The Wonders of Sport (Females)

Hi again from the team at Topend Sports. The last newsletter on the Wonders of Sport got the most feedback ever, all very civil (thankyou!) but many comments were pointing out the lack of female representation in the lists. This was not a deliberate omission. It is a fact that, rightly or wrongly, elite sport has been dominated by males, though fortunately, this is changing. 

In my opinion, the only female that was close to making the all-time 7 greatest athlete wonders was Serena Williams, though I would argue that she falls down a little on the role model "off-court" test. As has been pointed out to me, maybe Tiger Woods did not deserve to be on the list for the same reason.

Personally, I think the off-court behaviour is very important when assessing our greatest athletes, though sometimes the performances are so overwhelmingly great it is hard to leave them off (as you will see Serena makes my new female list). 

My list of 7 female wonder athletes is listed below, as well as a list of the 7 major female-only sporting events that you should go and see. I think a female-only list is the best way to highlight the best of women's sport, rather than trying to compare the males and females directly. Again, I won't be able to please everyone with my personal choices, but let me know what you think.

Seven Wonders of the Sporting World (Female Athletes) —  the top 7 athletes of all time. A wonder must dominate in their chosen sport, be a great athlete, a hero to many and a good role model for the sport.

1. Babe Didrikson Zaharias (golf, track & field)
2. Jackie Joyner-Kersee (track & field)
3. Serena Williams (tennis)
4. Annika Sorenstam (golf)
5. Martina Navratilova (tennis)
6. Mia Hamm (football/soccer)
7. Fanny Blankers-Koen (track & field)

Seven Wonders of the Sporting World (Female Events) — the top 7 female sporting events from around the world. These events are the mecca of elite women's world sport, the must-see events of every sports fan.

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