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Greatest Athlete Of All-Time?
- Thread starter HPC
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- Thread starter
- #42
HPC
New member
crowhop said:but all those things doesn't make them great athletes. seriously, Gabe Kapler is probably more athletic than either of them.HPC said:crowhop said:you did well. it has generated good discussion. that's the key.HPC said:I could only put 10 names on the list
...Otherwise more people would be on there.
Thanks man!
Im surprised no one else has voted for Favre yet!
His stats will more than likely never be surpassed (as he has the record for every major passing category and the consecutive games streak too!), and is the greatest QB of all time!
I added Cal to the list because he is baseball's Ironman! The consecutive games streak will never be matched and his attitude has always been right!
Griffey, in my opinion, is one of the reasons baseball has grown so popular in the last 20 years! He is what got alot of people into not only watching, but collecting and playing the game as well!
Griffey was probably the most athletic outfielder the game had during the 90's until he started getting hurt (which was caused by his athleticism)
...it also depends on your definition of athlete....are you just going by pure ability, or, stats/ability/attitude/etc.
Not to mention, Ripken did win 2 gold gloves and is a 19X all-star!
ummmmm *mind in gutter*
what is chuck doing?
what is chuck doing?
crowhop
New member
you are a censor to my hilarity. just sayin'.cgilmo said:
crowhop
New member
when i think "athlete", i think measurables. Cal wasn't fast. he wasn't a particularly elite hitter. he didn't have exceptional range. he was tough and smart, but not athletic. Ozzie Smith, Gary Templeton, Shawon Dunston, Barry Larkin, Nomar Garciaparra, Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter are all guys who competed against Cal at his position that were markedly better athletes.HPC said:crowhop said:but all those things doesn't make them great athletes. seriously, Gabe Kapler is probably more athletic than either of them.HPC said:crowhop said:you did well. it has generated good discussion. that's the key.HPC said:I could only put 10 names on the list
...Otherwise more people would be on there.
Thanks man!
Im surprised no one else has voted for Favre yet!
His stats will more than likely never be surpassed (as he has the record for every major passing category and the consecutive games streak too!), and is the greatest QB of all time!
I added Cal to the list because he is baseball's Ironman! The consecutive games streak will never be matched and his attitude has always been right!
Griffey, in my opinion, is one of the reasons baseball has grown so popular in the last 20 years! He is what got alot of people into not only watching, but collecting and playing the game as well!
Griffey was probably the most athletic outfielder the game had during the 90's until he started getting hurt (which was caused by his athleticism)
...it also depends on your definition of athlete....are you just going by pure ability, or, stats/ability/attitude/etc.
Not to mention, Ripken did win 2 gold gloves and is a 19X all-star!
Griffey is much more worthy to be in the discussion, but again, he wasn't even the most "athletic" guy in baseball during the 90s, i don't think. Tim Raines, Rickey Henderson, Bo Jackson, Barry Bonds, Ron Gant and Marquis Grissom are all contemporaries of Griffey who were equal or better athletically.
newhannibal
New member
Where is Jim Brown?
IndyManning18
Active member
Mr. Jack Roosevelt Robinson
At UCLA, Jackie became the first athlete to win varsity letters in four sports:
Baseball
Basketball
Football
Track
In 1941, he was named to the All-American football team.
And then there was that whole baseball career, ***** Leagues and MLB.
At UCLA, Jackie became the first athlete to win varsity letters in four sports:
Baseball
Basketball
Football
Track
In 1941, he was named to the All-American football team.
And then there was that whole baseball career, ***** Leagues and MLB.
Sammy Baugh:
Quarterback
Defensive back
Punter
Two of his records as quarterback still stand: most seasons leading the league in passing (six; tied with Steve Young) and most seasons leading the league with the lowest interception percentage (five). He is also second in highest single-season completion percentage (70.33), most seasons leading the league in yards gained (four) and most seasons leading the league in completion percentage (seven).
As a punter, Baugh retired with the NFL record for highest punting average in a career (45.1 yards), and is still second all-time (Shane Lechler 46.5 yards), and has the best (51.4 in 1940) and fourth best (48.7 in 1941) season marks. As a defensive back, he was the first player in league history to intercept four passes in a game, and is the only player to lead the league in passing, punting, and interceptions in the same season. Baugh also led the league in punting from 1940 through 1943.
It was a much different game back then as well.
Quarterback
Defensive back
Punter
Two of his records as quarterback still stand: most seasons leading the league in passing (six; tied with Steve Young) and most seasons leading the league with the lowest interception percentage (five). He is also second in highest single-season completion percentage (70.33), most seasons leading the league in yards gained (four) and most seasons leading the league in completion percentage (seven).
As a punter, Baugh retired with the NFL record for highest punting average in a career (45.1 yards), and is still second all-time (Shane Lechler 46.5 yards), and has the best (51.4 in 1940) and fourth best (48.7 in 1941) season marks. As a defensive back, he was the first player in league history to intercept four passes in a game, and is the only player to lead the league in passing, punting, and interceptions in the same season. Baugh also led the league in punting from 1940 through 1943.
It was a much different game back then as well.
- Thread starter
- #49
HPC
New member
True Crowhop.
Cal in my eyes may not have had the best speed/etc, but, he had the other intangibles that make a superior athlete.
Griffey had always been a speedy and versatile guy until the leg injuries started getting him....starting with the jumping catch he made into the wall.
Cal in my eyes may not have had the best speed/etc, but, he had the other intangibles that make a superior athlete.
