ICED Top 10 Greatest Athletes of All Time

Subject: ICED Top 10 Greatest Athletes of All Time Sun Jun 15, 2008 9:22 pm

1. Tiger Woods

Tiger Woods was chosen as the best athlete of all time by the forum. It is safe to say that no one has ever dominated
their respective sport like Tiger Woods has done. All aspects of his game are far superior to any other golfer in modern history. What makes him the #1 athlete over any other is his mental toughness. He has this way of blocking out almost anything to disrupt his game. He has made all other professional golfers look like they belong in a AAA farm system or a Division 2. He has won 14 Major Championships in his sport and is on pace to at least double that by his mid 40's. When he won the 2008 U.S. Open on one leg it solidified his place as the best to ever play and best that ever will play the game.

Accomplishments:
Professional wins 89 (PGA Tour: 65, Other individual: 22, 2-man team: 2)
Major Championship Wins (14)
Masters (4) 1997, 2001, 2002, 2005
U.S. Open (2) 2000, 2002, 2008
The Open (3) 2000, 2005, 2006
PGA (4) 1999, 2000, 2006, 2007

With an awards list so long, we had to post the link!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_career_achievements_by_Tiger_Woods#Awards

2. Michael Jordan

He has been defined as "Greatness", "Air" , "best ever" and he has also been defined as "Mike". No other athlete has ever mad them self identifiable with a common first name. You don't have to even speak his last name if you are in a sports conversation and everyone already knows who you are referring to. He played in an era of the game when so many of the all-time greats played on the same court. Still he made sure every time he stepped on the court against these other Hall of Famers, that he was going to win and nothing was going to stop him. When he decided it was his time to take over the NBA and got past the Bad Boy Pistons in 1991, every year after that for the rest of his career as a Chicago Bull ended with a championship. Winning 6 titles in 6 years played to go with 5 MVP awards and 6 Finals MVP awards is as close to perfection as one can get. This is an accomplishment most of us will probably never see again.

Accomplishments:
6x NBA Champion (1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997 1998)
5x NBA MVP (1988, 1991, 1992, 1996, 1998)
14x NBA All-Star (1985-1993, 1996-1998, 2002-2003)
6x NBA Finals MVP (1991-1993, 1996-1998)
1x NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1988)
10x All-NBA First Team Selection (1987-1993, 1996-1998)
1x All-NBA Second Team Selection (1985)
9x NBA All-Defensive First Team Selection (1988-1993, 1996-1998)
1985 NBA Rookie of the Year
1985 NBA All-Rookie Team
3x NBA All-Star Game MVP (1988, 1996, 1998)
2x NBA Slam Dunk Contest winner (1987, 1988)
NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
1x NCAA Men's Basketball Champion (1982)
1982 ACC Freshman of the Year
1x ACC Men's Basketball Player of the Year (1984)
1x USBWA College Player of the Year (1984)
1x Naismith College Player of the Year (1984)
1x John R. Wooden Award (1984)
1x Adolph Rupp Trophy (1984)
1991 Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year
2000 ESPY Athlete of the Century
1990s ESPY Male Athlete Decade Award
1990s ESPY Pro Basketballer Decade Award

3. Muhammad Ali

Not only was he the most intimidating athlete to ever live, but also the most inspiring athlete to ever live. He is the only athlete you could honestly say that had already defeated his opponent before he competed . He could defeat you with his mind, and this is why his opponents were already doubting themselves and their chances even before the bell rang. After winning the Gold metal in Rome his career turned into a professional boxer. From 1960 - 1977 he won 55 fights and lost only 2 of them at the same time living in an era with some of the greatest boxers to ever live known as the "Golden Age" of boxing. In 1978 some say that he fought to long and should have retired. This is when he lost 3 of his next 4 fights that lead him to retirement.

Accomplishments:
1960 Gold Metal (Rome)
3 time Heavyweight Champion

Click below to get a look at the long list of accomplishments and look at his incredible career
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muhammad_Ali#Professional_boxing_championship_accomplishments

4. Babe Ruth

The greatest baseball player to ever live George Herman Ruth also known as the "The Sultan of Swat", "Babe" and "The Bambino" took the sports world to a new level beginning in 1914. He went on to win 7 world series championships in his career. He was more know for his power in an era when a home run was big news. He not only broke the home run record of 138 career home runs at the time. He shattered it and ended his career with 714 home runs. This record stood for the next 40 years before Hank Arron broke it in 1974. Baseball experts say that he could have made the hall of fame let alone as a pitcher. This just goes to show how great of an athlete he really was. He set many baseball home run records that may still have stood today if not for the steroid era (aside from Aaron and Maris' two record breaking accomplishments).

