Throughout history, we have seen how athletes and adventure lovers have dedicated their lives to challenging nature and pushing their physical abilities to the limit, and many of them have marked historical milestones that have left us completely impressed with their talent and skills.
We've rounded up some of the most significant and memorable sports legends in the world. Keep reading to find out more about their great stories!
10 SPORTS LEGENDS WHO MADE HISTORY
TONY HAWK
Tony Hawk is without a doubt one of the greatest legends of skateboarding. He has been the only skateboarder in history to get sponsored at the young age of 12, to turn professional at 14 and to become the best skateboarder in the world at 16. Originally from San Diego, California, Hawk led a career of more than 17 years, in which he won more than 70 skateboarding contests, and obtained gold medals in the X Games in 1995 and 1997. In addition, he was crowned world champion of the skateboarding in vertical mode by 12 consecutive years.
Tony Hawk always bet on skateboarding. He never got involved in other extreme sports throughout his career, not even during the decline that skateboarding had in the 90's that did put many practitioners of the sport in doubt. At that time, Hawk decided to venture out with his family and open a clothing and board store focused on skateboarding (Birdhouse Stakeboard), and also launched his iconic line of skateboarding video games. Less than a year later, this extreme sport would skyrocket to the top!
Today Tony Hawk is considered the best skateboarder in the world for redefining the green with his arduous skills and career, and for being the first skater to achieve a 900-degree turn on the halfpipe. Quite a milestone!
He also created the Tony Hawk Foundation, which has dedicated itself to contributing to hundreds of skate park projects in the US, especially in less privileged and low-income areas.
KELLY SLATER
Every surfer, professional or amateur, knows who the famous American surfer Kelly Slater is. A true surfing legend!
Originally from Cocoa Beach, Slater is considered one of the best and most agile surfers in the extreme sport, if not the best in history, and one of the greatest exponents and contributors to the popularization of surfing around the world.
At just 20 years of age, he triumphed at the ASP World Championships, breaking the record for becoming the youngest winner in its history (which stands to this day) and also the record for the oldest, having competed even at 39 years of age.
He was world champion 11 times, 5 of which were consecutive between 1994 and 1998. Slater shone in multiple competitions such as the X-Games, the Billabing Pro Mundaka, the Boost Mobile Pro, and managed to become a living legend of surfing.
ALEX HONNOLD
Big wall climbing is a challenge, but doing it without any equipment or assistance is a real achievement! And Alex Honnold has excelled in his career as an extreme athlete precisely because of this.
Born in Sacramento, California, Alex Honnold is a professional Big Wall Climbing expert in free solo style, without any protection or safety.During his career, Honnold has already broken several speed and climbing records, but the most impressive has been achieving the first solo ascent of the route.
His great feat was documented in the acclaimed adventure documentary Free Solo, which won an Academy Award in 2019 in the category of Best Documentary Film. But this is not the only feat of the brave climber, he also stands out for breaking the world speed record on The Nose on El Capitan in a time of 01h 58m 07s.
He also managed a triple solo ascent of Mt Wakins, The Nose and the Northwest Face of Half Dome (all in Yosemite) in a time of 18h 50m.
Additionally, Alex Honnold stands out for being the first free solo in:
- On the Moonlight Buttress wall in April 2008.
- On the northwest face of Half Dome, in September 2008.
- At Half Dome in 1 hour, 22 minutes in May 2012.
- On the grade V big wall route El Sendero Luminoso (5.12d) in El Potrero Chico, Mexico in a time of 3 hours…
And so many more feats! Alex Honnold is definitely a true exponent in the world of big wall solo climbing and a true legend of extreme sports.
Michael Jordan
Surely everyone has heard of the NBA star basketball player who led the Chicago Bulls to victory for 13 seasons. That's right, Michael Jordan, in his shooting guard position, is currently recognized as one of the best former basketball players in history.
Standing nearly 2 meters tall and originally from Brooklyn, New York, Michael won 6 NBA rings with the Chicago Bulls, averaging the highest point in the league, 30.1 points per game. Later in his career he went on to play for the Washington Wizards.
Michael Jordan has distinguished himself throughout his career with his style, professionalism, determination and drive to win through teamwork. He has received numerous awards and accolades throughout his successful career in sports, including 10 titles as the Leading Scorer, and has been featured in Sports Illustrated magazine some 50 times.
He was also named Best Athlete of the 20th Century by ESPN. He finally retired from basketball in 2003. He currently owns the NBA team, Charlotte Hornets!
ROGER FEDERER
Swiss tennis player Roger Federer certainly doesn't need a letter of introduction. Born in Basel, Switzerland, Federer is considered the greatest tennis player of all time.
Federer has won 20 Grand Slam titles (the most in history) out of 31 in which he has participated, which is also a record number. In addition, he spent 310 weeks at #1 in the ATP rankings, of which 237 were consecutive. Another record! His professional career began in 1998 and he remained almost uninterruptedly within the ranking of the top 10 tennis players in the world.
Roger has a versatile and agile style on multiple surfaces, with a wide variety of strokes and extraordinary quickness in his footwork. However, he seems to stand out even more for having a humble and serene attitude when playing, with almost elegant strokes.
He is one of only eight players to have won all four Grand Slam titles and has won a record six ATP World Tour Finals, 28 Masters 1000 titles, a record 24 ATP World Tour 500 titles and 25 ATP World Tour 250 titles. He has also won eight Wimbledon titles, six Australian Open titles, five US Open titles and one Roland Garros title.
