Greatest Athlete of All Time?

[Kurgan Gringion]

"Boyd Speerschneider" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> True, but you could say that about any sport, cycling in particular. Heck, the best athlete may
> not have participated in sports at all. But that's neither here nor there. My point was that the
> decathalon is set up as a competition that identifies and rewards the best all around athlete in
> any given era... so it makes an appropriate measuring stick.

If 99% of all athletes don't ever do the decathlon, how can you consider only decathletes?

 

[Bruce Johnston]

"Kurgan Gringioni" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "Bruce Johnston" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> >
> > > > I'll list four each gender...
> > > >
> > > > Women- Babe Didrikson Jackie Joyner-Kersee Florence Griffith-Joyner Chris Everett
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Chris Everett wasn't even as good as Martina Navritilova or Stephie
Graf.
> > >
> > > If you're going to consider someone, they should at least be the best
in
> > > their own sport.
> >
> > Graf was good, Chris was argubly one of the best women tennis player
ever.
>
>
>
>
> Evert won 18 Grand Slam singles titles, Graf won 22.
>
>
> http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/tennis/australian_open/2003/2695239.stm All-time Slam winners
>
> M Court 62 M Navratilova 57 B J King 39
>
> <snip>
>
>
>
> Like I said, Evert isn't even the best in her own sport. You just put her there because you find
> her attractive.

Yes Master Chang, I used to find her attractive and she is at the bottom of my 4 women list.

 

[Bruce Johnston]

"Bruce Johnston" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>
> "Robert Chung" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > Nev Shea wrote:
> > > "Robert Chung" <[email protected]> wrote in news:3f675b8a$0$27020 [email protected]:
> > >
> > >> Wait! Wait! I almost forgot! Here are the greatest athletes:
> > >> http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/photo/2000/10/30/0000011863
> > >
> > >
> > > they'll get my vote for greatest athletes when they can also use their peckers to play golf
> > > like tiger woods. That will qualify them as
multi-
> > > sport, and everyone knows that golf is the greatest sport too!
> >
> > Hmmm. Would they have to use the current nomenclature of woods and
irons,
> > or the older terms like mashie, niblick, and brassie? I suppose rutting iron should make
> > the list?
>
> My favorite little clip. Tai Chi master throws 20 students at once.
>
> 5 megs
>
> http://www.mysteries-megasite.com/temp/master.mpg

6 students at once. I need to go ride my bike.

B-

 

[Kurgan Gringion]

"Bruce Johnston" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> > >
> > > Graf was good, Chris was argubly one of the best women tennis player
> ever.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Evert won 18 Grand Slam singles titles, Graf won 22.
> >
> >
> > http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/tennis/australian_open/2003/2695239.stm All-time Slam winners
> >
> > M Court 62 M Navratilova 57 B J King 39
> >
> > <snip>
> >
> >
> >
> > Like I said, Evert isn't even the best in her own sport. You just put her there because you find
> > her attractive.
>
> Yes Master Chang, I used to find her attractive and she is at the bottom of my 4 women list.

She should be 4th on your women's tennis list, not 4th on the greatest female athletes of all time.

 

[Nev Shea]

Boyd Speerschneider <[email protected]> wrote in
news:[email protected]:

> True, but you could say that about any sport, cycling in particular. Heck, the best athlete may
> not have participated in sports at all. But that's neither here nor there. My point was that the
> decathalon is set up as a competition that identifies and rewards the best all around athlete in
> any given era... so it makes an appropriate measuring stick.

I think you're changing the question -- it is about the best athlete, but you are defining it as
"all around". If the decathletes excelled at anything they would specialize, but instead they are
pretty good at everything or at least not terrible at any one discipline. I don't think being
"pretty good" at a few different disciplines makes a decathlete a better athlete than one who excels
and dominates in one.

For a similar example, a few years ago ther was a kid from Texas who was a pretty good
triathlete, but it turned out he was really good at cycling. You might have seen him racing in
France the last 5 years.

Personally, I think the best athletes are in the X games, dood!

NS

 

[Anonymous]

Benjo Maso wrote:
>>> Do only Americans count?

Steve McGinty wrote:
> Pele, Maradona, Platini, Charlton, Best, Law, Cruyff, Zidane, Ronaldo, Van Basten, Socrates, Zico,
> Beckenbauer, Muller, Puskas, de Stefano
>
> That's just the footballers of the top of my head.

