If You was to name...

mortified

mortified

Well-known member
The first 10 Sportspeople, from any sporting field, that first comes to mind, for whatever reason it is, that to you had stand out qualities & admiration for. Be interesting to see how revealing or not it is about the way we differ with our perception on sport.

Not easy to get this list right, straight off the bat, me thinks, but i'm going to have a bash at it.

Andy Murray
Damon Hill
Michael Schumacher
Sir Steve Redgrave
David Beckham
Ronnie O'Sullivan
Nigel Mansell
Rhona Martin ( can't quite put my finger on why either )
Nick Faldo
Tiger Woods

Actually 10 isn't enough thinking about it now,

Chris Eubank
Kevin Peterson
Mike Tyson ( weirdly to me )
Bradley Wiggins

Best I stop now, I could go on & on thinking about it, is that revealing in any way, I think it may well be ?
 
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John McEnroe
Duncan Ferguson
Martin Johnson
Joe Calzaghe
Gianluigi Buffon
Paul Gascoigne
Andrew Flintoff
Ben Stokes
Ronnie O’Sullivan
Minoru Suzuki
 
Bjorn Borg
Seve
Bobby Charlton
Johan Cruyff
Ben Stokes
Muhammad Ali
Pete Sampras
Phil Taylor
Jack Nicklaus
Michael Schumacher
 
Keeping it British otherwise I would need to list a couple of hundred.

Ben Stokes
Andrew Flintoff
Ian Botham ( I do like an all rounder)
Daley Thompson
Alan Shearer (as a player not a pundit)
Ryan Giggs (as a player not a brother)
Tony Green
Chris Hoy
Justin Rose
Steve Redgrave
 
Seve Ballesteros
Michael Johnson
Ed Moses
Olga Korbut
Billie Jean King
Johann Cruff
Muhammed Ali
Jesse Owens
Serena Williams
Nick Faldo
Martina Navratilova
Seb Coe
Andy Murray
 
Jack Nicklaus,the greatest ever sportsman,18 majors,dual in the sun at Turnbury,Masters win at 46,Ryder cup with Jacklin,saw him a few times,mainly on tv,local opens and Ryder cup at Lytham.
Tom Watson,as with above,so close as an OAP 😂 in winning the Open.
Seve,Car park king at Lytham,stood so close to the genius.
Nick Faldo,the greatest British sportsman ever,miserable sod on the course though.
Ali,watched most of his fights on tv as a kid,a great talker too.
Mike Tyson,awesome power,proper animal in the ring,shame he went over the edge and lost it.
Alex Higgins,winning the world title and breaking down,calling for his wife and kid.
Ronnie Osullivan,another genius,took snooker to the next level.
Geoff Boycott,Yorkshires greatest and Englands finest.
Barry Sheene,remember watching him on world of sport,crashing,having pins inserted in his legs and then year or so later winning world bike championship.Came across as a playboy like James Hunt but not in the same league as him.
 
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Martin Johnson
Lawrence Dallaglio
Tony Adams
John Terry
Joe Calzaghe
Dennis Bergkamp
Paolo Maldini
Stuart Pearce
Laurent Blanc
Andrew Flintoff

You could tell I wanted to be a defender when I was a kid! I liked these for their on the field leadership and passion (Bergkamp I was just in awe of his skill)

If it was Pool players;

Micky Mellon
Andy Morrison
Ian Evatt
Keith Southern
Brett Ormerod

would be a few over the years!!
 
Seve, is a great shout, his pomp was slightly before my time, saw him play live on a couple of occasions late in his career, the creativity in his shot making was still on a different level. Bubba Watson & Mickelson are 2 others I have been fortunate enough to see up close that had the same kind of God given talent as Seve possessed.
 
Diego Maradonna
Gazza
Phil Taylor
Sugar Ray Leonard
Gordon Banks
Seve Ballesteros
Lewis Hamilton
Virginia Wade
Alan Suddick
Mike Tyson
 
Steve Davis
Ian Bell
Michael Atherton
Jimmy Armfield
Jack Nicklaus
Laura Muir
Tony Green
Joe Frazier
Jesse Owens
Michael Johnson
 
There'ss something about Lewis Hamilton that over the years has gradually put me off him. Defo up there with the best of them, not quite my cup of tea for some reason. I really liked Jenson Button, more out of envy, always comes across as a thoroughly decent articulate chap, a good looking geezer to boot and the Japanese ex Mrs he had for along time, was very much to my taste., lucky guy.
 
George Best
Tony Green
Brian London
Nick Faldo
John Burridge
Mohammed Ali
Clive Lloyd
Jimmy Anderson
Gary Briggs
Gary Player
 
George Best
Muhammad Ali
Ian Botham
Roger Bannister
John McEnroe
Alex Higgins
Bobby Charlton
Andy Murray
Lewis Hamilton
Alan Shearer
In no particular order just who sprung to mind.
I purposely didn't read this thread as that would have influenced my thinking.
 
