Your favorite athlete

[The People's Peep]

in the music section, there is a thread titled "your favorite band". so as a sports fan, i want to know who you guys have as your favorite athlete? even if you consider wrestlers, athletes, dont include them. it can be your overall favorite athlete or favorite athlete in each of your favorite sports.

for me, my favorite is Tino Martinez. i know its a little weird, but when i was a kid watching him play first base for the yankees, he was just awesome. great defensive fielder and pretty decent hitter. my favorite position to play is first base because of him. he had a sweet, level swing and watching him hit homers into the upper deck of the yankee stadium was great.

what about you guys?

 

[It's Damn Real!]

Of all-time? Theoren Fleury. Absolute phenom in his hey day, and one of the toughest players to ever play the game that I've ever seen, especially for a guy his size. I watched him go up against guys twice his size and end up on top of the scruff/argument despite his size. Damn shame about the drugs and alcohol that ruined his Ranger career, because the F-L-Y line and Fleury in general were incredibly entertaining to watch otherwise.

Currently playing? Ilya Kovalchuk. Unfortunately he plays for the only team in the league who I hate (currently), no other player in the league not named Ovechkin or Heatley has scored more goals post-lockout, and if I'm not mistaken he's heading for his league-leading sixth 40-or-more goal season in as many years with no sign of stopping. He's got what is in my opinion the best shot in the world (yes, the world), and is a shattering testament to the knock that European players are "soft".

 

[People's Champ]

My favorite athlete has to Kobe Bryant. Not just because he's on the Lakers but because of his work ethic and overall passion to be the best. I remember hearing stories about how in the beggining of his career, while his teamates would be out partying, he would be in the gym, working out and working on his game. Even to this day, he never stops trying to be the best.

I know a lot of people don't like him or his attitude but personally I do. When he's on the court he strives to be the best at what he does. And it shows. He has had at least 10 game winning shots this season. I loved how in the game against the Bucks he missed a shot to win it in regulation. So what does he do? He takes the exact same shot at the end of OT and wins it. How? He said it was because the first shot he took was his old way of shooting. He forgot about his injury and the new way he had to shoot. So he took it again and finished. This guy ceases to amaze me.

 

[jmt225]

Today it's Drew Brees, without a doubt.

Why do I love Drew Brees? Simple, he's the greatest quarterback in New Orleans Saints history, and led the franchise I've loved my entire life to their first Super Bowl victory. I mean, that's pretty dry, cut, and clear, don't you think?

Of all time though, my heart lies with Chris Webber. He was the reason I ever became a fan of basketball, and unless Brees can somehow manage to win a few more Super Bowls and continue to put the stats he's been putting up, then I'm not sure he'll ever surpass Webber, even though today I prefer football over basketball and even though I love the Saints more than any other sports team there is. Odd, I know.

But, here's a list of some of my other favorites:

Nick Diaz
Mike Bibby
Carmello Anthony
BJ Penn
Pierre Thomas
Marques Colston
Brett Favre

 

[simpsons_fanatic742]

My favourite athlete of all time is Paul Kariya. He's not the biggest guy, but when he has the puck on his stick, it's magic on the ice. He's one of the best puck-handlers in NHL history and a tremendous passer who makes his teammates better. Look at Brad Boyes last year, he played with Kariya and scored 40+ goals. This year Boyes struggled because Kariya was shifted to other lines. He gave the Mighty Ducks their identity and it's a damn shame he wasn't there to hoist the Stanley Cup. I've always loved Kariya and I just wish one day I can see him win a Stanley Cup. Also, I would die a happy man if he ever plays for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

 

[LamaNamaneumi]

Barry Sanders. Growing up watching the Lions there was not much to cheer for, but we had Barry. He would have me on the edge of my seat every time he got the ball. A lot of the time he would lose yards on a run, but then he would break some crazy 60 yard run and lose a shoe shaking a defender.
Another thing I enjoyed about Barry was his character. He seemed to be very humble, loyal, and respectful. When he would score a touchdown he would not spike the ball and dance. He acted like he had been in the endzone before and was going to get there again.

 

[Mr. TM]

Pavel Bure

I became a Canucks fan right when Pavel Bure was also becoming a fan of scoring in the NHL. He was on my team I would first cheer for, a team that in 1994 would go for the cup.

He would become one of the centerpieces behind the team for a long time, for all of the 90s. Yeah, the team has some shit yeas, but Bure was always one of my favourites on the team, even after I started cheering on a different team. When he was traded to Florida, and than to the Rangers, I still loved to watch him play even up to his retirement.

 

[Mitch Henessey]

Alonzo Mourning.

For years, Zo was a key player for the Miami Heat. He always played with so much intensity and passion, and he was awesome when it came to defense. Zo had to take a break from basketball because of his kidney disease. He went to the Nets for a while, but he eventually came back to the Heat, and he finally won a championship with team in 2006. It's too bad he had to go down with that nasty knee injury, but still, he had a very good career.

