RSVP Blog

No individual but the Grand Slam winning Wallabies of 1984. They changed the way the game was played for the better and introduced the Australian way of playing Rugby, run the ball, only kick when you are defending, and back up all the time. The Ella brothers, David Campese, Simon Poidevin, some of the greatest players ever to lace on a boot. Their success laid the foundation for the game to go professional 10 or so years later.

big, go the Wallabies!!

Posted by: thebigman9 at January 14, 2012 9:01 PM

Cadel Evans,

Now that is guts!

Posted by: minkdeville at January 14, 2012 7:25 PM

Al Oerter

4 discuss gold medals in a row

1956 to 1968

Posted by: spankmehoneey at January 14, 2012 11:05 AM

My sporting heroes are Lionel Messi & Xavi Hernandez of Barcelona FC, these guys play football like no other, being 2 or the top 3 players in the world.
I also admire Ryan Giggs of Manchester United, he is one of the all time greatest players of the club, and would be one of the best players in the world who has never played in a World Cup, being from Wales, who have not been strong enough to make it in his career.

Posted by: barca6 at January 13, 2012 9:54 PM

I wouldn't call them sporting heroes but to watch Rod Wishart and Andrew Ettingshausen glide down the sideline at top speed....thigh muscles pumping........smooth, mmmmmm.

M xxx

Posted by: margie284 at July 14, 2011 9:21 PM

My sporting hero is Glenn "The Pidge" McGrath... not only was he an outstanding cricketer, but he supported his beautiful wife & family through a terrible time in all of there lives & still managed to play like a hero in his craft knowing he was losing his lover, soulmate & best friend. Love ya Pidge

Posted by: mustlovedogs77 at July 5, 2010 5:24 AM

I think word's like 'sporting' and 'hero' should never be used together. No sport's star regardless how great of an achievement or how good he or she is in what they do, should ever be called a hero. Hero is a word thrown around so freely and lightly it's lost it's true and deeper meaning. Recently Jessica Watson became the youngest person to sail around the world, which was very inspirational and a great personal achievement. However I heard many people describe her as a hero. I don't understand how people can describe her or any sports stars as a heroes. They achieve great things and bring a lot of joy and happiness to many of us. And I can see how people might be inspired to set bigger goals in their own lives. Which is a wonderful thing.

But for me the word hero should only be used for the people that truly deserve it. A few examples of this would be a war hero, or a person that would run into a burning building to save a complete stranger without a second thought, and other heroic acts similar to that. Not to mention the people who dedicate their lives to helping the sick and less fortunate around the world with no expectations of getting any recognition for their work. These are some of the people who truly deserve to be called heroes.

Lets take Roger Federer for example, he's a great athlete and tennis player, and from what we know he seems to be a great father and husband. Now does that make him a 'hero'? I don't think so! He might very well be one of those people that would run into a burning building to save the life of a complete stranger, which would certainly make him a hero. But he might very well be one of those people that wouldn't even consider putting his life at risk in a situation like that. And this applies to any person or sports star out there. Even adventures like Jessica Watson who put themselves in danger in the pursuit of achieving their personal goals, might very well be the ones who fall short when it comes to risking their own lives for complete stranger. And a member of the community who never takes any major risks in their everyday life, could very well be the one who puts themselves in danger for another person. Now I wasn't trying to criticise Jessica Watson or any sports stars out there, but I was just using them as an example in my point.

Posted by: comeonover at May 22, 2010 4:05 AM

Roger Fedderer for me too. I think he is the complete package of elite sportsman, good husband, father, and excellent human being.

Posted by: iaminperth at May 20, 2010 1:30 PM

Billy Slater from the Melbourne Storm is my favourite player, he's always finding plays n is always supporting the other team players, He's a gr8 all rounder in sport wen he was on the Sports Challenge programme he won both tyms, Go Billy ur my hero! Hope my son plays with you one day in the nxt couple of years hes training with the Storm Academy now!
Go Storm!!!

