I'm still a bit behind from work ramping up from zero to 100 mph in the span of 2-3 days but I wanted to finally get this posted.
For discussion:
Here is a great article/opinion piece by Amby Burfoot about the Olympics and the topic du jour: Michael Phelps and his amazing medal feat.
Here's my opinion - Phelps is a great swimmer. Swimmer. Is he the greatest Olympic athlete? Not a chance in my book. Who might be? I'm sure everyone could offer forth suggestions, but see Mr. Burfoot's blog entry above about "the real games".
One person I suggest? Emil Zatopek. 1952 in Helsinki he did something that will probably never be repeated. He won the gold medal in the 5000, 10,000, and the marathon. In one Olympics. Google him and read about how that marathon in Helsinki was his first, and how he decided to run it at the last minute.
Feel free to discuss. I gotta get back to work.
3 comments:
I agree with his point that you can't consider yourself the greatest athlete if you aren't competing against the rest of the world, and those venues (swimming and gymnastics) don't allow for that.
So the question becomes, is there ONE T&F event that sums up Athleticism, or does Athleticism necessarily require some form of versatility across different "running, jumping and throwing" events?
Heptathletes/Decathletes would be the best example of versatility, but they often aren't truly world class at any one event (except for one, which I'll get to in a minute).
If it's one event, then does Athleticism mean endurance? speed? strength? All three? Is there one event that even captures all three?
I think it's easier to pick a "greatest athlete" for the women. Jackie Joyner-Kersee's WR in the Heptathlon is so far out of reach for anyone competing today, AND she won 2 individual medals in the Long Jump.
For the guys, I'd agree that Zatopek's accomplishment ranks near the top, but does that mean he's the greatest all around athlete, or just that he pulled off the greatest endurance feat in the Olympic Games? Not unlike Carl Lewis, insofar as his talent is specialized, in my mind.
Check out what Robert Garrett did in the early Olympic Games...
damn, that was long. sorry, man...
I agree that Phelps is not the greatest Olympic athlte ever, and i'm not sure that I could pick one. Primarily because I don't think I will agree fully with any criteria that are put forth.
He has certainly put forth a transcendent performance that deserves accolades, but swimming allows him to enter and win several events, while other sports do not.
We would likely have to eliminate team events, due to the fact that the best athletes win one medal per Olympics, and certainly cannot succeed without teammates.
Al Oerter won the discus at four separate Olympics. Paavo Nurmi of Finland was an old-time stud too.
Good debate topic.
--erin
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