Jackie Joyner-Kersee
When you participate in four separate Olympic Games and walk away with two bronze, one silver, and three gold medals, there’s a decent chance you earned them for a reason. Competing in the heptathlon and long jump, Jackie Joyner-Kersee put the former on the map as a must-watch Olympic event, infusing it with her enthusiasm, and a bit of personal drama. She won several of her medals while enduring illnesses, heat exhaustion, and asthma attacks. As one of the first ground breakers of the Title IX legislation, she made it clear that female athletes were here to stay.
Mia Hamm
Easily the most recognizable female soccer player of all time, Mia Hamm has scored more goals in her career than any other American man or woman. She also won four NCAA titles while playing for North Carolina, an Olympic gold medal with the U.S. team in 2004, two FIFA World Cup championships, and was named U.S. Female Player of the Year five times. Her quick footwork and spot-on shots made her the most dangerous striker on the field, and these accomplishments only begin to highlight what she’s done.
Martina Navratilova
With 18 Grand Slam singles titles (not to mention 31 Grand Slam women’s doubles titles and 10 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles), Martina Navratilova is one of the most successful women’s tennis players of all time. Her rivalry with Chris Evert, also on this list, made women’s tennis incredible to watch, as the two women matched one another nearly shot for shot each time they met. Navratilova was also an outspoken advocate for gay rights, and was very open about her homosexuality early on in her career.
Chris Evert-Lloyd
Navratilova’s counterpart was every bit as successful, but had a markedly different approach to the game. While Chris (known as Chrissy to her fans) also finished her career with 18 Grand Slam singles titles, she was known for her more precise, traditional style of play, as opposed to Navratilova’s more aggressive approach. She had a wide following. Many fans reportedly felt they could connect with her on a personal level, and she quickly became one of tennis’s darlings throughout her career.
Billie Jean King
Billie Jean King is about as accomplished a tennis star as they come – with 39 Grand Slam titles (12 single, 16 women’s doubles, and 11 mixed doubles), she’s by no means a one-hit wonder. But she is perhaps best remembered for winning the 1973 match up against tennis great Bobby Riggs in the “Battle of the Sexes” and moving women’s tennis forward light years. She remained a fervent women’s rights advocate throughout her career, both on and off the court.
Babe Didrikson Zaharias
Babe was one of the fiercest competitors in sports during a time when women weren’t supposed to be aggressive, sweaty, or successful. She was a Hall of Famer in both track and field and golf. She won two gold and one silver medal in the Olympics her first games, and every golf title available in her second..not to mention her achievements in softball, baseball, diving, roller skating, bowling, and her All-American status in basketball. Not too shabby.
Florence Griffith-Joyner
It doesn’t seem to matter that Florence Griffith-Joyner, or Flo-Jo, passed away more than 15 years ago. She remains the fastest woman of all time. Her records for the 100-meter and 200-meter dash in the 1988 Summer Olympics still stand. No athlete has even come close to surpassing her. She was also one of the more glamorous competitors of her time, rocking one-legged unitards and lace attachments, and always with a flawless manicure.
Bonnie Blair
Winning five gold medals and one bronze in four Olympic games, Bonnie Blair is one of the greatest and most decorated speed skaters of all time. Growing up in Champaign, Illinois, she learned from her 5 siblings, 3 of whom were also speed skaters. Her large family became known as the Blair Bunch at Olympic events, as they’re sizable number resulted in a raucous cheering section, and it’s rumored that her father dropped off her mother on the day of Bonnie’s birth at the hospital to head to a skating rink for a quick session. Guess it was in her blood?
Lisa Leslie
Lisa Leslie’s name is almost synonymous with women’s basketball, as a 4-time WNBA MVP and 4-time Olympic gold winner. She not only helped lead led her team to two WNBA championships over the course of her career, but became the first woman to dunk in a league game, a feat that was thought to only be feasible for men (it does help that she’s 6’5, however). It’s also worth noting that after taking a year off from the WNBA to have a baby, she returned and still helped lead the Los Angeles Sparks to the Western Conference Finals.
