The Magnificent Five Part II : Five Greatest Athletes of All times

[ClayDeath]

this one is going to get a little harder.. who would make your list of 5 greatest athletes of all times taken from across different sports.

who wants to fire the first shot?



I can at least start the process anyway:

how about jim Thorpe as my first candidate?

1. jim Thorpe
2. Michael Jordan
3. borg, nadal, and roger
4. ---------
5. ---------



I don't want my list to be dominated by the tennis players so I will say that borg, nadal, and roger are equal in athletic ability in their primes.



I need 2 more.

 

[kskate2]

1. MJ
2. Carl Lewis, Usain Bolt
3. Borg
4. Michael Phelps
5. Martina Navratilova, Jackie-Joyner Kersee, Bonnie Blair

 

[tented]

This isn't a ranking, just a list:

Michael Phelps (Honorable Mention: Mark Spitz)
Martina Navratilova
Nadia Comăneci
Usain Bolt
Federer/Nadal/Borg

 

[britbox]

Michael Jordan
Ed Moses
Jesse Owens
Greg Lemond
Daley Thompson

 

[ClayDeath]

all usain bolt can do is run. he was born with fast twitch fiber and he is blessed by the gods with his height.


I can see the legitimacy and the reasoning of having somebody like daley Thompson who could do 10 things at near world class level.

a top flight Olympic decathlete is a must on this list. I am still trying to decide who it will be. daley thompson is a good choice.

 

[tented]

Michael Jordan
Ed Moses
Jesse Owens
Greg Lemond
Daley Thompson

Owens, LeMond, & Thompson -- great picks.

 

[ClayDeath]

some say that ali was one of the greatest athletes of all time.

 

[britbox]

Yeah, Ali is definitely in the mix. I'm going to swap Ed Moses for Ali in my list come to mention it.

Michael Jordan
Muhammed Ali
Jesse Owens
Greg Lemond
Daley Thompson

 

[ClayDeath]

are you sure you don't want to replace lemond with Connors, nasty, borg, nadal, or roger?

 

[britbox]

Greg Lemond winning the 1989 Tour De France on the final stage time trial. 2 years after being shot and almost killed. He still had shotgun pellets in his heart lining and liver.

[video=youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3RV2ukMPNc[/video]

 

[ClayDeath]

good heavens. I never knew that.

 

[DarthFed]

Jordan
Ali
Owens
Thorpe
Ruth

 

[shawnbm]

I won't even venture a guess cause it is too difficult. In tennis, the first who comes to mind is Borg--a freak of nature. Nadal and Federer would be next and it would be a tie--both have stamina. I have heard it said that Sam Snead (the golfer) was a great athlete in everything he played--tennis, basketball, football and baseball. I would think a guy like Bo Jackson would be mentioned. Certainly boxers are tremendous athletes, as well as swimmers like Phelps.

 

[brokenshoelace]

Are we strictly referring to athletic ability, or are we combining it with talent, etc...?

For instance, I don't think of Diego Maradona when someone mentions "athlete," but if this is meant to discuss the greatest "sportsmen" of all time then he's right up there since in his heyday, very few excelled at their sport like he did.

 

[fedfan]

1. MJ
2. Owens
3. Bo Jackson
4. Ali
5. Nadal/Fed

Biggest "freaks"(ie how does a man that size, do those type of things)...

1. Lebron
2. Clowney(yes, I'm extremely biased here )

 

[Johnsteinbeck]

Michael Jordan
Ed Moses
Jesse Owens
Greg Lemond
Daley Thompson

granted, LeMond's story is spectacular, his wins were impressive, his anti-doping stance makes him all the more likeable.

and while LeMond's era was probably more competitive, with a stronger field - i'm not really sure on what ground you put him above Merckx. even taking into account that LeMond lost two years. 3 Tours versus 5, plus points and moutain jerseys. 5 Giros and a Vuelta versus none. and we're not even gonna start in regards to the Classics. there's just so, so many titles, and the incredible style, i can't see which other intangibles would outweigh that.

so whatever the list, i'd definitely put Eddy on it.

 

[Johnsteinbeck]

Michael Jordan
Muhammed Ali
Jesse Owens
Greg Lemond
Daley Thompson

out of curiosity - putting LeMond above Mercx for anti-doping considerations? achievement-wise, Eddy would have to make every list, for sure.


a bit surprised noone named Gretzky. i'd have a hard time not putting him on my list. he towers over the rest like hardly another in team sports.

 

[Federberg]

I agree with Broken, are we talking talent here or athletic ability?

Tiger Woods
Michael Jordan
Roger Federer (talent); Borg/Nadal (athletic)
Michael Johnson/ Carl Lewis (greater talent/ athletic ability given the variation of events)
Maradona (talent); Cristiano (athletic)

 

[DarthFed]

1. MJ
2. Owens
3. Bo Jackson
4. Ali
5. Nadal/Fed

Biggest "freaks"(ie how does a man that size, do those type of things)...

1. Lebron
2. Clowney(yes, I'm extremely biased here )

I like the add-on here of biggest freaks.

I'd personally move Bo Jackson to this list and at the head of the table with Lebron pretty close behind.