Ultimate Athlete | Search For The Ultimate Athlete

Jackie Robinson: An Ultimate Athlete Who Changed Sports History

In today’s sports, an athletes greatness is judge based on their performance. It is not many athletes who stand for something other than their sport.

When I think of athletes who have influenced history and influenced my participation in sports as an African American Athlete, I think of Jackie Robinson.

Some will argue with me and say Jesse Owens stance in the 1936 Olympics against Hitler but in the heat of racial violence and protest during the civil rights movement in America, Jackie Robinson set out to prove that a black man could play in major league baseball.

Jackie didn’t just want to play in the negro leagues. Jackie got his wish with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Without his courage and love of baseball where would we all be?

Jackie Robinson broke a boundary that is greater than any record set by the record breaking African American athletes of the modern age: Michael Jordan; Wilt Chamberlin; Willie Mayes; Hank Aaron; Kobe Bryant; Jesse Owens; Jackie Joyner Kersey and Wilma Roudolph broke.

All these athletes have had to overcome many trials and tribulations to become great but no other athlete has had as much pressure not to succeed as Jackie Robinson did. The racial boundary Jackie broke is what makes Jackie Robinson an Ultimate Athlete.

The boundary of having someone not let you compete because of the color of your skin is greater than any record that will ever and will continue to be broken in sports.

No Comments

Edniesha Curry, September 17th 2009 | Tags: civil rights, color barrier, Jackie Robinson, ultimate athlete
Posted in Who Is The Ultimate Athlete

Will It Be A Woman

In so many sports gender becomes a very heated topic. You always run across the questions can women jump, run, swim, shoot, dribble, etc….like men.

It doesn’t matter what sport, the issue is there. There will always be gender comparison. This video shows some of the NBA and WNBA players doing the same moves. The video is not about gender. It is just about pure skills and skills only. Just the pure beauty of a great basketball move.

As we search for the Ultimate Athlete will it be the one who jumps higher, runs faster or will it be about the strength of a man versus woman. As we take you on a journey to search for the Ultimate Athlete will we find out that a woman might just be the Ultimate Athlete?

Will our 2010 Ultimate Athlete be a woman?

No Comments

Edniesha Curry, September 17th 2009 | Tags: nba, ultimate athlete, ultimate athlete woman, WNBA
Posted in Who Is The Ultimate Athlete

SFUA Updates for 2009-09-16

I favorited a YouTube video — Franz Klammer – 1976 Olympic Gold Medal Run http://bit.ly/BsKc4 #
@scottbird – we saw your site. would you like to contribute to our blog? http://bit.ly/mdk5e do you accept guest blog posts for your site? #
I favorited a YouTube video — JM Vincent (re)public http://bit.ly/yluhc #
I favorited a YouTube video — The Ultimate Athlete http://bit.ly/1wxWft #
I favorited a YouTube video — Extreme sport tricks http://bit.ly/14mukl #
I favorited a YouTube video — Inspirational movie on Ironman triathlete Jason Lester http://bit.ly/2Nt4hg #
He's 71 and climbing. Great shot: http://bit.ly/hlsLV #

No Comments

Alex Williams, September 16th 2009 | Tags: search for the ultimate athlete, twitter, ultimate athlete
Posted in Who Is The Ultimate Athlete

Michael Jordan: The World’s Ultimate Basketball Icon

Yeah some say, well he played in a different era, could he do the things that Kobe and Lebron are doing, day in and day out. Well, to those who have their debates there would be no Kobe or Lebron if there was no MJ.

Michael Jordan revolutionized the game of basketball. He brought a level of creative athleticism that no one had ever seen before. He opened doors both on and off the court.

Jordan not only became a sports icon in America he still remains a global icon around the world. There has not been no other athlete, male or female who has influenced so many athletes from so many sports. Michael Jordan has had an influence that transcends basketball.

Really, who is greater than Michael Jordan?