To many French and Germans in there, they are definitely to un-American to count, and as for those
Brazilians they must be un-American to, if only because they messed up the nicely planned WTO agenda
at Cancun.

What about Sergei Bubka, Haile Gebriselasie (sp), Coe/Ovett and perhaps Hicham El Guerrouj if he can
continue to dominate over the next few years.

 

[Van Hoorebeeck]

> I'll list four each gender...
>
> Women- Babe Didrikson Jackie Joyner-Kersee Florence Griffith-Joyner Chris Everett
>
> Men- Muhammad Ali Jim Thorpe Michael Jordan Carl lewis
>

a considerable dopers percentage.....

If you take Griffith, then why not Ben Johnson for the men? Or is this suggestion un-American ?

 

[R15757]

Some Darkhorse candidates:

--Tiger Woods --Navratilova --Bonnie Blair --Juli Furtado --Maradona --Zenadine Zidane --That French
guy who walked and danced on a highwire between the twin towers --Shaun Palmer --Michael Shumacher
--Tony Hawk --Edwin Moses --Those Mexican guys who run 100 miles with tire tread strapped to their
feet --sherpas --Bo Jackson --Barry Sanders --Jackie Chan

cheers, Robert

 

[Jonathan V.D. S]

Bruce Johnston <[email protected]> schreef in berichtnieuws [email protected]...
> Are you not the guy who posted Coppi, Bartali, then comes Merckx?

We're not alone, so probably not. I don't remember posting that. It is important to note that the
first two are often switched around and back again.

>
> If so, can you briefly explain why this order or why Merckx is third? Ok, it's subjective. Lets
> hear your subjective opinion? Just curious.

Well, I think they both had tougher battles to fight; opponents were better, conditions were harder.
Yet they won very convincingly.

Jonathan.

 

[Jonathan V.D. S]

Tom Kunich <[email protected]> schreef in berichtnieuws
[email protected]...
> If you are including women cyclists it is a near tie between Jeanie Longo and Beryl Burton.

After Leontien van Moorsel, ofcourse.

 

[Jonathan V.D. S]

[email protected]...
> Benjo Maso wrote:
> >>> Do only Americans count?
>
> Steve McGinty wrote:
> > Pele, Maradona, Platini, Charlton, Best, Law, Cruyff, Zidane, Ronaldo, Van Basten, Socrates,
> > Zico, Beckenbauer, Muller, Puskas, de Stefano
> >
> > That's just the footballers of the top of my head.
>
> To many French and Germans in there, they are definitely to un-American to count, and as for those
> Brazilians they must be un-American to, if only because they messed up the nicely planned WTO
> agenda at Cancun.
>
> What about Sergei Bubka, Haile Gebriselasie (sp), Coe/Ovett and perhaps Hicham El Guerrouj if he
> can continue to dominate over the next few years.

Hermann Maier, Johan-Olav Koss, Jaap Eden, and perhaps Michael Schumacher and Gary Kasparov, even
though they might not be strictly 'athletes'.

 

[Memphmann]

Originally posted by Bruce Johnston
"SM" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> I know this is going to cause some discussion but who do you think is the best cyclist of all time
> and where on the list of "Greatest Athletes of
All
> Time" would they be?
>
I'll list four each gender...

Women- Babe Didrikson Jackie Joyner-Kersee Florence Griffith-Joyner Chris Everett

Men- Muhammad Ali Jim Thorpe Michael Jordan Carl lewis

B-

You got to be kidding. Carl "I lie and take drugs" Lewis. Maybe as the best lair of all time.

Mine would be Terry Fox. Who else has a day celebrated after them and never made a cent....

Memph

 

[Memphmann]

Originally posted by Van Hoorebeeck
> I'll list four each gender...
>
> Women- Babe Didrikson Jackie Joyner-Kersee Florence Griffith-Joyner Chris Everett
>
> Men- Muhammad Ali Jim Thorpe Michael Jordan Carl lewis
>

a considerable dopers percentage.....

If you take Griffith, then why not Ben Johnson for the men? Or is this suggestion un-American ?

Ben got caught because he was Canadian. If he was Lewis, it would have been hidden like the Americans are good at.

Ben the fastest man ever....

Memph

 

[Glenn Dowdy]

"R15757" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> Some Darkhorse candidates:
>
Piffle. It's Jan-Michael Vincent. Sheesh.

