Saw this category of top 10 sports personalities, thought I would post my top 10. The list below is not in any paricular order, each of them is ranked #1 on purpose.
#1. Roger Federer
The great Swiss tennis maestro, who plays tennis in a way no one ever has, and most likely no one ever will. The guy who is so good, he has other greats saying they would like to be in his boots for a day to understand what it feels like. Excellent physical ability, a flowing symphony on a tennis court, magical shots produced throughout. A Genial person, ever smiling and gracious in his few defeats. An excellent ambassador for Swiss, Tennis, and sports in general.
#1. Rafael Nadal
With someone like Fed in your sport, it is all too easy to just give up, and be happy with the second ranking, happy that you are the best of the rest (by a huge margin), and the one person above you is the tennis God, and you dominate even him at Roland Garros. Hats off to Rafa for not thinking that way. Hats off again for chasing what to Roddicks and Hewitts and even Safins (yes the enormously talented Russian, who was another case of temperament wasting away talent) was just a dream. And hats off to him for acheiving that no 1 ranking. Its like one of those mythological stories, where man beats god.
#1. Diego Maradona
Well, if Fed was very close to being God, this is the man who was God!!! At least he was someone who had God's left foot. The miracle man, who gave the Argentines the world cup, and Napoli the Serie A. All skills, fitness, talents rolled into one compact package. If he was a little more disciplined, he could have won three world cups to equal Pele, with a far more inferior team, and put to rest the debates over who the greatest footballer of all time is.
#1. Thierry Henry
If Diego was god, this frenchman was the king. One of the images that any Arsenal fan, any Henry fan, in fact any soccer fan would always carry is that of Henry scoring yet another magical goal, and then silencing the home crowd with a finger on lips celebration. The most complete player since Diego, the best EPL has seen. The man, who apparently had a torrid season at Barca, but end of season was top scorer for them. The man people said does not play well for his country team, but who is the top scorer of all time for French. Hoping he dominates Primera Liga too.
#1. Michael Schumacher
German efficiency. Ruthless, German efficiency. The list cannot exist without the man who won seven titles in the pinnacle of motor sport. The man who is responsible for making motor sport as popular as it is today. Look around guys, and you will see many a biker wearing jackets which say Michael Schumacher. Now thats popularity.
#1. Ayrton Senna
It is wet weather driving that truly brings out the driver in you. And if it rains, there can be only one winner. Doesnt matter if Mansell is on track, doesnt matter if the great Alain Prost is on track. Arguably (for me inarguably), the greatest ever to get into a car, to grip a steering wheel. His death was the greatest shock ever to sporting world, but then in retrospect, aint that the style in which he wanted to leave this world? At 300 kmph?
#1.Valentino Rossi
Motorcycles, and theres only one rider that springs to mind...Valentino Rossi, The Doctor. The greatest ever to ride a bike, Agostini and Doohan included. If 5 championships at Moto GP, and two in lower classes dont convince you, just watch him outrace Stoner with what is clearly an inferior bike. Can you beat a P 220 riding a P180? Well thats exactly what our man does. True greatness is confirmed by the fact that when he tested for F1 teams, and a rumour spread that he was moving to F1, all the top drivers there had sleepless nights. Quite a character with all his rivalries (one sided with Rossi winning most times).
#1. Muhammed Ali
But of course. How can be there a list without this man? I was a mad fan of Iron Mike, till I saw Ali's old videos. No heavyweight, ever had that speed. May not have punched as hard as Mike, but if you go by the rule that to win, you have to "Hit hard, Hit fast, and Hit often", the other two factors were overwhelmingly in Ali's favour. The man who speaks out his mind, who stands by what he believes. The man who threw his Olympic Gold into a river cos he was disgusted with racism. Boxing would never have gotten as popular if not for Ali.
#1. Usain Bolt
How great Bolt is, only future will tell. But for now, he is the greatest sprinter of all time. No one would have thought that a young Jamaican would come in and steal the spotlight from Phelps, after he broke Spitz's seven gold record with world records galore. Bolt acheived just that. In the list, as much for his blistering speed, as for his arrow firing routine and chest thumping celebration even before the race is done (and still getting the record).
#1. Lance Armstrong
Try running a 10 km race. Tough? Now imagine running a marathon. Unimaginable? Now imagine doing that for 20 days, almost in a row. Phew. Well, thats what Tour De France is. And that is what this man dominated, winning for 7 straight years. The fact that he did it after recovering from cancer makes it all the more remarkable. The dedication, focus, and hunger to win of the man was unbelievable. Armstrong, you are up there with the very best , man.
That rounds up my list. Some notable omissions are George Best, Tiger Woods, The Khans, Jansher and Jahangir, Giacomo Agostini, Mick Doohan, Alain Prost, Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras, Zinedine Zidane, Eddy Merckx, Miguel Indurain, Rod Laver, Michael Phelps (chose Bolt over him), Sergey Bubka, Jesse Owens, Carl Lewis, Pele, Emil Zatopek, Michael Jordan, Sugar Ray Robinson.
But I believe, my top 10, is actually the top 10, cos they all had/have immense talent+personality, which pushed their respective sports' popularity worldwide. Whats Soccer without Diego?? How many bicycles were sold cos a certain Armstrong won Tour De France?? English premier league wouldnt ave gotten as popular without Henry. Most every biker leaning into a curve in your neighbourhood road sees himself in his mind's eye wearing No 46 and riding a Yamaha R1, a la Rossi. And innumerable tennis academies have sprouted up, thanks to Roger and Rafa (Yours truly included, a footballer, biker and shuttler lifelong, have purchased a Wilson and taken up tennis). Ali videos still makwe people shadow box in gyms, and Bolt has literally made guys bolt 100 metres over local sports academies and grounds. Schumi jackets abound, and the collective sigh from the world after Senna's Imola crash would have sounded out into space to any listening aliens.
Arguments, comments, criticisms welcomed....
