Who is (or was) the greatest sportsman of all time?
Posted by: acad tsunami on 28 May 2007
Who is (or was) the greatest sportsman of all time? Not just the greatest athlete but a gentlemen too.
(please, no knee-jerk votes (unless you really can't help yourself)for that buffoon M. Ali as any claim to his being the greatest sportsman of all time won't stand scrutiny for more than five seconds.)
(please, no knee-jerk votes (unless you really can't help yourself)for that buffoon M. Ali as any claim to his being the greatest sportsman of all time won't stand scrutiny for more than five seconds.)
Re Kevin Beattie..
A cracking player ..I was just telling Jet Junior about him the other day ..I seem to remember him playing as a full back against us (Sunderland) a few times ...was there a stronger player in England at the time?..and I have to admit I thought he'd won about 20 caps (which would still have been far too few!)
Not sure there is any mackem equivalent of "The Tank" although I could wax lyrical about "The King" Charlie Hurley for a few months ..but another time perhaps!!
...Escape to Victory, widely acknowledged as the greatest war epic ever made
A cracking player ..I was just telling Jet Junior about him the other day ..I seem to remember him playing as a full back against us (Sunderland) a few times ...was there a stronger player in England at the time?..and I have to admit I thought he'd won about 20 caps (which would still have been far too few!)
Not sure there is any mackem equivalent of "The Tank" although I could wax lyrical about "The King" Charlie Hurley for a few months ..but another time perhaps!!
...Escape to Victory, widely acknowledged as the greatest war epic ever made
My vote goes to Jahangir Khan the former world squash Champion.
'During his career he won the World Open six times and the British Open (The British Open is to squash what Wimbledon is to tennis)a record ten times. Between 1981 and 1986, he was unbeaten in competitive play for five years. During that time he won 555 matches consecutively. This was not only the longest winning streak in squash history, but also one of longest unbeaten runs by any athlete in top-level professional sport'. (wikipedia)
For three years of the five year period of being unbeaten he did not even drop a single game (a squash player must win the best of 5 games to win a match).
Imagine a tennis player winning all the Grand Slams for five years and for three of those five years not even dropping a single set?
He did this all while never ever arguing or even questioning a refereeing decision and having total respect for his opponents and leading an private life that was beyond reproach.
It has often been said that Jahangir Khan had a dominance over his opponents not seen in any other sport ever and a gentleman to boot.
This is a photo of Janangir playing Gamal Awad one of the most talented players the game has ever known. The opening rally lasted for a punishing 20 minutes and the first game lasted over an hour and 11 minutes - the match lasted a total of 2 hours and 46 minutes - a record. Gamal Awad gave so much that he was psychologically crushed and never played top International squash again. (I'm in the crowd watching)
'During his career he won the World Open six times and the British Open (The British Open is to squash what Wimbledon is to tennis)a record ten times. Between 1981 and 1986, he was unbeaten in competitive play for five years. During that time he won 555 matches consecutively. This was not only the longest winning streak in squash history, but also one of longest unbeaten runs by any athlete in top-level professional sport'. (wikipedia)
For three years of the five year period of being unbeaten he did not even drop a single game (a squash player must win the best of 5 games to win a match).
Imagine a tennis player winning all the Grand Slams for five years and for three of those five years not even dropping a single set?
He did this all while never ever arguing or even questioning a refereeing decision and having total respect for his opponents and leading an private life that was beyond reproach.
It has often been said that Jahangir Khan had a dominance over his opponents not seen in any other sport ever and a gentleman to boot.
This is a photo of Janangir playing Gamal Awad one of the most talented players the game has ever known. The opening rally lasted for a punishing 20 minutes and the first game lasted over an hour and 11 minutes - the match lasted a total of 2 hours and 46 minutes - a record. Gamal Awad gave so much that he was psychologically crushed and never played top International squash again. (I'm in the crowd watching)
Ian,
I played Chris Dittmar in 1983 and lost 9-1 9-1 9-0. He didn't even get a sweat up!
