Hockey icon Gordie Howe (1928-), who held the previous record for most career points with 1,850, was surpassed by Wayne Gretzky, affectionately referred to as "The Great One," who also became the first player to win the Hart Trophy eight years in a row. Gretzky’s Personal Life The 26th of January 1961 saw the birth of Wayne Douglas Gretzky in Ontario, Canada, to parents Walter Gretzky and Phyllis Leone. His father was a "Bell Telephone Canada" employee. The five kids in the family were all...

Jim Thorpe was an American athlete widely regarded as the best in the world during the early 20th century. He played football and baseball professionally and earned Olympic gold. Thorpe’s Personal Life The specifics of his birthdate or location of birth have not been independently verified, and his childhood experiences are frequently questioned. His parents have a mixture of ancestries. His mother was Charlotte Vieux, and his father was a farmer named Hiram Thorpe. He was brought up follo...

Wilt Chamberlain, a 7' 1" center who dominated professional basketball for more than 14 seasons starting in 1959, was one of the most outstanding individual athletes to ever thrive in a sport. Chamberlain, sometimes known as "Wilt the Stilt," is remembered for a legendary performance in 1962 in which he set a record by scoring 100 points in a single game, which no other player has come close to tying. Chamberlain’s Personal Life Wilt was born Wilton Norman Chamberlain on August 21, 1936, i...

To sum up, there aren't many ways to sum up, someone who has won the World Cup twice, been named FIFA World Player of the Year three times, and scored the most goals in World Cup finals history. But "Il Fenomeno" was the closest thing that global football could come up with for Ronaldo Luis Nazário De Lima, better known by his stage name Ronaldo. He was incredible and will live on as a legend of the sport. Ronaldo’s Personal Life Former Brazilian footballer Ronaldo Luis Nazário Lima is bet...

One of the most contentious issues in professional sports still exists 25 years after Pete Rose accepted a lifetime suspension for betting on baseball. Rose’s Personal Life On April 14, 1941, Peter Edward Rose was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. He was raised in the adjacent Anderson Ferry, Ohio, as one of Harry and LaVerne Rose's four children. ...

Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, Jr., the sole child of Cora and Ferdinand Alcindor, was born in New York City and became the great athlete known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. As he was known, the young Lew Alcindor was a passionate sportsman. He developed swiftly, and during his time in school, he was the tallest student there. Abdul-Jabbar’s Personal Life Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr., the ancestor of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, was born in New York City on April 16, 1947. Alcindor was always the tallest chi...

Famous African American athlete Reggie White. He was well-known for his impressive performance in 15 seasons of National Football League play during his professional football career. He played collegiate football for the University of Tennessee. He received two awards for NFL Defensive Player of the Year. The greatest defensive end to ever play the position is Reggie White. We will acknowledge his greatness in this retrospective of his career. White’s Personal Life ...

The contribution Robinson made to Major League Baseball will always be cherished. Every major league team observes Jackie Robinson Day on April 15 each year to commemorate the day he broke the color barrier in baseball by becoming the first African-American player to play in either the American or National leagues in the 20th century. Robinson’s Personal Life On January 31, 1919, Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born in Cairo, Georgia. The youngest of five kids, he was young. Soon after Jackie ...

This day in 1936 marked the birth of Jim Brown. He was a Black football player, actor, and civil rights activist (at the time of writing). Brown’s Personal Life Georgia's St. Simon's Island is where Jim Brown was born in 1936. Swinton Brown, his father, was a professional boxer, while his mother was a housewife. James Nathaniel Brown is Jim Brown's real name. Many difficulties marked his early years. ...

Serena Williams, who is regarded as the greatest female tennis player of all time and possibly the greatest athlete of all time, has transformed women's tennis since the 1990s. Williams, who holds 23 Grand Slam titles, developed on the open courts in Compton, California, breaking records and dominating the sport. Williams’s Personal Life Richard Williams and Oracene Price welcomed Serena Williams into the world on September 26, 1981, in Saginaw, Michigan. The youngest of five sisters, she ...

One of the most well-known French football players of all time, Zinedine Zidane, is widely recognized as a master of the game's principles and tactics.  He is renowned for his superior ball handling and control abilities, magic ball touch, laser-focused vision, and outstanding leadership qualities. Players during his years in soccer would only be able to match how he handled and received the ball. Zidane’s Personal Life ...