Posted July 9, 20195 yr Welcome to the World Cup of Sportspeople! With the Women's Football World Cup in full swing just finished and the Men's World Cup being a resounding success last year, we'll be following on with a tournament, not of countries, but of the sports-men and women themselves. This contest is designed to select the greatest sportspeople from each continent through a number of rounds, selecting the best of the best, and pitting them together to show who we really think is the best sportsperson of them all! This is the Voting stage for Europe. We received 193 different nominations in all - taking away our auto-qualifiers, Roger Federer and Cristiano Ronaldo, this gives us four groups of 47/48 players*. Here's how this stage is going to work. - You can vote for up to 25 sportspeople, but you must vote for at least 10. - You must rank your votes in order of preference, either by numbering or by the standard Buzzjack +25, +24 ... +1 (Or down to however many you vote for) - You must vote for sportspeople from at least three different sports - You must vote for at least one male and one female sportsperson. - Each sportsperson has been given a short description of their major achievements to make it easier for you to make up your mind. - The seven sportspeople with the most votes in each group will advance to the Final, whilst the three next highest players will advance to the Intercontinental Playoffs. Everyone else will be booted out. *Group 1 is slightly smaller as a result of some nominated sportspeople being ineligible: Ivan Lendl is ineligible as he most recently played for the USA National Team Monica Seles is ineligible as she most recently played for the USA National Team Group 1 Franz Beckenbauer (Germany - Football - Captained Germany to a World Cup victory in 1974, European Footballer of the Year twixe) Sergey Bubka (Ukraine - Athletics - 1998 Olympic pole vault gold, won gold at the European Championships 6 times) Joe Calagzhe (Wales - Boxing - Held World Championships in two classes, won 46 out of 46 fights) Linford Christie (England - Athletics - Won 1992 Olympic Gold, three European Championships and one World Championship) Jim Clark (Great Britain - Motor Racing - Won 1963 and 1965 World Championships) Nadia Comaneci (Romania - Gymnastics - Fist gymnast to be awarded a perfect 10.0 score, won 5 Olympic golds and 10 European Championship golds) Alastair Cook (England - Cricket - Fifth highest Test Run scorer of all time, England's most-capped player) Fausto Coppi (Italy - Cycling - Won Tour de France twice and Giro d'Italia 5 times) Johann Cruyff (Netherlands - Football - Won Ballon d'Or three times, received Golden Ball of 1974 World Cup where he captained the Netherlands to the Final)) Novak Djokovic (Serbia - Tennis - Won Wimbledon 5 times, US Open 3 times, French Open once and Australian Open 7 times) Stefan Edberg (Sweden - Tennis - Won 6 Grand Slam titles) Dario Franchitti (GB - Motor Racing - Won IndyCar Series 4 times and Indianapolis 500 3 times) Gianfranco Zola (Italy - Football - Won Cup Winners Cup, FA Cup and League Cup with Chelsea, voted their greatest ever player) Steffi Graf (Germany - Tennis - Won 22 Grand Slam singles titles) Alex Higgins (Northern Ireland - Snooker - World Champion in 1972 and 1982, won Masters twice) Graham Hill (Great Britain - Motor Racing - Only driver to win 'Triple Crown of Motorsport') Kelly Homes (Great Britain - Athletics - Won two Olympic gold medals and two Commonwealth gold medals) Ana Ivanovic (Serbia - Tennis - Won four Grand Slam titles) Katarina Johnson-Thompson (England - Athletics - Won Commonwealth Heptathlon Gold, and two golds at the European Indoor Championships) Dani King (Rowe) (Wales - Cycling - Won Olympics and World Championships three times in the Team Pursuit) Jurgen Klinsmann (Germany - Football - Won 1990 World Cup and 1996 World Championships with Germany) Niki Lauda (Austria - Formula One - Won 3 World Drivers' Championships, 25-time Grand Prix winner) Robert Lewandowski (Poland - Football - Won two Bundesliga titles with Borussia Dortmund, Bundesliga's all-time leading goalscorer) Sebastian Loeb (France - Rallying - Won 9 World Championship Titles, with 79 rally wins) Paolo Maldini (Italy - Football - Won 26 trophies with AC Milan, captained Italy for 8 years) Lothar Matthaus (Germany - Football - Captained West Germany to win the 1990 World Cup, most capped German player of all time) Pietro Mennea (Italy - Athletics - Won gold at the 1980 Olympics, won three European Championship golds) Vincenzo Nibali (Italy - Cycling - Won Tour de France in 2014, won the Giro twice and the Vuelta once) Ronnie O'Sullivan (England - Snooker - Won 5 World Championships and 7 Masters titles) Christine Ohourougu (England - Athletics - Won gold in the 2008 Olympics, won two World Championships and one Commonwealth gold) Tony Parker (France - Basketball - MVP of EuroBasket 2013 which he won with France) Paula Radcliffe (England - Athletics - Won London Marathon 3 times and New York Marathon 3 times, won three World Cross Country golds) Jonathan Rea (Northern Ireland - Motorcycling - Won 4 Superbike World Championships) Wayne Rooney (England - Football - England's all-time top goalscorer, Manchester United's top goalscorer) Michael Schumacher (Germany - Formula One - Won 7 Championships and a record 91 Grand Prix races) Maria Sharapova (Russia - Tennis - Won 5 Grand Slams and Olympic Silver) Kelly Smith (England - Football - 117 caps for England national team, won UEFA Women's Cup with Arsenal) Annika Sorenstam (Sweden - Golf - Won 90 international tournaments, voted Player of the Year 8 times) Raul (Spain - Soccer - Most capped Real Madrid player scoring 323 goals, won UEFA Club Forward of the Year 4 times) Jackie Stewart (Great Britain - Motor Racing - Won three World Drivers' Championships, won 27 Grand Prix races) AP (Tony) McCoy (Northern Ireland - Horse Racing - Won a record 4358 races, and won Champion Jockey a record 20 times) Raymond Van Barneveld (Netherlands - Darts - Won World Championship 4 times and World Masters twice) Lasse Viren (Finland - Athletics - Won four Olympic Gold medals) Dan Wheldon (England - Motor Racing - Won 2005 IndyCar Drivers' Championship) Jan Zelezny (Czech Republic - Athletics - Holds the World Record Javelin Throw, won two Olympic Golds and three World Championships) The deadline is 23:59 Sunday 14th July. Get voting!
July 9, 20195 yr Author Copy-paste list without descriptions: Franz Beckenbauer Sergey Bubka Joe Calagzhe Linford Christie Jim Clark Nadia Comaneci Alastair Cook Fausto Coppi Johann Cruyff Novak Djokovic Stefan Edberg Dario Franchitti Gianfranco Zola Steffi Graf Alex Higgins Graham Hill Kelly Homes Ana Ivanovic Katarina Johnson-Thompson Dani King Jurgen Klinsmann Niki Lauda Robert Lewandowski Sebastian Loeb Paolo Maldini Lothar Matthaus Pietro Mennea Vincenzo Nibali Ronnie O'Sullivan Christine Ohourougu Tony Parker Paula Radcliffe Jonathan Rea Wayne Rooney Michael Schumacher Maria Sharapova Kelly Smith Annika Sorenstam Raul Jackie Stewart AP (Tony) McCoy Raymond Van Barneveld Lasse Viren Dan Wheldon Jan Zelezny
