Who Are the Fastest, Strongest and Most Agile Athletes of the Past Century?

People have argued over who the best athlete of all-time is ever since the inception of sports. However, it is purely a subjective argument. But in determining an objective answer to a subjective dispute, one must decipher the dynamics of the case. So in determining the best athlete of all-time, there are the key factors to consider, and of course I have laid them all out for your perusal.

Speed

3. Jim Thorpe – Just an amazing athlete whose entire athletic prowess was based on his ability to run, and to run faster than everybody else. His speed is what made him a great decathlon athlete and an outstanding 2-way football player.

2. Deion Sanders – I’m sorry, but there is no gridiron athlete who exemplified pure speed more than Neon Deion. He completely shut down a third of the field all by himself. Quarterbacks would not even look his way, not to mention he was a heck of a wide receiver, even after his prime.

1. Carl Lewis – If there was ever a man who epitomized the entity of speed, it was Carl Lewis. He was money in the 100m at the Los Angeles Olympics. And his speed was so natural that it allowed him to win Gold medals in the 200m and the 4x100m. I think it was his speed alone that made him the only sprinter in memory who was a gold medal longer jumper.

Power

3. Shaquille O’Neal – This man literally powered his way to 4 NBA titles and an MVP award. His explosive use of his size and brawn has not been illustrated by anybody else in the history of sports.

2. Reggie White – When I think of power on the field, I always envision ReggieWhite just forearm shivering LarryAllen right into the ground. Any man who can just throw around a 300 pound NFL lineman on the regular basis like that has to be considered one of the most powerful men ever to dawn an athletic uniform.

1. Jim Brown – This man was just too strong for his competitors. He ran over people at will, and shrugged them off with ease. The Original Gangster was no stranger to whipping people in movies and on the field.

Quickness

3. Wayne Gretzky – The man’s quick flick of a wrist was more productive than most players’ entire bodies.

2. Barry Sanders – If you put Barry in a hole with any defender in the world, he was going to juke him out, and make the other guy look bad while doing it. For a guy to be so little and yet be the 3rd leading rusher of all time, says a lot about his elusiveness.

1. Jerry Rice – He didn’t run a 4.4 second 40-yard dash. He wasn’t 6’4″. And he certainly was not the strongest guy on the field. But when it came to getting off the line and changing his direction on a dime, en route to scoring one of his all-time leading touchdowns, there wasn’t a quicker person in the history of sports.

Agility –

3. Bill Russell – At 6’9″, the man got around on the court like a guard. He could react to everything, and he could jump over anything. His defense was impenetrable, and you couldn’t maneuver around him to save your life.

2. Michael Jordan – Who can forget the images of this man jumping from the free-throw line, twirling in the air en route to a Dunking title, and switching the ball from one hand to the other in mid-air? That’s right, no one can! His agility was the difference between him being the greatest basketball ball player of all-time, and being Mateen Cleaves. Thank God for agility!

1. Kobe Bryant – I hate to admit it, but is nowhere the athlete Kobe is. While Kobe still has a ways to go to become a better player, he can do anything of the physical variety that can doâÂ?¦and then some.

Versatility –

3. Bo Jackson – During his prime, he was one of the greatest players in baseball and one of the greatest players in football. I remember him for his ability to run by you or run over you on the football field. Others remember him for knocking homeruns out of the park. Either way, he did both, equally well.

2. Jim Thorpe – Because he was a Native American, he is one of the most overlooked athletes of the past century. But any man who can do 10 different track & field events, and be the best at all of them, makes him one of the most versatile athletes of all time.

1. Jackie Robinson – An All-American in several sports, a great army lieutenant, and an All-Century baseball player makes him one of the rarest athletes of his time. He lettered in 4 sports in college. You give me one other prominent athlete who did that, and I’ll buy you dinner.

Instinct –

4. MichaelJordan – Willed his way to victory whenever he stepped on the court. Six NBA championships in 6 consecutive full-seasons, speak for themselves.

3. Jackie Robinson – If you can hit .311 and be the best base stealer with everybody and their mama calling you every racial slur known to man, than I would put you up here. I mean, just imagine if A-Rod had to face what Jackie did. He would be booed right out of baseball.

2. Muhammad Ali – He is the master self-motivator, trash-talker, and instinctive athlete of all time. He could talk himself into beating somebody who was far more athletic then him. He could talk somebody into performing way out of their realm, and he could devise a strategy to win in the middle of a fight (ever hear of the Rope-A-Dope?). Oh yeah, and not to mention, he was “the greatest!”

1. Bill Russell – I mean, the man won a championship in all of his NBA seasons except his rookie year. What else needs to be said?