew, as modern athletes do not, the difference between sporting conflict and the real thing.
However, there was nothing dour or gloomy about Woosnam. He relished any challenge, whether crunching into a tackle on the football field or playing Charlie Chaplin at table tennis, using only a butter knife.
Six foot tall, handsome, golden-haired and built like a light-heavyweight boxer, Woosnam was the archetypal sporting hero. He was strong, agile, fearless, energetic and blessed with perfect hand-eye coordination.
As his daughter Penny Kavanagh later recalled: 'My father was truly larger than life, terribly good fun to be around, very sharp and always up for a challenge. If you couldn't keep up, you got left behind because there was always too much going on in life to start dawdling around.' In the words of one American reporter: 'To hear Woosnam's laugh was to hear the sound of silver bells. When Max Woosnam came into the pavilion on a dark day, it was like drawing up a blind and admitting the sun.' Born in Liverpool on September 6, 1892, Woosnam (no relation to the golfer, Ian Woosnam) was bred to be a physical phenomenon. His father, Charles, was a Church of England vicar, but he believed in the Victorian ideal of muscular Christianity.
AS A young man, while working on Tyneside as the chaplain to the Seaman's Mission, Charles Woosnam had fallen in love with his future wife, Mary. Unfortunately, she lived on the far side of the River Tyne.
Since there was no bridge in those days, when he went courting, the young Rev. Woosnam had to swim across the river to his loved one - an amazing and dangerous feat.
Mary, a keen tennis player, was impressed and they soon married. Her brother, Hylton Philipson, kept wicket for the England cricket team, touring India and Australia. He also represented Oxford University at football, tennis and racquets. Young Maxwell grew up hearing his uncle's tales of sporting success, but he was soon to eclipse them.
While still a pupil at Winchester public school, Max played cricket against the MCC at Lord's, scoring 144 not out in his first innings and 33 not out in his second. As a student at Cambridge University, he went one better than his uncle, gaining five blues in football, cricket, tennis, real tennis and golf.
He amused himself during the Easter vacation of 1914 by making three First Division appearances for Chelsea as an amateur. He played at the heart of Chelsea's defence and he helped his side keep clean sheets in all of the games.
For the next four years, Woosnam's sporting activities were curtailed by the World War I.
Volunteering himself at the start of the conflict, he saw action in the disastrous Gallipoli campaign of 1915 and served in the Middle East, before being posted to the Western Front just before the close of hostilities.
Returning to England after the war, Woosnam took a job at Crossley Brothers, a Manchesterbased engineering firm, to support his wife and two daughters.
But that did not diminish his passion for sport.
In summer 1919, a Daily Mail sports correspondent exulted: 'Woosnam is the Admirable Crichton of sport. The epitome of physical energy. An English hope.' Later that year, Woosnam joined Manchester City, still playing as an amateur. He was so good that he was invited to captain Great Britain's team at the 1920 Antwerp Olympics. Sadly, he was forced to decline as he had already been selected for the British Olympic tennis squad.
Woosnam and his partner, Noel Turnbull, won the gold medal in the men's doubles, beating a Japanese pair called Kumagae and Kashio. 'Woosnam's low volleys and service returns were the deciding factor,' reported the magazine Lawn Tennis And Badminton.
Having won gold in the morning, Woosnam went out in the afternoon to play another final, partnering Kitty McKane in the mixed doubles. Fatigued by his earlier efforts, Woosnam took only a silver medal this time.
In the following year, Woosnam played a full season for Manchester City, during which he was appointed captain. He also captained England's amateur football team, leading the full England side in a 1-0 win against Wales.
When the football season ended, Woosnam picked up his tennis racket again, popping down to Wimbledon, where he won the mixed doubles title. Then he sailed to America, where he captained Great Britain in the Davis Cup.
The cup was played in one continuous tournament.
Unfortunately, the British were knocked out by Australia in the second round. It was now early August and as their ship home was not due to depart for another month, Woosnam played a series of golf matches against prominent Americans, winning every one.