Sonja Henie
Three-time Olympic Champion, ten-time World Champion, and six-time European Champion Sonja Henie controlled the world of figure skating throughout her career. She credited her artistic skating style to the great Russian dancer Anna Pavlova, and revolutionized the sport. Figure skating up to that point had been more separate skills with music playing unconnectedly in the background, but she integrated her routines to flow with the notes. She became the face of women’s figure skating, and is even credited with introducing white lace up skate boots as the standard for the sport.
Caulkins is a three-time Olympic gold medalist swimmer who retired in 1984. Caulkin began training as a swimmer at the age of 8, and by age 13 she competed in the U.S. national swimming championships, she set her first records by age 14, and by 15 had won five gold medals and a silver medal at the 1978 World Championships in West Berlin. By the end of her career, Caulkins held five world records. Caulkins is married to fellow Olympic gold medal swimmer Mark Stockwell.
Nadia Comaneci is a Romanian gymnast who has won three Olympic gold medals. Comaneci was the first female gymnast to achieve a perfect score of 10 in the gymnast category at the Olympics, all of which seems very suiting when you learn that her mother named her after a heroine in a Russian film. Comaneci was first discovered at the age of 6 doing cartwheels on a playground, and from there she went to a gymnast school, competed for her hometown team in several countries, and in her teens began winning gold medals at international events. Comaneci received those previously mentioned perfect 10 scores at the American Cup at Madison Square Garden in 1976. In 2000 the Laureus World Sports Academy named Comaneci one of the athletes of the century.
Lopez is an American professional golfer who has won 48 LPGA tours. At the age of 12, Lopez already won the New Mexico Women’s Amateur and by 18 she was playing in the U.S. Women’s Open. Her career took off fast and Lopez left college her sophomore year to become a professional golfer. Lopez won nine tournaments in just her first season in an LPGA Tour, and even managed to win several tournaments shortly after giving birth to her daughter in 1986. Lopez continued to impress so much, even as she cut back on playing to be with her children, that she was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1987.
Fleming is an American figure skater as well as television commentator for figure skating events. Fleming started skating at age 9 and quickly moved up because of her distinctive style. She won the only gold medal for the U.S. Olympic team in the 1968 winter games, which started her professional career. Fleming went on to be a performer, skating in shows like the Ice Capades, as well as a commentator for ABC Sports. Fleming is a breast cancer survivor and activist, and today is married with two children and a winery in California.
Krone is a retired American jockey and inductee in the National Women’s Hall of Fame and Cowgirl Hall of Fame. Krone has been doing competitive riding since she was a child, and by her teens already had a reputation around Florida. Krone was the only woman to win numerous notable championships—something that landed her appearances on “The Late Show with David Letterman” and “The Tonight Show.” She won the 1993 Female Athlete of the year Award from ESPY. Krone has retired several times; once to go into broadcasting, and two more times due to injuries before finally retiring in 2004. USA Today has named Krone as one of the 10 Toughest Athletes.
Driscoll is an American wheelchair racer who has won the Boston Marathon, women’s wheelchair division, more than any competitor in history. Driscoll was born with spina bifida, and got into wheelchair sports already in high school including wheelchair basketball and wheelchair track and field. Driscoll has competed in four Paralympic Games and has won five gold, three silver and four bronze medals, in spite of some unfortunate mishaps during competitions including food poisoning and her wheelchair getting caught in a track and crashing.
Yegorova is a retired Russian cross-country Olympic ski champion and a star of winter sporting events, having won numerous gold medals at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, and winning the women’s 15 km race at the Holmenkollen ski festival in 1994. Yegorova’s career did not end gracefully; in 1997, just days after winning a gold medal in the women’s 5 km event at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, Yegorova was disqualified for using steroids, and her medal was taken away.
