The Most Inspiring Athlete

dlk

Hall of Fame
Jim Thorpe 1888-1953. For everything he overcame (1/2 Native American) during his era. Olympic Gold in Decathlon & Pentathlon (1912). Played Pro baseball, basketball, & football. Little Known fact: His twin brother died at the age of nine.
 
Athlete: Secretariat.
Reason: 31 Lengths.

Would've voted for Jim Thorpe but I didn't like the self-conscious "Guido" vibe Burt Lancaster projected.
 

hollywood9826

Hall of Fame
I was gonna say Terry Fox. He didnt inspire me but he pretty much inspired the whole ****ry of canada.

But r2473 may have answered this best :)
 

Tmano

Hall of Fame
I played soccer mostof my life yet I don't think I have ever had any really inspairing athlete, I appreciate athlets in general and sometime I wish I was good as they are. However, it happend that I came across to watch some wheelchair tennis tournament (believe was the US OPEN)and I was just amazed by this athletes....like them there are many more in diffent sports.........so I look up to them
 

ollinger

G.O.A.T.
Cliff Lee. Athletes who persevere at their sport are all well and good but most of them wouldn't know what else to do with themselves, so don't inspire me all that much. Cliff Lee answered all who say athletes are only about the money when he turned down 200 mil and accepted 60% of that (a very nice sum, but far less) elsewhere because he and his family had been in Philly, felt comfortable there, and felt they'd have a better life.
 

LameTennisPlayer

Professional
I played soccer mostof my life yet I don't think I have ever had any really inspairing athlete, I appreciate athlets in general and sometime I wish I was good as they are. However, it happend that I came across to watch some wheelchair tennis tournament (believe was the US OPEN)and I was just amazed by this athletes....like them there are many more in diffent sports.........so I look up to them

I have a similar acknowledgment with paralympians or atheletes with disabilites, some of the feats they can accomplish are impressive enough for people without disabilities let alone with them.
 

CCNM

Hall of Fame
Right now I'd say former basketball star Bill Walton. Yes, he struggled with injuries for most of his career and was a rebel, but he overcame a stuttering problem and was a commentator for many years.
 

OrangeOne

Legend
Me.

Because of my perfect technique while I swing the human racquet.

And my ability to lecture others as a condition of them hitting with me if they are worse than me which they inevitably are.
 

Fandango

Rookie
Manu Ginobili. He showed me that you can be a white (Argentinian with Italian ancestry) and still be a good shooting guard in the NBA. Some of the shots he makes are amazing.

Another sports player who inspires me is Randy Moss.

Just recently, one of the NFL's premier cornerbacks in Darelle Revis (sp?) called him out and said he has a slouch.

Randy said later that the slouch will see you on Sunday.

Then on Sunday, he burns Revis and pulls in a one handed grab for a touchdown. Revis blamed it on a hamstring.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWI5O25wY18&feature=related
 

Fandango

Rookie
If you have to look to michael vick for inspiration you have issues.

well, how many Qb's do you know have went to jail for two years and then came back to have a pro bowl year is seriously being considered for the NFL MVP Award?
 

max

Legend
In tennis, it's been:

Bjorn Borg---for his calmness, coolness and style.
Jimmy Conners--for aggression
Martina Navratilova--overall athleticism.
 
Borg, calm and cool?? The guy has never looked relaxed a day in his life, his coach Leonard Bergelin has said that he worried about his weight like an anorexic schoolgirl, and it seems rather likely he tried to take a fatal overdose when his investment in a clothing company tanked.
 

Sentinel

Bionic Poster
Haile Gebrsellasie (Ethiopian long distance runner)

Me.

Because of my perfect technique while I swing the human racquet.

And my ability to lecture others as a condition of them hitting with me if they are worse than me which they inevitably are.
And you are also the most surprising slam winner, and the best forehand ever, the greatest tennis player man or woman and ... :D :D
 

Sid_Vicious

G.O.A.T.
Me.

