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THE REVISED RANKING

THE SPORTS 100 was published in late 1995 B.T. (Before Tiger). In the book’s introduction, I wrote, “A revised edition 15 years from now might include a handful of new names. Perhaps African-American golf prodigy Tiger Woods will prove to have an enormous impact.” I should have said, “Cablinasian golf prodigy,” but I was certainly prescient. On the other hand, the rest of the sentence is: “or Hispanic basketball star Felipe Lopez might merit inclusion.” Which just goes to show, you just never know.

Much can change in a decade – both in the realm of sports and in the perspective of the author. With that in mind, were I to re-think the rankings, I would do some rearranging. NASCAR continues to thrive, for instance, so I think Bill France, Sr. and Richard Petty could be ranked higher. Likewise, the remarkable Latino presence in baseball (just take a peek at the league leaders) reaffirms Roberto Clemente’s giant footprints, and the tennis dominance of the Williams sisters solidifies Althea Gibson’s legacy.

I would also add a deserving trio, starting with Tiger, who should be way up there due to his nearly unparalleled athletic feats, his multi-ethnic background, his pitchman prowess and the fact that he has helped the PGA grow exponentially in the past few years. I think Mia Hamm deserves a spot, too, for essentially being the first female breakout team sport athlete. Women’s soccer is on the rise; youth soccer is huge among boys and girls – and Mia is the face of the phenomenon. Finally, given the emergence of Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant, Lebron James and the dozens of other NBA stars who have joined the NBA out of high school or after only a year or two of college, I think former hoops star Spencer Haywood deserves a spot as the pioneer who made it possible, for better or worse.

So who to delete? How about A.J. Foyt, Peter Ueberroth and Eleanora Sears.

Here’s my updated list:

  1. Jackie Robinson
  2. Muhammad Ali
  3. Babe Ruth
  4. James Naismith
  5. Albert G. Spalding
  6. Walter Camp
  7. Joe Louis
  8. Branch Rickey
  9. Billie Jean King
  10. Marvin Miller
  11. Roone Arledge
  12. Mark McCormack
  13. George Halas
  14. Michael Jordan
  15. John L. Sullivan
  16. Jack Johnson
  17. Pete Rozelle
  18. Bill France, Sr.
  19. Harry Wright
  20. William Hulbert
  21. Tiger Woods
  22. Amos Alonzo Stagg
  23. Red Grange
  24. Arnold Palmer
  25. Jim Thorpe
  26. Babe Didrikson Zaharias
  27. Knute Rockne
  28. Henry Chadwick
  29. Bobby Jones
  30. Jesse Owens
  31. Lester Patrick
  32. Magic Johnson
  33. Larry Bird
  34. Avery Brundage
  35. Walter Byers
  36. Arthur Ashe
  37. Wayne Gretzky
  38. Tex Rickard
  39. Lamar Hunt
  40. David Stern
  41. Kenesaw Mountain Landis
  42. Bill Russell
  43. Joe Namath
  44. Curt Flood
  45. Jack Kramer
  46. Ban Johnson
  47. Jim Creighton
  48. George Mikan
  49. Althea Gibson
  50. Satchel Paige
  1. Paul Brown
  2. Jim Brown
  3. Jack Nicklaus
  4. Wilma Rudolph
  5. Ned Irish
  6. Hank Luisetti
  7. Andre Laguerre
  8. Bill Rasmussen
  9. Martina Navratilova
  10. Roberto Clemente
  11. Bill Tilden
  12. Jack Dempsey
  13. Roy Hofheinz
  14. Abe Saperstein
  15. Howie Morenz
  16. Grantland Rice
  17. Phil Knight
  18. Bert Bell
  19. Walter O’Malley
  20. Vince Lombardi
  21. Bill Veeck
  22. Pelè
  23. Francis Ouimet
  24. Alexander Cartwright
  25. Gary Davidson
  26. Julius Erving
  27. Bobby Hull
  28. Theodore Roosevelt
  29. Richard Petty
  30. Pop Warner
  31. Walter Hagen
  32. Bobby Orr
  33. Don Hutson
  34. Red Auerbach
  35. Danny Biasone
  36. Howard Cosell
  37. Matt Winn
  38. Charlie Finley
  39. Mia Hamm
  40. Tony Hulman
  41. Charles McNeil
  42. John Wooden
  43. Sonja Henie
  44. Harry Edwards
  45. Cap Anson
  46. William Randolph Hearst
  47. Spencer Haywood
  48. Gilbert Patten
  49. Jacques Plante
  50. Jim Bouton

“Brad Herzog may not be one of the 100 most important people in sports, but with this book he’s off to a great start.”
– Dick Schaap

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