Jahangir stuffed Dittmar 9-3, 9-6, 9-0 in the same year. In the third game Dittmar, the world's no.2 was a totally knackered wreck.
I played Chris Dittmar in 1983 and lost 9-1 9-1 9-0. He didn't even get a sweat up!
Jahangir stuffed Dittmar 9-3, 9-6, 9-0 in the same year. In the third game Dittmar, the world's no.2 was a totally knackered wreck.
quote:Originally posted by Jet Johnson:
Re Kevin Beattie..
A cracking player
quote:
...Escape to Victory, widely acknowledged as the greatest war epic ever made
Well, widely acknowledged by me for it's great cast from Portman Road - that and The Great Escape and The Goose Steps Out are the only three war films I like.
quote:Originally posted by bob mccluckie:
Read the history. C B Fry was offered the crown of Albania. At the time he was a demigod. Meanwhile the rest of the contributors prattle on about lightweights.
But was he a better cricketer than Derek Pringle who had sweaters and crisps named after him
quote:Originally posted by ROTF:
But was he a better cricketer than Derek Pringle who had sweaters and crisps named after him
Rotf - yeah, he was.
Anyhow, back to the matter at hand. So who's man of the match in 'Escape to Victory'? For me, it's got to be Carlos Rey/Ossie Ardiles. His goal after beating four defenders and the keeper is a peach; he sets up the third goal; and he's just everywhere, dominating the whole game with his mix of flair and crisp, incisive passing - he's a thorn in the Germans' side all afternoon.
Acad - while 555 matches unbeaten is amazing, and Jahangir Khan was undoubtedly a great sportsman, he can't be ranked above The Greatest, simply because squash is such a relatively minor sport.
Ali bomaye!
quote:Originally posted by jayd:quote:Originally posted by acad tsunami:quote:Originally posted by Chillkram:
How about Ed Moses then, who was unbeaten for nearly 10 years?
Well, it depends...
...on?
Whether he voted for GW Bush or not
With all due respect to your choices, it is time to cut through the Eurocentric drivel!
"Identified as a hockey prodigy at a very young age, Gretzky regularly played at a level far above his peers. He became a full professional at the age of 17 in the World Hockey Association, leading to a long career in the NHL. He set 40 regular-season records, 15 playoff records, 6 All-Star records, won four Stanley Cups with the Edmonton Oilers, and won 9 MVP awards and 10 scoring titles. He is the only player ever to total over 200 points in a season (a feat that he accomplished four times in his career). In addition, he tallied over 100 points a season for 15 NHL seasons, 13 of them consecutively.
He retired from playing in 1999, becoming Executive Director for the Canadian national men's hockey team during the 2002 Winter Olympics. He also became part owner of the Phoenix Coyotes in 2000 and following the 2004-05 NHL lockout became their head coach."
Perhaps more importantly, he has shown himself to be a true gentleman off the ice; his selfless work for charities in particular.
That is all.
(Nod to C. B. Fry, though...and the guy with the torn sack)
Regards,
Jim
"Identified as a hockey prodigy at a very young age, Gretzky regularly played at a level far above his peers. He became a full professional at the age of 17 in the World Hockey Association, leading to a long career in the NHL. He set 40 regular-season records, 15 playoff records, 6 All-Star records, won four Stanley Cups with the Edmonton Oilers, and won 9 MVP awards and 10 scoring titles. He is the only player ever to total over 200 points in a season (a feat that he accomplished four times in his career). In addition, he tallied over 100 points a season for 15 NHL seasons, 13 of them consecutively.
He retired from playing in 1999, becoming Executive Director for the Canadian national men's hockey team during the 2002 Winter Olympics. He also became part owner of the Phoenix Coyotes in 2000 and following the 2004-05 NHL lockout became their head coach."
Perhaps more importantly, he has shown himself to be a true gentleman off the ice; his selfless work for charities in particular.
That is all.
(Nod to C. B. Fry, though...and the guy with the torn sack)
Regards,
Jim