Because of my perfect technique while I swing the human racquet.

And my ability to lecture others as a condition of them hitting with me if they are worse than me which they inevitably are.

You are a true inspiration. Even with the smallest head size on the human tour, you make it happen. In an era dominated with large head sizes and an emphasis on brute force, you use craft, grace, technique and precision to succeed. You sir, are a genius.
 

Sentinel

Bionic Poster
You are a true inspiration. Even with the smallest head size on the human tour, you make it happen. In an era dominated with large head sizes and an emphasis on brute force, you use craft, grace, technique and precision to succeed. You sir, are a genius.
YOU, Sir, are a genius.
 
Borg, calm and cool?? The guy has never looked relaxed a day in his life, his coach Leonard Bergelin has said that he worried about his weight like an anorexic schoolgirl, and it seems rather likely he tried to take a fatal overdose when his investment in a clothing company tanked.

El Diablo, I've heard accounts of how Borg wanted to maintain his weight and he was definitely very "exacting" as far as his racquets, fitness, etc. McEnroe has referred to this (just look at his Wimbledon superstitions like not shaving while winning for example). Yet, you are wrong on the suicide attempt. He never tried to commit suicide. He went to the hospital because he was sick. This is a rumor that's often repeated. See this article:

http://www.nytimes.com/1989/08/22/sports/borg-still-boasts-that-calm-exterior.html

BORG STILL BOASTS THAT CALM EXTERIOR
By CINDY SHMERLER
Published: August 22, 1989
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When he was playing tennis, Bjorn Borg was known for never showing emotion on the court and rarely revealing any off it. Yet even now, seven years after he stopped playing the professional circuit, the man from Sweden who was the world's No. 1 player from 1978 to 1980 and a five-time Wimbledon champion continues to intrigue tennis fans: they follow every report of his behavior, from a mysterious alleged suicide attempt to assorted romantic difficulties to the recent financial troubles of his designer clothing line.

''I'm amazed that years after I stopped playing tennis, people still recognize me in restaurants and ask for my autograph,'' the 33-year-old Borg said recently as he sat on a sofa in the New York office of his design-group company. ''I feel very proud of that.'' Relaxed Demeanor

Borg seemed relaxed and confident as he spoke and sipped coffee, quite a departure from the portrait painted of him after he was rushed to a hospital in Milan, Italy, last February for either a suicide attempt, a drug overdose or food poisoning, depending upon the source. And while he was given the chance, in an interview, to expound on a variety of subjects, it was clear Borg really wanted to discuss only one. ''You mean, the night I was supposed to kill myself?'' he asked, laughing.

Borg was always followed closely by media and fans, so it's not surprising that people were "looking for a story". Here's a quote from the late 1980's, where Connors refers to Borg's departure.

Jimmy Connors, who continues to play at 36, reflected on Borg`s exodus in Tennis Magazine five years ago:

``There`s a big difference between walking down a hallway and having a guy say, `There`s Connors, he used to be a great player`, and the experience of walking out of a tunnel onto a court with 15,000 fans going crazy for you. What I can`t understand is that Borg made this decision at 26. Geez, the only way to fill all those long days ahead is by being something like a rancher or a farmer. But who`s going to do that after being at the top of tennis.``
 
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Oh. Borg denied trying to kill himself. Not surprising. The hospital report at the time was of a large number of ingested barbiturates, and he was described as despondent at the time. Patients hospitalized with overdoses routinely tell everyone it was a stomach disorder, in my own clinical experience. My bet would be suicide attempt.
 
Oh. Borg denied trying to kill himself. Not surprising. The hospital report at the time was of a large number of ingested barbiturates, and he was described as despondent at the time. Patients hospitalized with overdoses routinely tell everyone it was a stomach disorder, in my own clinical experience. My bet would be suicide attempt.