Griffey had always been a speedy and versatile guy until the leg injuries started getting him....starting with the jumping catch he made into the wall.
Big Mac McGwire
New member
Umm Where is MUHAMMAD ALI??? I CANT NOT TAKE THIS POST SERIOUS WITHOUT ARGUABLY THE MOST INFLUENTIAL ATHELTE OF THE CENTURY
crowhop
New member
makes me cringe every single time i see this pic. because i know the result. not only for that season, but the marker for the rest of his career. makes me sad.HPC said:
crowhop
New member
Jackie was more influential and it is hard to "quantify" boxing. most folks in the know say Rocky Marciano was the greatest boxer anyway.Big Mac McGwire said:
- Thread starter
- #53
HPC
New member
crowhop said:makes me cringe every single time i see this pic. because i know the result. not only for that season, but the marker for the rest of his career. makes me sad.HPC said:
I wish they had an emoticon for sadness and that cringe feeling.
That is the play that started the decline of KGJ career
...also, the reason I didnt add Ali, is because I tried to stay away from boxing/MMA on the list, because there could be too many factors ("are boxing and mma really sports or just 'human cockfighting'?"...etc). Boxing and MMA are two very competitive events, dont get me wrong, as I love MMA, but, if you add Muhammad Ali to the list, Fedor Emelianenko has to be added as well.
Big Mac McGwire
New member
crowhop said:
jackie was influential, ALi was THEEE voice of a generation. Your wrong that robinson was more influential. Ali was a sports and political figure as well. I'm sorry but you are undermining the height of Ali's status. Ripken is on that list but Ali is not?? Are you joking?? Without Ali in that group of names listed this thread is a joke.
crowhop
New member
jackie was influential, ALi was THEEE voice of a generation. Your wrong that robinson was more influential. Ali was a sports and political figure as well. I'm sorry but you are undermining the height of Ali's status. Ripken is on that list but Ali is not?? Are you joking?? Without Ali in that group of names listed this thread is a joke.[/quote:clz18gt9]i agree, Ali should be on there before some others. no question about that. but Ali is a person, imo, who's persona actually became bigger than his star. if the question is purely "greatest athlete ever", Ali is in the top 10 maybe, but not #1.Big Mac McGwire said:
Big Mac McGwire
New member
i agree, Ali should be on there before some others. no question about that. but Ali is a person, imo, who's persona actually became bigger than his star. if the question is purely "greatest athlete ever", Ali is in the top 10 maybe, but not #1.[/quote:2dsbwkxn]crowhop said:
don't tell me ripken was in better shape then ali or a better athlete. Ali was out of boxing for years and came back and won the heavyweight title.
crowhop
New member
i agree, Ali should be on there before some others. no question about that. but Ali is a person, imo, who's persona actually became bigger than his star. if the question is purely "greatest athlete ever", Ali is in the top 10 maybe, but not #1.[/quote:1d0136xk]Big Mac McGwire said:
don't tell me ripken was in better shape then ali or a better athlete. Ali was out of boxing for years and came back and won the heavyweight title.[/quote:1d0136xk]i didn't make the list. but i agree, Cal shouldn't be on there. nor Griffey, for that matter.
shanks25 said:
Not sure about the best conditioned athlete, but no Best Athlete list is relevant unless it includes Babe Ruth's name.
In fact, every professional athlete (in any sport) owes at least a little something to the Bambino as he created hype in sports. He was a major sport's first superstar and brought the only major sport at that time out of a great scandal.
Can you imagine how regressed pro sports (including media, advertising, etc) would be if not for the Sultan of Swat.
His number should be retired in every pro sport.
beefycheddar
Super Moderator
- Aug 7, 2008
- 8,055
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The kings of sport can be simply broken down to MJ, Gretzky, Babe Ruth and Tiger I would say. The list above has Griffey and Ripken but not Babe. Ali can be omitted easily enough from this list. He is a great, but his signifigance has been raised over the last decade so much more than many others.
I chose Jordan, he changed the sports world forever. Gretzky was amazing, but he didn't make people as much as Michael did. Lebron could surpass Michael skills wise, and even wins wise, but not in importance.
I chose Jordan, he changed the sports world forever. Gretzky was amazing, but he didn't make people as much as Michael did. Lebron could surpass Michael skills wise, and even wins wise, but not in importance.
Bornagaincollector said:
But he is not even the best cyclist of all-time. That would be Eddy 'The Cannibal' Merckx - and it isn't even close. Lance was phenomenal and overcame testicular cancer but he focused on the Tour de France and a handful of other races each season. Merkcx rode almost every major race in each years schedule. Career results:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddy_Merckx
I like the choices of Zatopek, Owens and Roman Sebrle.
Would like to add the Norweigan athlete Ole Einar Bjorndalen:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ole_Einar_Bjorndalen
How about an odd one?
CB Fry - England cricket captain, England soccer player, World Record holder in the long-jump, Rugby Union player for the invitational Barbarians team
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C_B_Fry
And
Pavvo Nurmi - 1920-1928 entered 12 distance running events at the Olympics - won 9 golds and 3 silvers
But the Greatest (and I hate Australian cricketers)?
Don Bradman - Australian cricketer - from wiki http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Bradman:
World sport context
The statistics show that "no other athlete dominates an international sport to the extent that Bradman does cricket". In order to post a similarly dominant career statistic as Bradman, a baseball batter would need a career batting average of .392, while a basketball player would need to score an average of 43.0 points per game. The respective records (for Cobb and Jordan) are .366 and 30.1.