THEN came an unexpected offer. Charlie Chaplin, the world's greatest silent movie star of the time, invited the British Davis Cup team to stay at his Hollywood estate.
Chaplin was a keen tennis player. He was also an Englishman, born and raised in South-East London. He and Woosnam should have got on splendidly. After all, Woosnam's charm was almost as great as his sporting prowess. His encounter with Chaplin, however, was not a happy one. Even a vast mansion was not big enough for these two alpha males.
The trouble began when Chaplin invited Woosnam to play tennis.
A more diplomatic soul would have realised that Chaplin, being both the host and a superstar, needed to be flattered and indulged. But Woosnam was too fierce a competitor to gift his opponent any points, and he handed Chaplin a thrashing.
Later they played table-tennis.
As Chaplin prepared to serve, Woosnam swapped his bat for a nearby butter knife. He used it to play the entire game and, once again, walloped his opponent.
It was, perhaps, intended as a joke.
But it made an unmistakable point, one that was reinforced when Woosnam picked up Chaplin, just as he was giving a little pre-dinner speech to his guests, and threw him into his own swimming pool.
In September, Woosnam returned to Manchester to work at Crossley Brothers and take the pitch for City.
Then, on 28 April 1922 he broke his leg playing for Manchester City in the last home match of the season, against Newcastle. It took almost a year before the injury healed and it robbed Woosnam of much of his athleticism. He made one appearance for Manchester City in 1923, leading his side to a 2-1 win over Sheffield United in front of more than 60,000 spectators. But after the game, Woosnam went to see the club's manager Ernest Magnall, telling him that the game would be his last.
WOOSNAM could no longer play to the standard he expected of himself and so, after 96 games and four goals for Manchester City, he retired from football.
He continued to play tennis for another year, appearing at Wimbledon and representing Britain in the Davis Cup. But the glory days were over.
Max Woosnam went on to work for ICI, the giant chemicals firm, eventually joining its board of directors before dying, aged 72, in July 1965.
He was not by any means a perfect man. Having been separated from his own parents when he was sent away to boarding school when he was seven, he was not the greatest parent himself.
Even after he had retired from top-class competition, Woosnam's priorities remained unchanged. His son, Max Jnr., ruefully remarked: 'Sport took him away from his home life with great frequency as golf, snooker, squash and social games of tennis occupied every out-of-office moment.
'He encouraged me to take up tennis but he never found time to coach me. The sad truth is I never really knew him. I scarcely had a conversation with him.
I remember playing tennis with him in 1949 when he was 57. He beat me.' His daughter, Penny, put it succinctly: 'He was never really Max the father as much as he was Max the sportsman.' But what a sportsman Woosman was. And what a contrast he provides to the pampered pygmies of contemporary sport.
Max Woosnam played for the love of competition, not the lure of cash.
He had no agent, no sponsors, no advertising deal. He was an example of what sport once was and, perhaps, of what it should still be.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A27285041
This isn't even a contest!
WAS HE THE GREATEST SPORTSMAN OF ALL TIME?; Max Woosnam won Olympic gold, a Wimbledon title, captained the England football team, scored a century at Lord's - and never asked for a penny. What a lesson for today's pampered stars
Britain once produced genuine sporting heroes, men whose sporting achievements went unpaid, who competed for the joy of the game and the glory of victory.
And of all these heroes, the most remarkable, yet least-known, was the extraordinary Maxwell Woosnam, whose tale is told in a new biography, All Round Genius: The Unknown Story Of Britain's Greatest Sportsman.
In his prime, Woosnam - who smoked Capstan Full Strength cigarettes all his adult life - won Olympic gold and silver medals, plus a Wimbledon title. He was captain of England's amateur and professional football teams and scored a century at Lord's. From his childhood, he played golf off a scratch handicap, and he once scored a perfect 147 break at snooker.
He was also a successful businessman and a war hero - a man who knew, as modern athletes do not, the difference between sporting conflict and the real thing.
However, there was nothing dour or gloomy about Woosnam. He relished any challenge, whether crunching into a tackle on the football field or playing Charlie Chaplin at table tennis, using only a butter knife.