This is Borg in 1989 (the year in question) playing tennis with the President Bush.

borg+bush+1989.jpg


Well, you're certainly entitled to your opinion. You are wrong on the barbituates angle. That was his ex-wife Ms. Berte NOT Bjorn Borg. So, your reasoning is incorrect. I completely disagree. Borg was certainly going through turmoil in his personal life especially in the 1980's (he seems very well setlled now). What specific hospital report are you referring to? I've read too many accounts disputing the suicide rumor. I'll take Borg's word for this. He doesn't strike me as someone that's suicidal, based on all I've read about him ever since the late 1970's.

Loredana Berte, a 39-year-old rock singer, was rushed to a Milan hospital today after swallowing barbiturates. Doctors pumped her stomach and that her life was not in danger.

Earlier this week, Berte had called Italian journalists at Monte Carlo in an agitated state about reports the marriage was on the rocks. She was said to have been particularly upset about a photo in a French magazine showing the Swedish player in the company of a young woman.
 
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ollinger

G.O.A.T.
Noted in the L.A Times of Feb 8, 1989, Borg had to have his stomach pumped following an over dose of sleeping pills, per the hospital staff. The same article cites his people telling the press he had a stomach disorder following a meal, an obvious cover-up.
 

r2473

G.O.A.T.
Would you guys please stop slandering Borg with facts.

He is a perfect legend and that is how I prefer to think of him, thank you very much.
 

fps

Legend
Natalie Du Toit, Roger Federer, Ryan Giggs, Shane Warne, Dan Carter, Heile Gebrselassie, are the first ones who spring to my mind.
 
Would you guys please stop slandering Borg with facts.

He is a perfect legend and that is how I prefer to think of him, thank you very much.

Lol, I know you are kidding, but the operative word is "fact". I don't take this lightly because LOTS of folks just hear things like that and accept them as "gospel". If you do that without closer examination, you'll get a whole lot wrong. The facts are that his stomach was pumped, that he denied that he tried to commit suicide, and that he claimed that "he had taken sleeping pills during a time when he had food poisoning".

See: http://www.usatoday.com/sports/tennis/2006-05-24-borg-cover_x.htm

Libel is written defamation, while slander is "oral defamation". Truth is a defense to a slander charge in a legal sense, usually. Yet, if you are a "public figure", like Borg is, per US law (not sure about Italy, international law) you have to actually prove "malice" on the part of the accused.

As to Borg, he never was found to have ingested barbituates. His stomach was pumped that night, but to jump from that to he tried to commit suicide is such a far leap. Borg is definitely not perfect, but he is an extremely inspirational athlete in my book. He's inspired me that's for sure. See this extended excerpt from the article above.

His life in retirement has been more checkered than his Hall of Fame career, which included 11 Grand Slam titles. When his name has made headlines, it often has been for the wrong reasons.

Using his old wooden rackets, he made a halfhearted comeback attempt in the early 1990s, losing several matches to lowly ranked players before retiring to the senior circuit.

In business, his eponymous fashion label hit financial difficulties and was liquidated in 1990. The company relaunched in 1991. There were two divorces, including a turbulent second marriage to Italian rock singer Loredana Berte, plus an ugly custody battle with the mother of his eldest son, Robin.

In 1989, Borg's name was splashed in the news for an accidental drug overdose that some reports claimed was a suicide attempt. Borg denied those reports, saying he had taken sleeping pills after a bout of food poisoning.

The one-time prodigy, whose ultra-focused tennis existence was orchestrated down to the minute by omnipresent coach Lennart Bergelin, admits he had no blueprint when he left the game in 1982 after several months on hiatus.

"The only plan was that I know I'm going to step away from tennis," Borg says.

"I just wanted to learn about this other life from tennis. I learned about all kinds of different things — good things, bad things."

Bergelin, now 80, whom Borg says is "like a second father to me," knew how dedicated his man was to the sport and how difficult the transition would be: "It's normal that in the beginning it was not easy. He was not prepared to change from tennis."
 
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r2473

G.O.A.T.
^^I could care less what the "facts" are in this episode.

