Athlete

For other uses, see Athlete (disambiguation).

"Sportsmen" redirects here. For other uses of the term, see hunters and fishermen.

Jim Thorpe at the 1912 Summer Olympics

An athlete (American and British English) or sportsman (British English) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed and/or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs.

Most professional athletes have particularly well-developed physiques obtained by extensive physical training and strict exercise accompanied by a strict dietary regimen.

The word "athlete" is a romanization of the Greek: άθλητὴς, athlētēs, one who participates in a contest; from ἄθλος, áthlos, or ἄθλον, áthlon, a contest or feat. It is the general term for all participants in any physical sport; its application to those who participate in other activities, such as horse riding or driving, is somewhat controversial.

Titles

"All-around athlete"

An "all-around athlete" is a person who competes in multiple sports at a high level. Examples of people who played numerous sports professionally include Jim Thorpe, Lionel Conacher, Deion Sanders (male), Danny Ainge (male) and Babe Zaharias (female). Others include Ricky Williams, Bo Jackson, and Damon Allen, each of whom was drafted both by Major League Baseball and by professional gridiron football leagues such as the NFL and the CFL. Japanese athletes such as Kazushi Sakuraba, Kazuyuki Fujita, Masakatsu Funaki and Naoya Ogawa have successfully competed in both professional wrestling and mixed martial arts.

"World's Greatest Athlete"

The title of "World's Greatest Athlete" traditionally belongs to the world's top competitor in the decathlon (males) and heptathlon (females) in track and field. The decathlon consists of 10 events: 100 meters, long jump, shot put, high jump, 400 meters, 110 m hurdles, discus, pole vault, javelin, and 1500 m. The heptathlon consists of seven events: the 100 m hurdles, high jump, shot put, 200 meters, long jump, javelin, and 800 meters. These competitions require an athlete to possess the whole spectrum of athletic ability in order to be successful including speed, strength, coordination, jumping ability, and endurance.

Although the title "World's Greatest Athlete" seems a natural fit for these two events, its traditional association with the decathlon/heptathlon officially began with Jim Thorpe. During the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden, Thorpe won the gold medal in the Decathlon (among others). Thorpe notably also competed professionally in soccer, baseball, American Football, and basketball; and competed collegiately in track and field, soccer, baseball, lacrosse, and did ballroom dancing. King Gustav V of Sweden, while awarding Thorpe the decathlon gold said: "You, sir, are the greatest athlete in the world." That title has become associated with the decathlon event ever since.

See also

• Outdoor enthusiast
• Jock (athlete)
• Athlete of the Year
• Suresh Joachim Multiple Guinness World Record holder