Six foot tall, handsome, golden-haired and built like a light-heavyweight boxer, Woosnam was the archetypal sporting hero. He was strong, agile, fearless, energetic and blessed with perfect hand-eye coordination.
As his daughter Penny Kavanagh later recalled: 'My father was truly larger than life, terribly good fun to be around, very sharp and always up for a challenge. If you couldn't keep up, you got left behind because there was always too much going on in life to start dawdling around.' In the words of one American reporter: 'To hear Woosnam's laugh was to hear the sound of silver bells. When Max Woosnam came into the pavilion on a dark day, it was like drawing up a blind and admitting the sun.' Born in Liverpool on September 6, 1892, Woosnam (no relation to the golfer, Ian Woosnam) was bred to be a physical phenomenon. His father, Charles, was a Church of England vicar, but he believed in the Victorian ideal of muscular Christianity.
AS A young man, while working on Tyneside as the chaplain to the Seaman's Mission, Charles Woosnam had fallen in love with his future wife, Mary. Unfortunately, she lived on the far side of the River Tyne.
Since there was no bridge in those days, when he went courting, the young Rev. Woosnam had to swim across the river to his loved one - an amazing and dangerous feat.
Mary, a keen tennis player, was impressed and they soon married. Her brother, Hylton Philipson, kept wicket for the England cricket team, touring India and Australia. He also represented Oxford University at football, tennis and racquets. Young Maxwell grew up hearing his uncle's tales of sporting success, but he was soon to eclipse them.
While still a pupil at Winchester public school, Max played cricket against the MCC at Lord's, scoring 144 not out in his first innings and 33 not out in his second. As a student at Cambridge University, he went one better than his uncle, gaining five blues in football, cricket, tennis, real tennis and golf.
He amused himself during the Easter vacation of 1914 by making three First Division appearances for Chelsea as an amateur. He played at the heart of Chelsea's defence and he helped his side keep clean sheets in all of the games.
For the next four years, Woosnam's sporting activities were curtailed by the World War I.
Volunteering himself at the start of the conflict, he saw action in the disastrous Gallipoli campaign of 1915 and served in the Middle East, before being posted to the Western Front just before the close of hostilities.
Returning to England after the war, Woosnam took a job at Crossley Brothers, a Manchesterbased engineering firm, to support his wife and two daughters.
But that did not diminish his passion for sport.
In summer 1919, a Daily Mail sports correspondent exulted: 'Woosnam is the Admirable Crichton of sport. The epitome of physical energy. An English hope.' Later that year, Woosnam joined Manchester City, still playing as an amateur. He was so good that he was invited to captain Great Britain's team at the 1920 Antwerp Olympics. Sadly, he was forced to decline as he had already been selected for the British Olympic tennis squad.
Woosnam and his partner, Noel Turnbull, won the gold medal in the men's doubles, beating a Japanese pair called Kumagae and Kashio. 'Woosnam's low volleys and service returns were the deciding factor,' reported the magazine Lawn Tennis And Badminton.
Having won gold in the morning, Woosnam went out in the afternoon to play another final, partnering Kitty McKane in the mixed doubles. Fatigued by his earlier efforts, Woosnam took only a silver medal this time.
In the following year, Woosnam played a full season for Manchester City, during which he was appointed captain. He also captained England's amateur football team, leading the full England side in a 1-0 win against Wales.
When the football season ended, Woosnam picked up his tennis racket again, popping down to Wimbledon, where he won the mixed doubles title. Then he sailed to America, where he captained Great Britain in the Davis Cup.
The cup was played in one continuous tournament.
Unfortunately, the British were knocked out by Australia in the second round. It was now early August and as their ship home was not due to depart for another month, Woosnam played a series of golf matches against prominent Americans, winning every one.
THEN came an unexpected offer. Charlie Chaplin, the world's greatest silent movie star of the time, invited the British Davis Cup team to stay at his Hollywood estate.
Chaplin was a keen tennis player. He was also an Englishman, born and raised in South-East London. He and Woosnam should have got on splendidly. After all, Woosnam's charm was almost as great as his sporting prowess. His encounter with Chaplin, however, was not a happy one. Even a vast mansion was not big enough for these two alpha males.
