The biggest misconception about Kournikova's tennis career is the idea that she wasn't a good player.
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They are dominant yet lovable-bona-fide celebrities who know exactly how to be celebrities. It seemed his biggest obstacles were his own work ethic, focus and motivation to be great.Īnd despite all the criticisms, he was great.īolt and Shaq resonate with fans on a level that few human beings, let alone athletes, can match. When he was in shape and motivated, nobody could really handle him physically. Shaq, in his prime, was an athletic freak just like Bolt. Some say he clowns around too much.īut who can knock his style when it has brought him so much success? Bolt has set the world record in the 100 meters three times (most recently 9.58 seconds), twice in the 200 meters (19.19 seconds) and twice in the 4x100 relay (37.04 seconds). When he is focused, healthy and at least halfway motivated, Bolt can destroy packs of world-class sprinters and break world records with apparent ease.
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Young, justifiably cocky and full of personality, Blake and Howard are on the verge of something major-perhaps Olympic gold medals and an NBA championship or MVP in 2012.īolt's toughest competition may in fact be his relative lack of competition. Howard also has three NBA Defensive Player of the Year trophies at home and led the Orlando Magic to the 2009 NBA Finals. Howard (personally tutored by Patrick Ewing and Hakeem Olajuwon) has made history by becoming the youngest ever to lead the NBA in rebounds and blocks, and he owns just about every "youngest-ever" rebounding record. A couple weeks later, Blake ran the second-fastest time ever in the 200 meters at 19.26 seconds. In the case of Blake, it's virtually one step the distance separating him from possibly beating some of Usain Bolt's world-record times in the 100 and 200 meters.īlake (Bolt's training partner) made history at this year's World Championships by becoming the youngest-ever gold medalist in the 100 meters and running third leg on Jamaica's world record-setting 4x100 relay team. Having been trained in the presence of legends, Blake and Howard are just one step away from taking over the world. It can easily be argued that Powell and James are both the best in the world at what they do, except both of them lack the meaningful hardware that actually proves they are the best. James has gone 0-2 in NBA Finals series, and his playoff resume is marked by a handful of substandard clutch performances.įor just about anyone else, that wouldn't detract from a decorated career, but because Powell and James are so talented and their potential so great, it has earned them twin labels as underachievers. Powell has finished fifth in his two Olympic 100-meter finals and owns no medal better than bronze in his individual World Championship efforts. You can just look at them and tell they're great at what they do.īut even though both have accomplished more than enough to earn first-ballot Hall of Fame status-Powell having twice set the world record in the 100-meter dash and James winning two MVPs in the NBA-they have fallen short of gaining universal adoration and respect because of their infamous hiccups on the biggest stages. Talent emanates from the pores of Powell and James.
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Powell isn't criticized and scrutinized anywhere near as much as James, but that's because his sport isn't as popular with casual fans and isn't as easy to dissect by pretend know-it-alls. As a helpful guide for the casual fan looking for a track athlete to latch onto, here are 30 of the biggest stars in track and field and their sports doppelgangers. Track might produce the planet's top athletes, but the sport's mainstream profile is lagging due in part to an inability to create sustainable superstars. Every couple of years-either at the Track & Field World Championships or the Summer Olympics-the winners of the men's decathlon (10 events) and women's heptathlon (seven events) are declared the world's greatest athletes by the track community.Īnd depending on how popular they are, maybe even briefly by the rest of the sports world. Or another sect could value individual success over team success, allowing a non-traditional athlete like Tiger Woods to take the crown.īut there is only one sport that actually has a system to determine the world's greatest athlete. Still others might base their answer on a Darwinist equation of endurance and attrition, using their vote on someone like Lance Armstrong. Others appreciate the blend of pure speed and strength, and might give their nod to a physical anomaly like LeBron James.
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Some people value winning and clutch performance over everything else and would consequently hand the title to a proven major sport champion like Tom Brady. Who is the greatest athlete in the world? It depends on your definition of the term.