Roger has been named ATP Player of the Year 5 times, ITF World Champion 5 times, and has also been awarded the Laureus Sportsman of the Year Award 5 times. He has also been awarded the Sportsmanship Award three times. Roger Federer has undoubtedly become a tennis legend!
Miguel Indurain Larraya
Miguel Indurain Larraya... A true cycling genius! The former Spanish cyclist was crowned winner of the Tour de France from 1991 to 1995 consecutively, and twice winner of the Giro d'Italia in 1992 and 1993. But Miguel Indurain He didn't stop there! He set the hour record in '94 (by two weeks), became world time trial champion a year later, and then emerged as Olympic time trial champion in '96.
From then on his career continued with great success, standing out and winning multiple one-week stage races and one-day classics, but he stood out especially in the time trial stages that gave him his victories. He won several races such as the Volta a Catalunya in 1988, 1991 and 1992; Paris-Nice in 1989 and 1990; the San Sebastián Classic in 1990; the Spanish Road Championship in 1992; and the Dauphiné Libéré in 1995 and 1996.
He is considered one of the best cyclists in history along with Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Fausto Coppi and Bernard Hinault; and the eighth best in the Tour de France according to a panel of the Tour itself. He was awarded the Prince of Asturias Award for Sports, among other awards in recognition of his sporting career.
He is also one of the most outstanding climbers in the world of cycling. A true born athlete and a cycling legend!
Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher has been the most awarded and admired driver in the history of Formula 1. Undoubtedly, a crack of the discipline and an inspiring exponent of speed motor racing. After his retirement in 2006, the former German driver competed in speed motorcycles, but returned to F1 in 2010. Finally, he retired from professional motor racing in 2012.
Schumacher triumphed as a winner in seven Formula 1 world championships, of which two were with the Benetton team in 1994 and 1995, and five with the Ferrari team between 2000 and 2004. He amassed 91 victories and 155 podiums in his career, and has been recognised as one of the greatest Formula 1 drivers. A crack of motor racing!
MARC MARQUEZ
Spaniard Marc Márquez is one of the most followed motorcyclists today for his talent and winning ability. He has been crowned the youngest world champion in the history of Spanish motorcycling, after winning a championship in the top category of this sport (MotoGP), a title he achieved in 2013 at just 20 years of age. In addition, he is the youngest rider in history to be bi, tri, tetra, penta and six-time champion of the top category of motorcycling.
This young legend of motorcycling has won 8 World Championship titles in three different categories including 125cc in 2010; Moto2 in 2012; and six times in MotoGP in 2013 and 2014, and consecutively from 2016 to 2019.
Marc Márquez is currently riding for Repsol Honda, a team for which he has accumulated 50 victories and 78 podiums in 105 races, and with which he has planned to participate at least until 2024.
And it seems that talent runs in the family! Marc and his younger brother Alex, also a MotoGP rider, are the only brothers to have won a World Motorcycle Championship. They are also the brothers who have most often been on the podium of a Grand Prix in this discipline.
Michael Phelps
Michael Phelps has undoubtedly had an admirable sporting career as the greatest swimmer of all time. In fact, he has been the most decorated Olympian in history, winner of 28 Olympic medals.
Overall, he holds the records for most Olympic gold medals (23), most gold medals in individual events (13) and most Olympic medals in men's events (15).
For his arduous career, Michael Phelps has been awarded Swimmer of the Year six times and American Swimmer of the Year eight times. His Olympic performance in 2008 earned him the Sportsman of the Year award from the University of California, San Diego. Sports Illustrated.
Michael officially retired as a professional swimmer at the end of the 2016 Rio Olympics, where he had won five gold medals and one silver medal. Phelps founded the Michael Phelps Foundation, which focuses on the development of swimming and promoting healthy lifestyles, in 2008 and maintains it today.
TERJE HAKONSEN
Snowboarders - beginners and professionals alike - have surely followed the trail of Norwegian Terje Håkonsen throughout his career! One of the greatest exponents of snowboarding of our era and of all time. Categorized as a true snowboard icon since its beginnings as an extreme sport, and known for being the creator of the trick The Haakon Fli.
He won five European championships in the modality half-pipe (in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1997) and the US Open in halF-pipe He was a three-time FIS Halfpipe World Championships winner (1993, 1995, 1997) and a three-time FIS Freestyle World Championships winner (1993, 1995, 1997). He also won the Innsbruck Air & Style Contest in 1995, and the Mt. Baker Banked Slalom 6 times (1995, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2004).
Terje Håkonsen also made a name for himself in his career by setting the world record for the highest air during the qualifying round of the Arctic Challenge in Oslo in 2007, when he reached a height above the quarterpipe of 9.8 metres with a backside 360.
Terje Hakonsen certainly knew how to reach another level with his soaring Airs, his new tricks in the 90's and his unmistakable style that make him a legend of this extreme sport!
He also designed and co-created some of the board models for his sponsor Burton Snowboards, such as the Burton Fish and the Burton Malolo. He also starred in multiple snowboard movies in which he participated with other top snowboarders such as Travis Rice, Nicolas M
Multifaceted and talented, his influence definitely made a big difference in snowboarding history.And how could it not be, if his mentor was none other than Craig Kelly!
We are so lucky to have so much sporting talent, which inspires all of us adventurers to achieve our own sporting feats. Who are some of your favorite athletes?