The trouble began when Chaplin invited Woosnam to play tennis.
A more diplomatic soul would have realised that Chaplin, being both the host and a superstar, needed to be flattered and indulged. But Woosnam was too fierce a competitor to gift his opponent any points, and he handed Chaplin a thrashing.
Later they played table-tennis.
As Chaplin prepared to serve, Woosnam swapped his bat for a nearby butter knife. He used it to play the entire game and, once again, walloped his opponent.
It was, perhaps, intended as a joke.
But it made an unmistakable point, one that was reinforced when Woosnam picked up Chaplin, just as he was giving a little pre-dinner speech to his guests, and threw him into his own swimming pool.
In September, Woosnam returned to Manchester to work at Crossley Brothers and take the pitch for City.
Then, on 28 April 1922 he broke his leg playing for Manchester City in the last home match of the season, against Newcastle. It took almost a year before the injury healed and it robbed Woosnam of much of his athleticism. He made one appearance for Manchester City in 1923, leading his side to a 2-1 win over Sheffield United in front of more than 60,000 spectators. But after the game, Woosnam went to see the club's manager Ernest Magnall, telling him that the game would be his last.
WOOSNAM could no longer play to the standard he expected of himself and so, after 96 games and four goals for Manchester City, he retired from football.
He continued to play tennis for another year, appearing at Wimbledon and representing Britain in the Davis Cup. But the glory days were over.
Max Woosnam went on to work for ICI, the giant chemicals firm, eventually joining its board of directors before dying, aged 72, in July 1965.
He was not by any means a perfect man. Having been separated from his own parents when he was sent away to boarding school when he was seven, he was not the greatest parent himself.
Even after he had retired from top-class competition, Woosnam's priorities remained unchanged. His son, Max Jnr., ruefully remarked: 'Sport took him away from his home life with great frequency as golf, snooker, squash and social games of tennis occupied every out-of-office moment.
'He encouraged me to take up tennis but he never found time to coach me. The sad truth is I never really knew him. I scarcely had a conversation with him.
I remember playing tennis with him in 1949 when he was 57. He beat me.' His daughter, Penny, put it succinctly: 'He was never really Max the father as much as he was Max the sportsman.' But what a sportsman Woosman was. And what a contrast he provides to the pampered pygmies of contemporary sport.
Max Woosnam played for the love of competition, not the lure of cash.
He had no agent, no sponsors, no advertising deal. He was an example of what sport once was and, perhaps, of what it should still be.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A27285041
This isn't even a contest!
Agreed, but a snooker player and no strength athletes/ strongmen on the list Ander8on?
Agreed, but a snooker player and no strength athletes/ strongmen on the list Ander8on?
Good point, I'll remove Snooker & add strongmen - quite right it was unbalanced.
I think that darts/snooker are as worthy of inclusion as Formula 1
It's got to be Woosnam; his CV is a bit special:
This isn't even a contest!
Good selection but which category do you put him in?
What puts me off with both Snooker & Darts was that 'professionals' were allowed to sink alcohol before and during matches - this sets them apart from a sport such as F1 that requires the participants to be both a picture of physical & mental strength.
Dont get me wrong, I love darts - technically it is a sport, but not a serious sport - its a pub game, still to this day played in a pub environment.
Phil 'The Power' Taylor is the greatest British sportsman ever - 13 times world champion
the thread says sportsman
OK I've pretty much skimmed through and may have missed it, but if not - there's talk of Tennis and no mention of a certain John Mcenroe
OK I've pretty much skimmed through and may have missed it, but if not - there's talk of Tennis and no mention of a certain John Mcenroe
You reckon he is the stand out player in the history of Tennis?
I have several in fornt of him, however when you talk of stand out players in the history of Tennis, sure McEnroe will be mentioned more-so for his temperament than his achievements.
I would like to know the criteria on which people have added Rocky Marciano to their list? yet no joe louis?
No swimming category or did I miss it ?