Glenn D.

 

[Nick Burns]

"Nev Shea" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:x%[email protected]...
> "Robert Chung" <[email protected]> wrote in news:3f675b8a$0$27020 [email protected]:
>
> > Wait! Wait! I almost forgot! Here are the greatest athletes:
> > http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/photo/2000/10/30/0000011863
>
>
> they'll get my vote for greatest athletes when they can also use their peckers to play golf like
> tiger woods. That will qualify them as multi- sport, and everyone knows that golf is the greatest
> sport too!
>
> NS

Are you sure Tiger plays golf with his pecker?

 

[Bruce Johnston]

"Van Hoorebeeck Bart" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> >
> > I'll list four each gender...
> >
> > Women- Babe Didrikson Jackie Joyner-Kersee Florence Griffith-Joyner Chris Everett
> >
> > Men- Muhammad Ali Jim Thorpe Michael Jordan Carl lewis
> >
>
> a considerable dopers percentage.....
>
> If you take Griffith, then why not Ben Johnson for the men? Or is this suggestion un-American ?

Yeah, I remember watching Ben Johnson. He was fast, quite a athlete.

 

[Bruce Johnston]

"Jonathan v.d. Sluis" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Bruce Johnston <[email protected]> schreef in berichtnieuws [email protected]...
> > Are you not the guy who posted Coppi, Bartali, then comes Merckx?
>
> We're not alone, so probably not. I don't remember posting that. It is important to note that the
> first two are often switched around and back again.
>
> >
> > If so, can you briefly explain why this order or why Merckx is third?
Ok,
> > it's subjective. Lets hear your subjective opinion? Just curious.
>
> Well, I think they both had tougher battles to fight; opponents were
better,
> conditions were harder. Yet they won very convincingly.
>
> Jonathan.

Wasn't this pretty good company for Merckx? Da Vlaeminck, Poulidor, Ocana, Gimondi, Zoetemelk, Van
Impe, Thevenet. I thought Merckx won quite convincingly too. He was the cannibal.

 

[Kurgan Gringion]

"Jonathan v.d. Sluis" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Bruce Johnston <[email protected]> schreef in berichtnieuws [email protected]...
> > Are you not the guy who posted Coppi, Bartali, then comes Merckx?
>
> We're not alone, so probably not. I don't remember posting that. It is important to note that the
> first two are often switched around and back again.
>
> >
> > If so, can you briefly explain why this order or why Merckx is third? Ok, it's subjective. Lets
> > hear your subjective opinion? Just curious.
>
> Well, I think they both had tougher battles to fight; opponents were
better,
> conditions were harder. Yet they won very convincingly.

If they won so convincingly, then how could it have been tougher?

When a rider wins convincingly it's because the opponents are not up to the task.

 

[Bruce Johnston]

"Jonathan v.d. Sluis" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Tom Kunich <[email protected]> schreef in berichtnieuws
> [email protected]...
> > If you are including women cyclists it is a near tie between Jeanie Longo and Beryl Burton.
>
> After Leontien van Moorsel, ofcourse.

OK, somebody said it.

B-

 

[Bruce Johnston]

"Jonathan v.d. Sluis" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

> [email protected]...
> > Benjo Maso wrote:
> > >>> Do only Americans count?
> >
> > Steve McGinty wrote:
> > > Pele, Maradona, Platini, Charlton, Best, Law, Cruyff, Zidane, Ronaldo, Van Basten, Socrates,
> > > Zico, Beckenbauer, Muller, Puskas, de Stefano
> > >
> > > That's just the footballers of the top of my head.
> >
> > To many French and Germans in there, they are definitely to un-American
to
> > count, and as for those Brazilians they must be un-American to, if only because they messed up
> > the nicely planned WTO agenda at Cancun.
> >
> > What about Sergei Bubka, Haile Gebriselasie (sp), Coe/Ovett and perhaps Hicham El Guerrouj if he
> > can continue to dominate over the next few
years.
>
> Hermann Maier, Johan-Olav Koss, Jaap Eden, and perhaps Michael Schumacher and Gary Kasparov, even
> though they might not be strictly 'athletes'.

Gary Kasparov? OK, then you could add Bobby Fischer, or even Bruce Lee, Harry Houdini, maybe
Carl Wallenda.