Accomplishments:
2x All-Star selection (1933, 1934)
7x World Series champion (1915, 1916, 1918, 1923, 1927, 1928, 1932)
1923 AL MVP
First player to hit 30, 40, 50 and 60 home runs in a season
New York Yankees #3 retired
Ranks in the top 10 of numerous career statistics
MLB Records
0.690 career slugging %
1.164 career OPS
Member of the National
Baseball Hall of Fame

5. Jim Brown

Jim Brown played like a man amongst boys during his professional career. His short NFL 9 year career was ended with record setting numbers. Some of these numbers would be eventually broken in the future by great NFL running backs. Sometimes he doesn't get the recognition deserved because of this. In today's age some people are unaware of that if Jim Brown played until he couldn't play any more as a lot of running backs do, that he would have set records that may have never been broken. He not only was the greatest NFL running back to have played, but maybe the best college running back to have played as well. At Syracuse where he attended college he was an All-American in Football and Lacrosse and would eventually be inducted into all three Hall of Fames (Pro Football Hall of Fame, College Football Hall of Fame and the Lacrosse Hall of Fame). He is also one of the more influential people in the world. In his life he has inspired many young African Americans with his wisdom to be successful in many different ways such as education, religion, sports and other recreational activities.

Accomplishments:
9x Pro Bowl selection (1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965)
9x All-Pro selection (1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965)
NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team
NFL 1960s All-Decade Team
3x NFL MVP (1957, 1958, 1965)
3x UPI NFL MVP (1958, 1963, 1965)
3x Pro Bowl MVP (1961, 1962, 1965)
Lacrosse Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame

6. Wayne Gretzky

The "Great One" was the name giving to the 4 time Stanley Cup Champion and 9 time NHL MVP, Wayne Gretzky. It is a known fact that this man is the best thing to ever lace up a pair of skates. A man who holds over 60 records in his own sport in unimaginable. During the 1982 season as a Edmonton Oiler he scored a mind boggling 92 goals in just the regular season. As a 16 year old Five years prior to this playing in the MetJHL (Junior League) as a member of the Seneca Nationals he scored an unthinkable 40 goals during the playoffs. He was and still is to this day the Icon of the NHL. He brought the hockey fan out of people in Southern California in 1988 when traded to the L.A. Kings. This was a place where a lot of people never even heard of hockey in their life and were turned into die hard fans by the power of one man. He holds records in his sport that more than likely will stand for at least the next 100 years.

Accomplishments:
Holds so many records, awards and achievements we had to post the link to the site!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_career_achievements_by_Wayne_Gretzky

7. Bill Russell

The greatest Boston Celtic to ever play the game, Center Bill Russell is not only one of the most dominating big men of all time, he is also the most successful athlete to ever play a team sport. During his 13 year career with the Celtics he brought 11 titles to Bean Town. He is the reason we associate the word "dynasty" with teams today that win several titles in several years. His epic battles in the paint with Wilt Chamberlain are some of the greatest moments in NBA history. Wilt may have got the best of the offensive production in a lot of these match-ups, but Bill Russell got the best of the ring collection. If Bill Russell was to play in today's day in age, its not only obvious that he would be affective, but more than likely would still dominate as he did 50 years ago.

Accomplishments:
11x NBA Champion (1957, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969)
5x NBA MVP (1958, 1961-1963, 1965)
12x NBA All-Star (1958-1969)
3x All-NBA First Team Selection (1959, 1963, 1965)
8x All-NBA Second Team Selection (1958, 1960-1962, 1964, 1966-1968)
1x NBA All-Defensive First Team Selection (1969)
1x NBA All-Star Game MVP (1963)
NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
NBA 35th Anniversary Team
NBA 25th Anniversary Team

Coaching
Boston Celtics (1966–1969)
Seattle SuperSonics (1973–1977)
Sacramento Kings (1987–1988)
Basketball Hall of Fame

