Sportsman of the Year

Note: From 1968 to 2008, a different Sportsman of the Year award was presented by Sporting News magazine.

Since its inception in 1954, Sports Illustrated magazine has annually presented the "Sportsman of the Year" award to "the athlete or team whose performance that year most embodies the spirit of sportsmanship and achievement." Both Americans and non-Americans are eligible, though in the past the vast majority of winners have been from the United States. Both men and women have won the award, it being renamed as "Sportswoman" or "Sportswomen," such as 1999 when the U.S. Women's Soccer Team was named Sportswomen of the Year.

The award's trophy, a ceramic urn depicting Greek athletes, has been given to the following recipients:

Year Winner Sport Achievement
1954 Roger Bannister Track and field First sub-four-minute mile
1955 Johnny Podres Baseball World Series MVP
1956 Bobby Morrow Track and field Triple Olympic gold medalist
1957 Stan Musial Baseball National League batting champion
1958 Rafer Johnson Track and field Decathlon world record
1959 Ingemar Johansson Boxing World heavyweight champion
1960 Arnold Palmer Golf PGA Player of the Year
1961 Jerry Lucas College basketball Final Four MVP
1962 Terry Baker College football Heisman Trophy winner
1963 Pete Rozelle Professional football NFL expansion
1964 Ken Venturi Golf U.S. Open Champion
1965 Sandy Koufax Baseball Cy Young Award, Strikeout record
1966 Jim Ryun Track and field Mile world record
1967 Carl Yastrzemski Baseball Triple Crown winner
1968 Bill Russell Professional basketball NBA champion player-coach
1969 Tom Seaver Baseball Cy Young Award
1970 Bobby Orr Hockey NHL MVP, Art Ross, Conn Smythe, Norris
1971 Lee Trevino Golf PGA Player of the Year
1972 Billie Jean King Tennis Three major titles
John Wooden College basketball NCAA champion coach
1973 Jackie Stewart Auto racing Formula One World Champion
1974 Muhammad Ali Boxing World heavyweight champion
1975 Pete Rose Baseball World Series MVP
1976 Chris Evert Tennis Two major titles
1977 Steve Cauthen Horse racing Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey
1978 Jack Nicklaus Golf British Open champion
1979 Terry Bradshaw Professional football Super Bowl MVP
Willie Stargell Baseball World Series MVP
1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team Hockey Olympic gold medalists
1981 Sugar Ray Leonard Boxing World welterweight champion
1982 Wayne Gretzky Hockey NHL MVP, Art Ross
1983 Mary Decker Track and field Double world champion
1984 Edwin Moses Track and field Olympic gold medalist
Mary Lou Retton Gymnastics Olympic gold medalist
1985 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Professional basketball Playoff MVP
1986 Joe Paterno College football NCAA champion coach
1987 "Athletes Who Care"
Bob Bourne Hockey Helped handicapped children's school
Judi Brown King Track and field Helped abused children
Kip Keino Track and field Cared for orphaned children
Dale Murphy Baseball Charity spokesman
Chip Rives College football Helped needy children
Patty Sheehan Golf Helped abused girls
Rory Sparrow Professional basketball Helped school children
Reggie Williams Professional football Helped high school students
1988 Orel Hershiser Baseball Cy Young Award, World Series MVP
1989 Greg LeMond Cycling Tour de France winner
1990 Joe Montana Professional football Three-time Super Bowl MVP
1991 Michael Jordan Professional basketball NBA MVP, NBA Finals MVP, NBA Champion
1992 Arthur Ashe Tennis Supported humanitarian causes
1993 Don Shula Professional football Winningest NFL coach
1994 Bonnie Blair Speed skating Double Olympic gold medalist
Johann Olav Koss Speed skating Triple Olympic gold medalist
1995 Cal Ripken, Jr. Baseball Consecutive games record
1996 Tiger Woods Golf U.S. Amateur, NCAA champion
1997 Dean Smith College basketball Winningest college coach at the time of publication
1998 Mark McGwire Baseball Single-season home run record holder at the time of publication
Sammy Sosa Baseball National League MVP
1999 U.S. Women's Soccer Team Soccer World Cup champions
2000 Tiger Woods Golf Three major championships
2001 Curt Schilling Baseball World Series Co-MVP
Randy Johnson Baseball World Series Co-MVP, Cy Young Award
2002 Lance Armstrong Cycling Four-time Tour de France winner
2003 David Robinson Professional basketball Two-time NBA champion
Tim Duncan Professional basketball NBA MVP, Playoff MVP
2004 Boston Red Sox Professional baseball team 2004 World Series champions
2005 Tom Brady Professional football Two-time Super Bowl MVP, Three-time Super Bowl champion
2006 Dwyane Wade Professional basketball NBA Champion, NBA Finals MVP
2007 Brett Favre Professional football "for his perseverance and his passion"
2008 Michael Phelps Swimming Eight Gold Medals in 2008 Summer Olympics
2009 Derek Jeter Baseball Five-time World Series Champion
2010 Drew Brees Professional football Super Bowl MVP and charitable work toward the reconstruction of New Orleans
2011 Mike Krzyzewski College Basketball Coach Most wins in NCAA Division I history
Pat Summitt College Basketball Coach All-time winningest coach in NCAA basketball

See also

External links

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