I got a video for Christmas when I was a kid, was a chronical of the fights Ali, Frasier, Foreman & Norton had against each other, amazing era of heavy weight boxing sadly before me time to witness. Eubank, Benn, Watson era was similar.
 
Paul Gascoigne
Tiger Woods
Usain Bolt
Brian Lara
Ryan Giggs
Serena Williams
Marco Van Basten
Tony McCoy
Jonah Lomu
Roger Federer
 
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Bode Miller
Lindsey Vonn
Joe Simpson
Doug Scott
Nigel Mansell
Ayrton Senna
Seve
Roger Federer
Steve Redgrave
Niki Lauda

Sub: Muhammad Ali
 
mortified said:
I got a video for Christmas when I was a kid, was a chronical of the fights Ali, Frasier, Foreman & Norton had against each other, amazing era of heavy weight boxing sadly before me time to witness. Eubank, Benn, Watson era was similar.
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The fights between Hagler, Hearns and Sugar Ray Leonard weren't too shabby either 😉
 
Ok

Gordon banks
Chris Eubank
Gazza
Pele
Geoff hurst
Lewis hamilton
Seve ballesteros
George best
Barry sheene
Geoff boycott

These were the first 10 to come into my head in a slightly drunken Sunday evening.
If I did this 10 times I’m sure most of these won’t repeat !!
Good thread
 
SpionKop said:
ffs xows, Virginia ** Wade lol - other than that great list.
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Well she popped into my head.

I remember wanting something to eat as a kid and my mum (rip) wouldnt move from the television watching her win at Wimbledon, that’s the only reason I remember her 😭....honest guv.
 
Pelé
Viv Richards
Mohammad Ali
George Best
Hurricane Higgins
Tony Green
Ian Botham
Ferenc Puskás
Olga Korbut
Andy Murray
 
Puskas, wasn't he playing back way when in the 50 or 60s, Viv Richards, great shout, Joel Garner, Malcolm Marshall, what a team the Windies were back then, they whitewashed us every series back then.
 
mortified said:
Puskas, wasn't he playing back way when in the 50 or 60s, Viv Richards, great shout, Joel Garner, Malcolm Marshall, what a team the Windies were back then, they whitewashed us every series back then.
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It was always a blackwash Mortified 😉
 
Gary Player
Mohammed Ali
Alan Suddick
Colin Bell
Bjorn Borg
James Hunt
Martina Navratilova
Bill Beaumont
Pat Lam
Sir Steve Redgrave
 
Ten is not enough but here goes and apologies to any I have left out be it by accident or design:

Sir Geoff Boycott
James Hunt
Sir Alexander Higgins
Sir Henry Cecil
Seve Ballesteros
Ronnie O'Sullivan
Lord Coe
Ian Botham
Paul Gascoigne
Steve Cauthen
 
With special apologies to:

Tiger Woods
Georgie Best
Diego Maradona
Kieron Fallon
Sugar Ray Leonard
Steve Davis
John Greig
Aiden O'Brien
Stephen Hendry
Roger Bannister
 
mortified said:
Puskas, wasn't he playing back way when in the 50 or 60s, Viv Richards, great shout, Joel Garner, Malcolm Marshall, what a team the Windies were back then, they whitewashed us every series back then.
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Puskas played alongside Di Stefano, and ghetto
mortified said:
Puskas, wasn't he playing back way when in the 50 or 60s, Viv Richards, great shout, Joel Garner, Malcolm Marshall, what a team the Windies were back then, they whitewashed us every series back then.
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Puskás played alongside Di Stefano and Francisco Gento,in the great Real Madrid side in the early 60’s it was the first team I absolutely worshipped(Pool aside) He scored a hat trick against Benfica in the 62 European Cup Final but lost 5-3 then again they had the fantastically gifted Eusebio in their team.
 
Great to see such a positive thread. Uplifting actually.

Makes such a difference vs. people telling everyone who and what they hate all the time.
 
Sean Kerly has now popped into my head, anyone else get madly into watching any event during the Olympics when we have a chance of a medal ?

Rowing, indoor cycling where some events not even the officials or participants are 100% sure of the rules, short track skating, the skeleton, 2 man kayaking, archery, 10 metre air pistol shoot, wrestling, swimming, table tennis, judo, bmx racing, field hockey, 3 day eventing, badminton, the dressage ( is that with the dancing horses ? ) ffs, how do these sports become such compulsive viewing when its the Olympics. & i use the term sports with a bit of poetic licence, some are not even popular hobbies played by the likes of retired housewives, yet I've set the alarm for stupid o'clock a few times to watch them. Hope i'm not the only one here. the tea tray sledging, water polo, rhythmic gymnastics, crikey, funny when you think about it. Eve Muirhead, Joe Clark, Shana Read, can't be normal to remember such like.
 
mortified said:
Sean Kerly has now popped into my head, anyone else get madly into watching any event during the Olympics when we have a chance of a medal ?