Borg is a very inspiring athlete to many including myself.

His personal life wasn't perfect. "Perfect" people are rather dull anyway, don't you think?
 
^^I could care less what the "facts" are in this episode.

Borg is a very inspiring athlete to many including myself.

His personal life wasn't perfect. "Perfect" people are rather dull anyway, don't you think?

Yes I do agree. It's called being a human being. No one is perfect, and that's true of legendary tennis players as well. Though Borg was referred to as the "Ice Man", he has mentioned how much he actually "felt" while he played. I do think the facts are important in this instance though, but perhaps that's because I'm a big fan of Bjorn Borg.

If it was truly a suicide attempt, that casts a whole different light on what he may have experienced. I concur with your post though. Borg changed my life as a youngster and was a huge influence on me (from the time I was about 9). For me growing up as a student/junior player, he represented the pursuit of perfection. Yet, I started understanding that perfection can never be attained. I also realized that you could be great but remain extremely humble, first and foremost (that was because of Borg, but mostly because of my parents). Bob Kain (IMG exec, his agent) once mentioned, to paraphrase, that Borg was "extremely sure of who he was. He never let winning or losing change how he felt about himself as a person". He went on to say that he was an excellent example of someone who personified the Kipling quote featured at the AELTC, which is (from his poem "if"):

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
 
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r2473

G.O.A.T.
^^Nice post.

I really didn't start playing tennis until ~10 yrs. ago. I was a runner growing up, so my "heros" in those formative years were people like Steve Prefontaine and (the above mentioned) Haile Gebrselassie.
 
^^Nice post.

I really didn't start playing tennis until ~10 yrs. ago. I was a runner growing up, so my "heros" in those formative years were people like Steve Prefontaine and (the above mentioned) Haile Gebrselassie.

Very good r2473. That's interesting. I've heard about Steve Prefontaine who died young, but was very famous. It says here that he inspired the "running boom" of the 1970's, held a ton of records and that he died sadly a year before the '76 Olympics. He must have been sensational.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xesXzetlrE&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NDAydXCoxI&feature=fvst

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Prefontaine
 
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Sentinel

Bionic Poster
Very good r2473. That's interesting. I've heard about Steve Prefontaine who died young, but was very famous. It says here that he inspired the "running boom" of the 1970's, held a ton of records and that he died sadly a year before the '76 Olympics. He must have been sensational.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xesXzetlrE&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NDAydXCoxI&feature=fvst

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Prefontaine
I once mentioned Prefontaine here in a running thread and was told he was vastly overrated or he was news only in America.

I thought it was Bill Rogers and Frank Shorter who inspired a lot of runners. I used to read the Runner's World in those days. Most of what we ever got to know about athletes was either US or Brit athletes (Seb Coe and Ovett).

I suppose i got in a few years after Steve Pre died, and in any case I am in India, so i would not know exactly.

But its nice to have a runner mentioned here !
I suppose in Britain Steve Ovett and Coe inspired a lot of runners.

Wasn't Carl Lewis an inspiration to black sprinters ? Or does this go back decades earlier ?
 

r2473

G.O.A.T.
^^"Pre" wasn't the greatest runner, but had a certain attitude that appeals to young people. In a more practical sense, I remember reading that he wasn't a "gifted" runner in high school and embarked on a high mileage training philosophy to improve his 5K times. That is what I ended up doing as well.

Haile Gebrselassie on the other hand was simply great. What am I saying, he is still great. The man set the Marathon world record in Berlin of 2:03:59 in 2008 at the age of 35.
 

r2473

G.O.A.T.
I once mentioned Prefontaine here in a running thread and was told he was vastly overrated or he was news only in America.

I thought it was Bill Rogers and Frank Shorter who inspired a lot of runners. I used to read the Runner's World in those days.

Well, Pre died in 1975 so he never reached his full potential and the running boom was just getting going. He inspired the beginning of the boom perhaps, but it was Shorter and Rogers that largely responsible for it.
 
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