2 Comments

Edniesha Curry, September 11th 2009 | Tags: michael jordan, Sports icon, ultimate athlete
Posted in Great Athletes, Who Is The Ultimate Athlete

Let’s Make the Myths

At long last, SFUA is upon us. Thanks to the vision of Yves Garceau and others, sport has taken a giant step forward, and a new type of athlete will emerge.

There is “Ultimate”, and there is “Great.” We have seen the greatest; those who excel in long established disciplines in which competition is fierce and tradition is rich. Jordan, Gretzky, Nash, Naish, Armstrong, Gabreselassie, Federer, Bolt, Woods; these incomparable athletes competed against fellow phenoms and took it to another level, capturing the world’s attention in doing so. “Ultimate” is, by definition, “incapable of further separation.” Ultimate fighters can no longer be separated by styles, and must draw on a number of disciplines to defeat their opponent. But are they “greater” than Ali?

The Ultimate Athlete, by definition, is the victor of a multi-sport athletic event to be held in Oregon next summer, nothing more, nothing less. Whether greatness emerges, time will tell.

That being said, The Ultimate Athlete will need to be a specimen in his/her own right. This event requires a rare combination of speed, stamina, endurance, power, skill, courage, and, let’s face it, an upbringing that exposed the competitor to a myriad of athletic opportunities. However, there are important athletic traits that this competition ostensibly won’t be able to measure either, such as play making ability and court/field vision, which, to me, are the hallmarks of an exceptional competitor.

Those who truly “get” this concept, REJOICE! One who does get it can be seen at:

Let the games, races, rounds, passes, attempts begin!

No Comments

MichaelBeckner, September 7th 2009 | Tags: athletic competition, search for the ultimate athlete, ultimate athlete
Posted in Who Is The Ultimate Athlete

The 50 Greatest Oregon Sports Figures – Who Was The Best?

Since the big ultimate athlete showdown will be here in the state of Oregon, I though maybe we should recognize the state’s top 50 athletes of the 20th century.

Steve Prefontaine – Was he Oregon’s greatest athlete?

No Comments

Edniesha Curry, September 5th 2009 | Tags: greatest oregon athletes, Oregon, Steve Prefontaine, ultimate athlete
Posted in Who Is The Ultimate Athlete

Greatest Multi-Sport Athletes

Before he injured his hip, Bo Jackson was widely viewed as one of the greatest athletes of his time.

But what athlete of the 20th century really was the best? Were they the ones who played more than one professional sport?

This is a cool look at some sports figures who had the choice to excel at the highest level in more than just one professional sport.

http://www.hofmag.com/content/view/1256/60/1/1/

Remember Deion Sanders?

Deion Sanders: “Neon Deion” is the only man in history to play in the World Series (Atlanta 1992) and the Super Bowl (49ers and Cowboys). Considered possibly the greatest cornerback in NFL history, Deion was as electric returning kicks as he was patrolling the defensive backfield. The 1994 NFL Defensive Player of the Year and a nine time All-Pro, Sanders finished his career with 53 interceptions. His 19 touchdowns on returns and interceptions are an NFL record. Remarkably, for more than a decade, Sanders was also playing Major League Baseball. He broke in with the Yankees in 1989, playing in 641 big league games before retiring as a member of the Cincinnati Reds in 2001. He led the National League in triples with 14 in 1992. One year later, he hit .304. His 57 stolen bases were second most in the National League during the 1997 season.

3 Comments

Edniesha Curry, September 5th 2009 | Tags: professional sports, ultimate athlete
Posted in Who Is The Ultimate Athlete

The Ultimate Athlete Will Be A Social One

Communication is constant when we are going about or day. Why shoud it be any different than when competing?

Steve Raquel points out that one of the hardest parts of a marathon is the loneliness. Sometimes, the streets are empty. To keep racing, you need encouragement. Why not get it from the web, from people who are following the race from all parts of the world?

Is there any doubt that athletes will increasingly be connected while competing? It feels like e are just on the verge of a new form of competition where the information that followers provide an athlete will be as important as all the other aspects of the competition itself.