8. Lance Armstrong

He won the Tour De France seven consecutive times and is one of the most inspiring athletes of all time. In 1996 he was diagnosed with testicular cancer that later spread to his lungs and brain. He went through cancer treatments included brain and testicular surgery and extensive chemotherapy for the next several years. Miraculously he survived and went on to win seven consecutive Tour De France titles. Going through a life threatening disease such as cancer and then going on to dominate his sport for years will be remembered as the most encouraging performance ever from an athlete. Lance Armstrong retired as a professional road racing cyclist in 2005. Now he still puts his athleticism on display by participating in marathons and preforms very well

Accomplishments:
Major wins
Tour De France (1999–2005), 22 stages
World Cycling Champion (1993)
US National Cycling Champion (1993)
Clásica De San Sebastián (1995)
La Flèche Wallonne (1996)

He also has a long list of awards you can find here.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lance_Armstrong#Accolades

9. Hank Aaron

Hank Aaron who was also known as "Hammerin Hank" had a long 22 year career as a Major League Baseball player. It was thought for years that even with a long career such as Hanks would still not be enough to break the 40 year old home run record held by Babe Ruth. Not only did he break Babe Ruth's all time home run record by 41 home runs, but did it by never hitting more than 47 home runs in one season. That goes to show the level of consistency by Hank Aaron. This is the greatest record of all records in any sport. Not only was it difficult to hit 715 home runs in one career, but to do it in a day of age where racism was still a big issue. Hank Aaron received numerous death threats and feared for his life every day as he got closer to breaking the record. Still Aaron went though all of this and had the courage to go out there and break it. This is what makes it the most accomplished record ever and still is in most minds today, even tough Barry Bonds broke this record in 2007 and was recognized by Hank Aaron himself. Still most fans of the game look at Hank Aaron's record still stands because of the whole steroid conspiracy.

Accomplishments:
21x All-Star selection (1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975)
1957 NL MVP
3x Gold Glove Award winner (1958, 1959, 1960)
1970 Lou Gehrig Memorial Award
World Series champion (1957)
2nd on all-time home run list with 755
3rd on all-time hits list with 3,771
Atlanta Braves #44 retired
MLB Records:

6,856 total bases
2,297 RBI
1,477 extra-base hits
17 consecutive seasons with 150 or more hits
Member of the National
Baseball Hall of Fame

10. Roger Federer

Our most controversial top 10 pick of great athletes would be Roger Federer. There are a lot of people that feel that Roger Federer has a lack of competition which doesn't not qualify him as one of the greatest athletes ever. In tennis History every tennis player has had a very good rival to compete with. By the looks of it Roger Federer is just so good that not one person can compete with him. Over the past few years Federer's Achilles heel has been the French Open where he has met his match in Rafael Nadal. Federer's arch nemesis Nadal had denied him the French Open Championship for three consecutive years in the finals. Not closing out Nadal at the French for the past three years is the one thing keeping Federer from being higher on this list. Still the man has 12 Major titles at the age of 26. It looks as if he will not only beat Sampras' record of 7 Wimbledon titles, but should also surpass his Major championships record of 14 by far. He has the same chance to obliterate Sampras' Major title record as Tiger does with Jack Nicklaus's record Major title record. This puts him up there in the discussion with Tiger Woods as a man to dominate his sport the way he does. The difference between the two is that Federer has to deal with Nadal, and Tiger has had no one to deal with, not even Phil. Roger Federer is not only the best to ever play his sport, he is on pace to set a standard of championships no other tennis player will be able to reach.

Accomplishments:
Career record: 588–142
Career titles: 55
Highest ranking: No. 1 (February 2, 2004)
Grand Slam results
Australian Open W (2004, 2006, 2007)
French Open F (2006, 2007, 2008)
Wimbledon W (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007)
US Open W (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007)

With a long list of records and awards that need its own page!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Federer#Records

Honorable Mention:

11. Jim Thorpe
12. Jerry Rice
13. Willie Mays
14. Rock Marciano
15. Kareem Abdul Jabar
16. Wilt Chamberlain
17. Jackie Robinson
18. Joe Louis
19. Jesse Owens
20. Michael Phelps
21. Walter Payton
22. Magic Johnson
23. Barry Sanders
24. Carl Lewis
25. Herschel Walker

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