S.I. Sportsman of the Year
December 2, 2008
To the surprise of virtually no one, swimmer Michael Phelps has been named Sports Illustrated’s Sportsman of the Year for 2008.
Phelps was the star of the Beijing Olympics, winning a record eight gold medals. His 14 career gold medals are the most won by an Olympian.
Phelps is the first swimmer ever to receive the prestigious Sportsman of the Year designation.
Sports Illustrated named its first Sportsman of the Year in 1954, bestowing the honor on Roger Bannister the same year the distance runner become the first man to run a mile in less than four minutes.
Here’s the all-time list:
| Year | Athlete | Sport | Feat |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | Roger Bannister | Track | First mile under four minutes |
| 1955 | Johnny Podres | Baseball | World Series MVP |
| 1956 | Bobby Joe Morrow | Track | Two Olympic gold medals |
| 1957 | Stan Musial | Baseball | NL Batting Champion |
| 1958 | Rafer Johnson | Track and Field | World decathlon record |
| 1959 | Ingemar Johansson | Boxing | World heavyweight champion |
| 1960 | Arnold Palmer | Golf | PGA Player of the Year |
| 1961 | Jerry Lucas | Basketball | MVP, Final Four |
| 1962 | Terry Baker | College Football | Heisman Trophy |
| 1963 | Pete Rozelle | Pro Football | NFL Commissioner |
| 1964 | Ken Venturi | Golf | U.S. Open champion |
| 1965 | Sandy Koufax | Baseball | Cy Young Award winner |
| 1966 | Jim Ryun | Track | World Record, Mile |
| 1967 | Carl Yastrzemski | Baseball | Triple Crown |
| 1968 | Bill Russell | Basketball | NBA champion player/coach |
| 1969 | Tom Seaver | Baseball | Cy Young Award, World Series winner |
| 1970 | Bobby Orr | Hockey | NHL MVP, Art Ross, Conn Smythe, Norris Award winners |
| 1971 | Lee Trevino | Golf | PGA Player of the Year |
| 1972 | Billie Jean King/John Wooden | Tennis/Basketball | Won three majors/NCAA champion coach |
| 1973 | Jackie Stewart | Auto Racing | Formula One champion |
| 1974 | Muhammad Ali | Boxing | Heavyweight champion |
| 1975 | Pete Rose | Baseball | World Series MVP |
| 1976 | Chris Evert | Tennis | Two major titles |
| 1977 | Steve Cauthen | Horse Racing | Outstanding Jockey |
| 1978 | Jack Nicklaus | Golf | British Open champion |
| 1979 | Terry Bradshaw/Willie Stargell | Football/Baseball | Super Bowl MVP/World Series MVP |
| 1980 | U.S. Olympic Hockey Team | Hockey | Olympic Gold Medal |
| 1981 | Sugar Ray Leonard | Boxing | Welterweight champion |
| 1982 | Wayne Gretzky | Hockey | NHL MVP |
| 1956 | Mary Decker | Track | Double World Champion |
| 1984 | Edwin Moses/Mary Lou Retton | Track/Gymnastics | Olympic Gold Medalists |
| 1985 | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Basketball | NBA Playoff MVP |
| 1986 | Joe Paterno | Football | NCAA Champion coach |
| 1987 | “Athletes Who Care” | Bob Bourne (Hockey), Judi Brown King (Track), Kip Keino (Track), Dale Murphy (Baseball), Chip Rives (College Football), Patty Sheehan (Golf), Rory Sparrow (Basketball), Reggie Williams (Football) | Aided various programs supporting handicapped, abused or orphaned children/Promoted youth education programs |
| 1988 | Orel Hershiser | Baseball | Cy Young Award, World Series MVP |
| 1989 | Greg LeMond | Cycling | Tour de France winner |
| 1990 | Joe Montana | Football | Three-time Super Bowl MVP |
| 1991 | Michael Jordan | Basketball | NBA Regular Season and Finals MVP, NBA champion |
| 1992 | Arthur Ashe | Tennis | Humanitarian Efforts |
| 1993 | Don Shula | Football | Most wins as NFL coach |
| 1994 | Bonnie Blair/Johan Olav Koss | Speed Skating | Two Olympic gold medals/Three Olympic gold medals |
| 1995 | Cal Ripken, Jr. | Baseball | Consecutive games played record |
| 1996 | Tiger Woods | Golf | U.S. Amateur and NCAA champion |
| 1997 | Dean Smith | Basketball | Winningest college coach |
| 1998 | Mark McGwire/Sammy Sosa | Baseball | Single season home run record/NL MVP |
| 1999 | U.S. Women’s Soccer Team | Soccer | World Cup champions |
| 2000 | Tiger Woods | Golf | Three major championships |
| 2001 | Curt Schilling/Randy Johnson | Baseball | World Series Co-MVP/World Series Co-MVP, Cy Young Award |
| 2002 | Lance Armstrong | Cycling | Four-time Tour de France winner |
| 2003 | David Robinson/Tim Duncan | Basketball | Two-time NBA champion/NBA Regular Season and Playoff MVP |
| 2004 | Boston Red Sox | Baseball | World Series champions |
| 2005 | Tom Brady | Football | Two-time Super Bowl MVP |
| 2006 | Dwyane Wade | Basketball | NBA Champion, NBA Finals MVP |
| 2007 | Brett Favre | Football | Super Bowl-winning quarterback, career achievement |
| 2008 | Michael Phelps | Swimming | Eight gold medals 2008 Olympics, 14 in Olympic career |
Source: SI.com
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