Rowing, indoor cycling where some events not even the officials or participants are 100% sure of the rules, short track skating, the skeleton, 2 man kayaking, archery, 10 metre air pistol shoot, wrestling, swimming, table tennis, judo, bmx racing, field hockey, 3 day eventing, badminton, the dressage ( is that with the dancing horses ? ) ffs, how do these sports become such compulsive viewing when its the Olympics. & i use the term sports with a bit of poetic licence, some are not even popular hobbies played by the likes of retired housewives, yet I've set the alarm for stupid o'clock a few times to watch them. Hope i'm not the only one here. the tea tray sledging, water polo, rhythmic gymnastics, crikey, funny when you think about it. Eve Muirhead, Joe Clark, Shana Read, can't be normal to remember such like.
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The question was,the first 10,not every sportsman/woman you know. Maybe add a reason why they are so fixed in our heads,here goes.
 
todayistheday said:
The question was,the first 10,not every sportsman/woman you know. Maybe add a reason why they are so fixed in our heads,here goes.
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Borg...6 french and 5 Wimbledon wins don't do this player justice. Why he retired at 26 we'll never know but surely more slams would have followed.
Seve....Masters and Open victories were the tip of the iceberg for this brilliant Spaniard.
Every modern day players can thank him for the riches they now get and the world can thank him for transforming the Ryder cup to what it is now.
Bobby Charlton....virtual one club man ,record scorer for Utd and England for an age, survivor of the Munich air disaster and went on to achieve what he did. His charity work is far too long to write down here.
Cruyff.....My footballing hero from a long time ago, enough said😁
Stokes......Virtually won the world cup for England single handedly. Holds a multitude of cricketing record.
Ali.......In his own words, He was the greatest
Sampras......14 grand slam wins with only the french missing from his cv. Paved the way for the top players we revere nowadays.
Phil Taylor........Arguably the greatest darts player we will ever see. It would take forever to write down all his titles needless to say 14 times champion of the world (8 on the bounce) cements his inclusion in my list.
Nicklaus.......When everyone shouts from the rooftops that Tiger Woods is the greatest golfer a lot seem to forget that there was golf before the mid 90's
His record of winning the most majors has stood the test of time and included in the trilogy with Palmer and Player brought golf to the masses.
Schumacher......7 times world champion with the dominance that Hamilton will surely surpass but again Michael paved the way.
To make a sport boring means you are winning all the time and he did.

There you go those are my reasons.
 
I'll try and pick one from each sport

*Eddie Gray
*Bjorn Borg
*Jack Nicklaus
*Ian Botham
*Gareth Edwards
*Carl Lewis
*Mark Spitz
*Eddie Merckx
*Stirling Moss
*Muhammad Ali

*honorable mention for Dick Barlow-legendary Layton cricketer
 
mortified said:
yeah, i've gone off in a bit of a tangent here, was hoping nobody had noticed....
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A good point re answering the actual question.

I normally hate when people fail to do so but to be honest, I'd get roughly the same answer either way but might have popped Shaun Murphy in if I was answering the question correctly just because he was on today.

I know your list is your choice and nobody but you can come up with your list but how the feck can Rhona Martin be of the first 10 sportspersons that you think of ?
 
archie said:
Great to see such a positive thread. Uplifting actually.

Makes such a difference vs. people telling everyone who and what they hate all the time.
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Sorry Archie but I can't let that idea you have given me go by:

So folks, who are the 10 sportspersons that you - I won't say hate - are perhaps not as fond of ?
 
Maybe my not so fond of is not a good idea and goes against the spirit of the new board.

So just to say that I used to dislike Steve Davis with a passion in my youth and now think he is a fine ambassador for snooker and British sport and feel strongly that he should be the first knight of the green baize.

Is that better Archie ? 😉
 
Ayrton Senna
Chris Eubank
Jackie Charlton
Bobby Charton
Shane Warne
Curtley Ambrose
Mike Tyson
Carl Lewis
Daley Thompson
Zola Budd

edit to add that this is my list of admired sportspersons!
 
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SEASIDE2020 said:
A good point re answering the actual question.

I normally hate when people fail to do so but to be honest, I'd get roughly the same answer either way but might have popped Shaun Murphy in if I was answering the question correctly just because he was on today.

I know your list is your choice and nobody but you can come up with your list but how the feck can Rhona Martin be of the first 10 sportspersons that you think of ?
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as i said Rhona Martin for some reason is a sportsperson that sticks in my head, I ended up engrossed in their Olympic campaign, they have a lot of group matches that are not particularly quick, it's a long haul to get to medal, think I enjoyed the journey to success with them & Rhona was captain & the complete boss, from what I worked out, basically 3 of the team are just there to get out of the house, make the numbers up and do a bit of sweeping, the last 2 stones delivered by the captains are what decides the result of each end, I enjoyed it anyway, guess it just what floats your boat, said it would be revealing.
 
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