Posted By:
scott brockelmanPrabably the greatest athlete of all time based on athletic achievements would be Jim Thorpe. he was deemed the athlete of the 1st half century of the 1900's.
BUT, if you were to name the greatest "athlete of the people", a person who transcended sports and garnered more headlines and drew more attention AND is still "THE MOST RECOGNIZED PERSON ON THE PLANET ACCORDING TO MANY STUDIES" there is no greater athlete than MUHAMMAD ALI!
he is the only awe inspiring athlete left alive, while at a tristar show years ago, i had the fortune to be near him when he first came out, everyone stopped what they were doing and gave him a standing ovation. 1st ones to their feet were Joe Namath and Henry Aaron, both signing autographs. when was the last time you saw any modern day athlete at a signing acknowledge anything? the fact that most athletes from all sports respect this man so much, points to his greatness as an athlete and an ambassador of sports. a great athlete is one respected by his peers.
scott