Mourning also does a lot of charity work, and he seems like a great guy.

 

[Ferbian]

Seeing as Boxing is the only sport I truly care for, and being somewhat of a nationalist when it comes to supporting boxers, I'm gonna have to vote for Mikkel Kessler, in my eyes one of the few boxers from Denmark to actually accomplish something properly and memorable.
I just finished watching his fight against Carl Froch tonight, and I have to admit it was absolutely amazing, Mikkel put on the fight of his life, and definitely showed the world that he still has it in him.
Mikkel has always struck me as an amazingly gifted boxer, and I wish him all good in his career, and he's by far one of my favorite boxers, so obviously he's also gonna be my favorite athlete.

 

[Rhonda Rousey's Sports Bra]

My favorite athlete is Jim Edmonds. I loved him when he played for the Cardinals, he could hit and play defense. The guy won numerous Gold Gloves in center field and finished in the MVP voting a time or two. I would say I've always been a baseball fan, but after the Edmonds trade that brought him to St. Louis I became obsessed with baseball.

 

[The Brain]

My favorite is Cal Ripken Jr. He had a work ethic second to none. He had incredible passions and knowledge of the game. He is universally respected. I've never heard anyone, whether it be another player, announcer, someone from the media, or a fan say a bad thing about Cal. He was a great role model on and off the field.

Cal is most famous for his consecutive games played streak. The record stands at 2632 and will likely never be broken. The streak ran from May 30, 1982 - September 19, 1998. 17 years without missing a singal game. Here we are four weeks into the new season and several of stars have already been given days off for no reason.

Cal had more than just the streak. He was the 1982 rookie of the year. A two time MVP. 400+ home runs and 3000+ hits. He was voted to 19 consecutive all star games. He was a natural leader. He had everyone scouted and even called some games from shortstop by giving signals to the catcher to relay to the pitcher.

Cal also had a flair for the dramatic. He homered in all three games of the series in consecutive games 2129, 2130, and 2131 which broke the record. He recevied a 22 minute standing ovation in the middle of that game. After he announced his retirement in 2001 he received standing ovations in every city he visited and homered in most of those cities including in his final allstar game where he won his second all star MVP.

He has contributed in his community as well. He has taken part in many charities and even started many of his own. He is always giving back.

I know I've gone on and on, but to me Cal is the man. There will never be another like him.

 

[Theo Mays]

Oh man this is like asking me which celebrity actress I'd like to marry. I could probably make a list of hundreds of players that I'd consider favorites of mine at one point or the other. My favorite player I'd have to say is Marlon Byrd. When I was on a the search for a favorite MLBer my dad said that he would find me and Byrd did just that his rookie year in Philadelphia. I fell in love with the guy and I have followed his career outside of Philadelphia. And it makes me soooo happy to see that he has developed into the player I always thought he would become.

However I'm not sure I'd say he is my favorite athlete. That would either be Randy Moss or Cris Carter. Growing up a Vikings fan these two made things so exciting. Moss is an athletic freak and you know he could potentially catch anything thrown to him. Cris Carter (how this man isn't in the HOF yet is disturbing) made spectacular catch after spectacular catch and was the best WR not named Jerry Rice to ever lace up the cleats. Those two guys are what made me so obsessed with football and to this day I've remain attached to the NFL and I would have to give them a lot of the credit.

 

[kirk1986]

My favorite athlete in football has to be, Drew Brees. He lead my favorite team, the saints, to a superbowl and won.Hes got a great arm and some dont think that because of his size. Hes deadly accruate and leads the "Air Attack" to perfection.Hes one of the best Quarterbacks in the NFL, and by no dought,the best Quarterback in Saints' history.

 

[Dave]

My favourite athlete has to be Brock Lesnar.

I don’t know what it is but he just has this quality that draws me towards both his character and everything else he does. Since the first time I saw him wrestle, I have known that he was going to accomplish something big and he has gone on to show us that he can cut it almost anywhere. He has been a professional wrestler, a NFL footballer and a Mixed Martial Artist. There are very few people around that have the skill-set that Brock Lesnar does and he has never been tied to the situation of one sport. He applies himself to everything and make the most of each and every scenario. Not only is he a great athlete, he is a God-damn great role model too.

He was slated by MMA fans for joining the WWE but he has stood up what people think and doesn’t regret a moment of it. He knows that is what got him his first exposure and he knows that without the WWE, he would not have had the chance to try out all of the other things that he has done. He could have backed down and caved into the fans and started bashing the WWE but he hasn’t done that. In fact, he is proud of where he came from and he knows that he is lucky to have had the opportunities that he has.

In all of the endeavours he has tried, I think he has given it 110% In professional wrestling, he was the WWE Champion in absolutely no time and he gave the WWE everything he had. In MMA, it would have been so easy for him to be like Bobby Lashley and be mediocre. But he got himself into the gym a lot and trained his ass off to make sure that he would be very competitive inside the octagon and it has paid off with dividends.

The guy is a rock and by far my favourite athlete.