Editing Athlete (section)

== Titles ==
{{See also|Athlete of the Year}}

==="All-round athlete"===
An "'''all-round athlete'''" is a person who competes in multiple sports at a professional level. Examples of people who played more than one sport professionally include [[Jim Thorpe]], [[Lionel Conacher]],<ref>{{cite news|last=Burnett|first=Red|author-link=Red Burnett|title=Testimonial for Bob Abate|work=[[Toronto Star|Toronto Daily Star]]|page=17|date=April 26, 1963|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-toronto-star-bob-abate/145648327/|access-date=April 19, 2024|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=OzllAAAAIBAJ&pg=2002%2C5752698 |title=Lionel Conacher easily wins half century athlete award |work=Vancouver Sun |date=1950-12-30 |access-date=2011-01-24}}</ref> [[Deion Sanders]], [[Danny Ainge]], [[Babe Zaharias]] and [[Erin Phillips]]. Others include [[Ricky Williams]], [[Bo Jackson]] and [[Damon Allen]], each of whom was drafted both by [[Major League Baseball]] and by professional [[gridiron football]] leagues such as the [[National Football League|NFL]] and the [[Canadian Football League|CFL]]. Another female example is [[Heather Moyse]], a multiple Winter Olympic gold medalist in [[Bobsleigh|bobsled]] and member of the [[World Rugby Hall of Fame]] who also represented Canada internationally in [[track cycling]] and competed at [[U Sports|university level]] in basketball and track and field. Japanese athletes such as [[Kazushi Sakuraba]], [[Kazuyuki Fujita]], [[Masakatsu Funaki]] and [[Naoya Ogawa]] have successfully performed in [[professional wrestling]] and competed in [[mixed martial arts]]. All these athletes are equally great at what they do. Whether it's on the basketball court, the [[baseball field]], the [[tennis court]] or whatever sport, each of these athletes left an impact in sports

==="World's Greatest Athlete"===
The title of "'''World's Greatest Athlete'''" traditionally belongs to the world's top competitor in the [[decathlon]] (males) and [[heptathlon]] (females) in [[track and field]]. The [[decathlon]] consists of 10 events: [[100 meters]], [[long jump]], [[shot put]], [[high jump]], [[400 meters]], [[110 m hurdles]], [[discus]], [[pole vault]], [[Javelin throw|javelin]], and [[1500 m]]. The [[heptathlon]] consists of seven events: the [[100 m hurdles]], [[high jump]], [[shot put]], [[200 meters]], [[long jump]], [[Javelin throw|javelin]], and [[800 meters]]. These competitions require an athlete to possess the whole spectrum of athletic ability in order to be successful, including speed, strength, coordination, jumping ability, and endurance.

Although the title "World's Greatest '''Athlete''' seems a natural fit for these two events, its traditional association with the decathlon/heptathlon officially began with [[Jim Thorpe]]. During the 1912 [[Olympic Games|Olympics]] in Stockholm, Sweden, Thorpe won the gold medal in the [[Decathlon]] (among others). Thorpe competed professionally in [[baseball]], [[American football]], and [[basketball]]; and competed collegiately in [[track and field]], [[baseball]], [[lacrosse]], and did [[ballroom dancing]]. King [[Gustav V of Sweden]], while awarding Thorpe the decathlon gold, said: "Sir, you are the greatest athlete in the world."<ref>{{cite web |last1=Flatter |first1=Ron |title=Thorpe preceded Deion, Bo |url=https://www.espn.com/sportscentury/features/00016499.html |website=espn.com |access-date=11 December 2020}}</ref> This title has been associated with the decathlon event ever since.
[[File:LeBron James, 25 November 2023 02 (cropped 2).jpg|thumb|LeBron, one of the best athletes of the modern day.]]