Acknowledging that any attempt to rank the 100 best athletes in the world since 2000 is difficult, the sports network ESPN forged ahead to compile a list of the top 100 athletes of the 21st century. Included among them are Jamaican track and field icons, Usain Bolt and Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce.
Usain Bolt, eight-time Olympic champion
Usain St. Leo Bolt was born in Sherwood Content, Jamaica in 1986 and is considered the top male sprint athlete of all time. He has won eight Olympic gold medals and is the record holder of the men’s 100 meters, 200 meters, and 4×100-meter relay. ESPN ranked Jamaica’s Usain Bolt, known as “Lightning Bolt and one of the most recognized athletes in the world, at Number 9 on its list. Bolt is the only sprinter to win gold in the 100-meter and 200-meter races at three consecutive stagings of the Olympic Games. ESPN highlighted an iconic photo taken of Bolt at his fourth and final appearance at the Olympics in Rio in 2016 in which the athlete is depicted looking back at his rivals in the semifinal of the 100-meter competition as he surgest to a win.
Bolt established his first world record in the 100 meters when he was just 21 with a time of 9.58 seconds. His record still stands. He has won 11 World Championships, including consecutive titles in the 100-meter, 200-meter, and 4×100-meter relay from 2009 to 2015, excepting a 100-meter false start in 2011. He is the first runner to take four World Championship titles in the 200 meters and is the first male athlete to run the 100-meter distance under 9.7 and 9.6 seconds. He has been named IAAF World Athlete of the Year, and Track & Field Athlete of the Year. He received the BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year three times and the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year four times. In 2016, Time magazine listed him as one of the 100 Most Influential People of the year. He retired following the World Championships in 2017.
Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce, eight-time Olympic medalist
Shelly-Ann Fraser was born in 1986 in the Waterhouse community of Kingston. A track and field sprint athlete, Fraser Pryce is considered one of the top sprinters in history, with a career spanning over 15 years. ESPN ranked her at Number 77. She has consistently won titles in all major track and field competitions and her signature 100-meter event, including eight at the Olympics. In 2008, she became the first woman from the Caribbean to win a gold medal in the 100 meters, and at the 2012 Olympics, she became the third woman to defend an Olympic title.
At the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, she won a silver medal in the event and became the most decorated sprinter at the Games. She has also made history as one of the top athletes at the World Athletics tournament, taking home ten gold medals, five silver, and one bronze. She became the first mother in 24 years to win a 100-meter title in 24 years at the 2019 Champions, and in 2022 at age 35, she became the oldest sprinter in history to become a world champion. She was named the IAAF World Athlete of the Year in 2013. Fraser Pryce has won the most individual international sprint titles in history and is the third fastest woman in history with her personal 100-meter best time of 10.60 seconds. Adding the prestigious Laureus World Sports Sportswoman of the Year Award to her achievements in 2023, she has often been described as the best female sprinter of all time.
ESPN’s ranking methodology
For the latest rankings, ESPN expanded the field of athletes to include those outside of North America. ESPN editions worldwide made nominations and contributed to the voting process, with voters considering only athletes’ performances since the year 2000. For the final top 100 list, ESPN relied on over 70,000 votes from its contributors.
Photo – Deposit Photos