Here are Steve’s five ways that social media could help runners in the Chicago Marathon:

Create a marathon Hashtag. Create the #BOACM (Bank of America Chicago Marathon) hashtag and allow attenders and followers a way to Twitterate (Twitter-celebrate) the Chicago Marathon throughout the event. People with mobile phones can send tweet and twitpic updates from all over the city instantaneously for everyone to see. Allow for tweets/twitpics to be posted on digital screens placed all around the city so runners can see what people are saying. For those who aren’t there, use www.twubs.com to keep up with the latest action as it happens.
Chicago Marathon iPhone Application. Develop an iPhone app that ties in a runners’ GPS coordinates from their timing chip so that people can know where they are at all times. In addition, afterward runners can get almost instant feedback on their pace and overall time they’ve run so far. In addition, this app acts as a locator for where friends and family can position themselves to cheer without the fuss of wondering if they passed already!
Skype Encouragement Call Centers. In tandem with the iPhone app & GPS locator, allow areas in the back half of the marathon where amateurs (like me) start to get weary and would love to get encouragement from people far away. Allow special walk/rest stations where a runner can get a 30-second to one-minute call from a loved one far away who can encourage them.
Facebook FanPage/Broadcast Page. Just like the NBA and PGA have used Facebook to broadcast live event video and real-time chatting, allow fans to use Facebook to get involved in the Chicago Marathon via Facebook. The page could show real-time competitor results, allow people to look up where their friend is and/or tag all the friends who are competing. Facebook could have different pages for different mile markers so people can see multiple parts of the marathon at the same time. People could also post messages of support that would be posted on digital boards at various mile markers. Related, numbers of runners coming into view could be posted online so that people can send real-time encouragement to them as the runner goes by.
YouTube Encouragement Video Areas. Fans and friends of runners can record short videos of encouragement before the event that runners can play at different part of the race. Ideally, a runner could enter a rest/walk section and trigger the start of the videos playing or they could be playing in a loop. This would be great in those long stretches where spectator support is lower.

No Comments

Admin, September 4th 2009 | Tags: chicago marathon, social media, ultimate athlete
Posted in Who Is The Ultimate Athlete

The Philippines Make Extreme Sports A Tourist Attraction

The Philippines newest bridge is now a tourist destination. The attraction? Extreme sports.

Interesting that the Philippine government sees bungee jumping, rappelling and downhill skateboarding as major economic activities.

But they are right on, aren’t they? Extreme sports are helping define a new brand of athlete and a new sports culture that crosses all aspects of society. It’s not just athletes who are interested in thjs new generation of sports. A network of micro-communities are starting to bubble, building a movement that sees extreme sports as representative of a modern world where athletic feats reach new dimensions.

Extreme sports captivate people like all new sports do when they spark the imagination of the people. And when that happens you can bet that they become economic forces that will be leveraged by nations like the Philippines and other countries around the world.

No Comments

Alex Williams, September 3rd 2009 | Tags: bungee jumping, downhill skateboarding, Extreme Sports, ultimate athlete
Posted in Extreme Sports, Who Is The Ultimate Athlete

Recipe for an Ultimate Athlete

The “Search for the Ultimate Athlete” has taken me into the world of the multi-sport athlete, the Triathlete. Not many bloggers out there in that realm since they spend ALL their time training for the next monumental feat of madness…err, fitness, that put the rest of us to shame. There is one who towers above all where only the most elite of these can hope to tie the shoes of the man at the pinnacle of their sport.

Dick Hoyt.

He has posted times shy of world record pace by only twenty five minutes, all while running swimming and biking with his son. I know most of you have seen this before and I have as well. There are some we run alongside in life that remind us of what the definition and practice of love is.

The Ultimate Athlete. The Ultimate Parent.

A true “iron man” is not made up of what metal is on the outside, but what mettle is on the inside. The first ingredients of what makes the “Ultimate Athlete.”