Who's The Greatest Ever?

Posted December 17, 2007, 6:29 pm in Other by Growing Bolder


If you're looking for inspiration to get off the couch -- look no further. GrowingBolder.com has the world's greatest collection of interviews with amazing Masters Athletes. People like 92-year-old barefoot water skiing icon Banana George; 4-time Olympic Champion Al Oerter; Mike Flynt, the 59-year-old college football player; the legendary Ed Whitlock, who at 74 became the oldest person ever to break 3 hours for the marathon; Donna Vano, the godmother of extreme sports; Ned Overend, the Michael Jordan of mountain biking; track and field superstar Bud Held; age-defying swimmer Richard Abrahams and dozens of others.

Listen to their interviews and hear why it's never too late to get in shape. But who is the best over 40 athlete of all time. Send us your thoughts. Share your "brushes with fame." What great athletes did you see perform?

Here are a few of the more notable performances:

Willie Shoemaker, the most famous and decorated jockey of all time, won 11 Triple Crown races, including the Kentucky Derby at age 54. Shoemaker became the oldest jockey to win the Derby aboard 18-1 shot Ferdinand in 1986.

Nolan Ryan, the all-time Major League Baseball strikeout king recorded his 5,000th strikeout in 1989 at age 42. Ryan won the ERA title at age 40, led the league in strikeouts at age 41, threw his sixth career no-hitter at age 44 and remained a dominant pitcher until age 46.

Satchel Paige was a Major League All-Star at ages 45 and 46 and pitched in the majors well into his 50s. He's considered by many to be the greatest pitcher the game has seen.

Jack Nicklaus won 18 major golf championships during his career. In 1986, at age 46, Nicklaus won his sixth Masters to become the oldest champion to date.

Martina Navratilova 
is perhaps the greatest female tennis in history, collecting a staggering 59 Grand Slam titles, including 9 consecutive Wimbledon singles titles. At age 46, she won two major mixed-doubles titles (the Australian Open and Wimbledon). She won the U.S. Open mixed doubles title a month before her 50th birthday.

Gordie Howe was a six-time NHL MVP, between 1946 and 1980. The most points (103) that he ever scored in any season during his 26-year NHL career came at age 41, and he held nearly all scoring records in the league until Wayne Gretzky arrived.

George Foreman was the 1968 Olympic boxing champion, and in 1973 he defeated Joe Frazier for the heavyweight title. After a 10-year break to build his ministry, he returned to boxing in 1987 and won the heavyweight title in 1994 at age 46 -- successfully defending his title three times.

George Blanda starred in the NFL for 26 years from 1949-1975. His best season ever was at the age of 43 when he led the Raiders to 5 straight wins with last-second heroics. He played his final NFL game at the age of 48, the oldest player in NFL history by three years.



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