Greatest Athlete of All Time?
Kenneth ·
May 23, 2011 at 7:38am
I've noted here before that I'm no fan of team sports. But that doesn't mean I don't appreciate athleticism.
Here's my nomination for greatest athlete of all time. Anyone care to argue?
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Comments :
Jun '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
I heard he took on a great hobby after retiring.
Nov '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
What about the 'Biscuit?
Jul '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
Ah, Seabiscuit had a heart big enough to heal a nation. But he never won by 30 lengths. God bless 'em both.
Jul '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
Poor Sham, in any other year, he'd have been a legend, but he was up against a "tremendous machine".
Nov '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
Sham was one righteous dude:
Before 134, 476 fans, the largest crowd to see a horse race in the United States to that date –Sham ripped two teeth out on the starting gate at the Kentucky Derby.
Jul '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
I actually get teary-eyed watching the races of Seabiscuit, Secretariat, Mine That Bird and the sublime Zenyatta.
Who gets weepy watching the Lakers?
Nov '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
I dunno. I sob when I watch this.
May '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
The greatest athlete of all time was George Herman "Babe" Ruth. Everybody knows about the 714 home runs, but the Babe had a .342 lifetime batting average, won 94 games as a pitcher with a stellar 2.28 ERA and did most of it while being horribly out of shape. If the man had only laid off the hot dogs and the donuts who knows what he would have done.
(By the way, is it really "athleticism" for a horse, or the fact that some little man is on top hitting you with a leather crop? Because if it's the latter SF must be home to the world's largest collection of "athletes.")
Aug '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
EJHill:
(By the way, is it really "athleticism" for a horse, or the fact that some little man is on top hitting you with a leather crop? Because if it's the latter SF must be home to the world's largest collection of "athletes.") · May 23 at 6:17am
I now will change shirts after snorting coffee thru my nose.
Apr '11
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
Perfection does exist!
May '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
Let me expand on my previous notion. Horses are not athletes. They do not train for racing on their own initiative. They do strategize while in a race. They do not have feelings of competitiveness or rivalry. If they understood what they were doing it wouldn't take three guys to get them into the starting gate. They are just dumb animals who are being used to get even dumber animals to place bets on them.
Edited on May 23, 2011 at 7:49amApr '11
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
EJHill: Let me expand on my previous notion. Horses are not athletes. They do not train for racing on their own initiative. They do strategize while in a race. They do not have feelings of competitiveness or rivalry. If they understood what they were doing it wouldn't take three guys to get them into the starting gate. They are just dumb animals who are being used to get even dumber animals to place bets on them. · May 23 at 7:48am
Edited on May 23 at 07:49 am
Seems like this would explain the Los Angeles Lakers
May '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
June 9th 1973, the greatest race I had ever seen. I was able to sneak off to the bar to watch the race, I was attending a wedding reception, mine. Lots of memories of that day, but having two major events linked that way is awesome, as was Secretariat.
Edited on May 23, 2011 at 10:23amNov '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
I've actually always been oblivious to horse-racing . . .
I actually got a bit choked up watching that. Thanks for sharing.
Jun '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
My mother is a huge fan of horse racing. She is convinced that thourougbreds know they are racers and love to do it. My experience with domesticated animals suggests she may be right. But regarding wild animals, what is the deal with basketball? Is this not the rudest sport ever? The players are perpetually snatching at one another and speaking horribly. It is absolutely unsportsmanlike in that the deliberate breaking of the rules (fouling) is essential to a winning strategy. I learned this when I was repeatedly fouled by opponents as a ten year old in a church gymnasium. I thought at the time that Jesus must be a sort of auxiliary referee in that context so I was completely flummoxed by the situation.
Jan '11
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
There are three animals which will run themselves to death. . .two will do it at the third's bidding.
Jan '11
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
That's hilarious. Needed more than a Like.
Jun '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
Two thoughts: Did anyone notice the American flag flitting through the picture when they were on the backstretch? Something symbolically just right about that.
If Evan Thomas had called Secretariat "some kind of God," I'd have agreed with him. He picked the wrong object to deify.
Yes, I also got choked up.
Edited on May 23, 2011 at 8:15amJun '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
I break off to compose a post and get beat to the punch by Boots' one liner...
Oct '10
Re: Greatest Athlete of All Time?
Somewhere on the Serengeti plain there is a lioness who could have eaten Secretariat's lunch. In fact, she'd have eaten Secretariat for lunch. I'm not sure that makes either an athlete. On top of that, both Floyd Landis and Tyler Hamilton have testified that Secretariat was on the juice.