July 10, 20195 yr 25- AP (Tony) McCoy 24- Michael Schumacher (pre-2010) 23- Novak Djokovic 22- Steffi Graf 21- Jim Clark 20- Ronnie O'Sullivan 19- Franz Beckenbauer 18- Niki Lauda 17- Jackie Stewart 16- Joe Calagzhe 15- Nadia Comaneci 14- Dario Franchitti 13- Raymond Van Barneveld 12- Jonathan Rea 11- Paolo Maldini 10- Sebastian Loeb 9- Alex Higgins 8- Graham Hill 7- Sergey Bubka 6- Lasse Viren 5- Dan Wheldon 4- Jurgen Klinsmann 3- Ana Ivanovic 2- Stefan Edberg 1- Jan Zelezny
July 10, 20195 yr Author +25 Novak Djokovic +24 Joe Calagzhe +23 Michael Schumacher +22 Nadia Comaneci +21 Paolo Maldini +20 Johann Cruyff +19 Steffi Graf +18 Ronnie O'Sullivan +17 Annika Sorenstam +16 Franz Beckenbauer +15 Lothar Matthaus +14 Fausto Coppi +13 Paula Radcliffe +12 Sergey Bubka +11 Raul +10 Kelly Holmes +9 Sebastian Loeb +8 Alastair Cook +7 Linford Christie +6 Jan Zelezny +5 Niki Lauda +4 Dani King +3 Kelly Smith +2 Lasse Viren +1 Wayne Rooney
July 10, 20195 yr no 01 Johan Cruijff no 02 Stefan Edberg no 03 Maria Sharapova no 04 Paolo Maldini 05 Raymond van Barneveld no 06 Niki Lauda no 07 Nadia Comaneci no 08 Raul no 09 Sergy Bubka no 10 Jackie Stewart no 11 Ana Ivanovic no 12 Steffi Graf no 13 Lasse Viren no 14 Jan Zelesny no 15 Franz Beckenbauer no 16 Novak Djokovic no 17 Jurgen Klinnsmann no 18 Robert Lewandowski no 19 Linford Christie no 20 Michael Schumacher no 21 Dario Franchitti no 22 Sebastian Loeb no 23 Dan Wheldon no 24 Ronnie O Sullivan no 25 Wayne Rooney
July 13, 20195 yr + 1. Zola 2. Djokovic 3. Cruff 4. Graff 5. Klinsmann 6. Maldini 7. O Sullivan 8. Schumacher 9. Ohourougu 10. Holmes 11. Edberg 12. Christie 13. Radcliffe 14. Hill 15. Smith
July 13, 20195 yr This was so difficult. 25pts Novak Djokovic 24 Johan Cruyff 23 Steffi Graf 22 Michael Schumacher 21 Franz Beckenbauer 20 Alastair Cook 19 Ronnie O'Sullivan 18 Niki Lauda 17 Sergey Bubka 16 Joe Calagzhe 15 Kelly Holmes 14 Jackie Stewart 13 Lasse Viren 12 AP McCoy 11 Linford Christie 10 Stefan Edberg 9 Nadia Comaneci 8 Lothar Matthaus 7 Christine Ohourougu 6 Maria Sharapova 5 Raul 4 Jan Zelezny 3 Paolo Maldini 2 Pietro Mennea 1 Paula Radcliffe
July 13, 20195 yr + [*]Michael Schumacher (Germany - Formula One - Won 7 Championships and a record 91 Grand Prix races) [*]Jim Clark (Great Britain - Motor Racing - Won 1963 and 1965 World Championships) [*]Johann Cruyff (Netherlands - Football - Won Ballon d'Or three times, received Golden Ball of 1974 World Cup where he captained the Netherlands to the Final)) [*]Franz Beckenbauer (Germany - Football - Captained Germany to a World Cup victory in 1974, European Footballer of the Year twixe) [*]Niki Lauda (Austria - Formula One - Won 3 World Drivers' Championships, 25-time Grand Prix winner) [*]Paolo Maldini (Italy - Football - Won 26 trophies with AC Milan, captained Italy for 8 years) [*]Steffi Graf (Germany - Tennis - Won 22 Grand Slam singles titles) [*]Jackie Stewart (Great Britain - Motor Racing - Won three World Drivers' Championships, won 27 Grand Prix races) [*]Kelly Homes (Great Britain - Athletics - Won two Olympic gold medals and two Commonwealth gold medals) [*]Novak Djokovic (Serbia - Tennis - Won Wimbledon 5 times, US Open 3 times, French Open once and Australian Open 7 times) [*]Dario Franchitti (GB - Motor Racing - Won IndyCar Series 4 times and Indianapolis 500 3 times) [*]Lothar Matthaus (Germany - Football - Captained West Germany to win the 1990 World Cup, most capped German player of all time) [*]Jurgen Klinsmann (Germany - Football - Won 1990 World Cup and 1996 World Championships with Germany) [*]Linford Christie (England - Athletics - Won 1992 Olympic Gold, three European Championships and one World Championship) [*]Nadia Comaneci (Romania - Gymnastics - Fist gymnast to be awarded a perfect 10.0 score, won 5 Olympic golds and 10 European Championship golds) [*]Paula Radcliffe (England - Athletics - Won London Marathon 3 times and New York Marathon 3 times, won three World Cross Country golds) [*]Graham Hill (Great Britain - Motor Racing - Only driver to win 'Triple Crown of Motorsport') [*]Sebastian Loeb (France - Rallying - Won 9 World Championship Titles, with 79 rally wins) [*]Christine Ohourougu (England - Athletics - Won gold in the 2008 Olympics, won two World Championships and one Commonwealth gold) [*]Wayne Rooney (England - Football - England's all-time top goalscorer, Manchester United's top goalscorer) [*]Maria Sharapova (Russia - Tennis - Won 5 Grand Slams and Olympic Silver) [*]Dan Wheldon (England - Motor Racing - Won 2005 IndyCar Drivers' Championship) [*]Joe Calagzhe (Wales - Boxing - Held World Championships in two classes, won 46 out of 46 fights) [*]Alex Higgins (Northern Ireland - Snooker - World Champion in 1972 and 1982, won Masters twice) [*]Kelly Smith (England - Football - 117 caps for England national team, won UEFA Women's Cup with Arsenal)
July 13, 20195 yr 25+ Michael Schumacher 24+ Novak Djokovic 23+ Steffi Graf 22+ AP (Tony) McCoy 21+ Johann Cruyff 20+ Joe Calagzhe 19+ Nadia Comaneci 18+ Niki Lauda 17+ Ronnie O'Sullivan 16+ Paolo Maldini 15+ Jackie Stewart 14+ Paula Radcliffe 13+ Kelly Homes 12+ Annika Sorenstam 11+ Sebastian Loeb 10+ Kelly Smith 9+ Dani King 8+ Alastair Cook 7+ Stefan Edberg 6+ Raymond Van Barneveld 5+ Linford Christie 4+ Fausto Coppi 3+ Wayne Rooney 2+ Christine Ohourougu 1+ Jan Zelezny
July 16, 20195 yr Author RESULTS Finalists: Nadia Comaneci Johann Cruyff Novak Djokovic Steffi Graf Niki Lauda Paolo Maldini Michael Schumacher Advance to Playoffs: Franz Beckenbauer Ronnie O'Sullivan Jackie Stewart Eliminated: (7th: 95pts - won by tiebreak) (10th: 80pts) 79 Joe Calagzhe 71 Kelly Holmes 59 AP (Tony) McCoy 58 Stefan Edberg 53 Sergey Bubka 51 Paula Radcliffe 49 Linford Christie 47 Jurgen Klinsmann 45 Jim Clark 42 Sebastian Loeb 40 Raymond Van Barneveld 37 Lothar Matthaus 36 Alastair Cook 34 Lasse Viren 34 Raul 34 Maria Sharapova 34 Dario Franchitti 33 Christine Ohourougu 29 Graham Hill 29 Annika Sorenstam 25 Kelly Smith 25 Gianfranco Zola 24 Jan Zelezny 18 Ana Ivanovic 18 Fausto Coppi 13 Dani King 12 Jonathan Rea 12 Dan Wheldon 11 Alex Higgins 11 Wayne Rooney 8 Robert Lewandowski 2 Pietro Mennea Cutting down Europe was always going to be hard, and the final Finalist being decided on a tiebreak made it even more difficult, but that's how it goes. 10th and 11th were only separated by a single point as well. Maldini making it through seems to be repayment for him losing out to Glenn Hoddle in the Ultimate Footballer at least!
July 16, 20195 yr Some big names going out there but it was a very strong group of people to choose from.
July 16, 20195 yr It was always going to have deserving individuals not make the list but I'd have guessed Jim Clark to beat Jackie Stewart any day
July 16, 20195 yr Pleasantly surprised to see AP (Tony) McCoy finish in the Top20. Shame he didn't qualify but didn't think he would get that high up. Shame to see Graham Hill lower down. The right people have gone through.
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