Posted by: kiwigsoh at May 19, 2010 10:33 PM

although his not the fastest, strongest, or most skilledful in his my sporting hero is, has, and always will be nathan hindmarsh of the parramatta eels(NRL). in that he goes out there week after week n gives 200% for his fellow team mates and doesnt care whether he gets the wraps or recognition that he deserved, not only on the field but off the field he is involved were ever he is needed. i remember when i was in yr 5 n the eels did a schools training thing at the my school although he didnt have to hindmarsh stayed to have a chat with all the kids of my school n the other schools that came.
and to a player of any sport shouldnt just be judged on the efforts they give on the field but also thoses off the field

Posted by: bradd89 at October 10, 2009 9:19 PM

My sporting hero will always be Michael Jordan. It is almost unheard of that an entire sport, the strategies therein, and the way the game has been played has to be re-invented by opposing teams and the games hierarchy in general, because one person is so dominant & so very talented.

Not even Tiger Woods or Roger Federer, as great as they are, had golf courses re-designed, or tennis strategies changed so that their opposition would have a glimmer of hope of beating them.

Michael Jordan would go to the doctors after a game, have X-rays and in-depth scans done of injuries validated by doctors, be absolutely ruled out of playing for weeks, then rock up to a game THAT NIGHT, dominate without showing one hint of weakness in the injured area, and nearly always hit game high scoring during injury. No excuses, no sitting it out - he was always there leading the way - a complete inspiration.

All the moves you see done now in basketball are merely pale imitations of what has gone before with Jordan (and I'm not a fan of the sport really - just that Jordan electrified my interest so much).
He reinvented single handedly sports marketing - with companies queuing up for his signature & entire campaigns (and the futures of some companies too!) designed around him and his results on-court.

Even the great contemporaries off yesteryear and of his time concede his greatness far outweighed anything they were able to do. Magic Johnson, often cited as one the best guards in the history of the game, has stated on numerous occasions that the moves Michael Jordan puts over the oppositions on court simply defy logic and leaves him astounded and breathless.

I do not believe that anywhere exists a sportsperson as revered, respected or regarded in the same breath as Michael Jordan, and I've never seen one who has so completely mastered his craft, or pushed it to limits even now, 10 years after his real retirement, have never really been explored, let alone matched.

cheers,

myst

Posted by: mystril at September 1, 2009 9:36 AM

basically sport has become corporate=money driven, this in my opinion has ruined sport n now we have over inflated egos but empty heads n hearts mostly althiugh as in all things ver r exceptions, ver r no heroes, it is escapism, mindless entertainment an should b treated as such not with relevance that some choose 2 bestow on it, if 1 does than it is a sign that u have lost v plot n r in need of rebalance in ur life, focus on things that matter.
i enjoy watching n playing some sport but it is an activity n merely entertainment, ie get a life!, enjoy, intmail.

Posted by: intmail at August 31, 2009 6:38 PM

My sporting hero would be Roger Federer. He's so classy on and off the court, not to mention he'll probably get 20 grand slam titles by the time he's finished!

Posted by: shannonblabla at July 7, 2009 8:12 PM

It's great to be a Qld'er tonite, State of Origin - Qld 24 NSW 14, 4 years running now - history!! Game 3 in Brisbane I think will now be a grudge match, will be a good game and would be good to see a whitewash. Good on NSW for playing a good game, at the 55th minute I thought they were going to win.

I know there are bad boys in the sport, but I think there are in all sports, Warnie in cricket etc. 50+ cans on a plane is stupid but the airline were also at fault for serving him that many - I wouldn't be proud of that record.

Posted by: aloveoflife at June 24, 2009 10:17 PM

willow i think he should have got a gold medal for getting off the plane chad

Posted by: chad1958 at June 24, 2009 5:38 PM

Clearly a man of many talents :)

Posted by: willow29 at June 23, 2009 11:09 PM

Boone was a sports hero for that and that only.. Not much of a sports hero in my mind.
Now if he came around for a BBQ and put away 50 odd cans i call him a champ...!!

But really, for drinking 50 odd on a flight you could put him in the same category as that chick that pulled the pin in the womens rowing...

Posted by: feelgood76 at June 23, 2009 5:28 PM

hi willow cricketer david boone was a sports hero for drinking 51 cans of beer on a plane from aus to england ; its still a record as far as i know . how times change eh? chad

Posted by: chad1958 at June 23, 2009 4:41 PM

Chad, would you call them sporting heroes?

Posted by: willow29 at June 22, 2009 10:38 AM

what about nrl and afl players? they make the news most days and they seem to like a beer or two and the captains and tv commentaters are not far behind chad

Posted by: chad1958 at June 20, 2009 5:46 PM

Hey guys
unknow i remember that guy.. what a champ! I don't really have a sporting hero but Allan Border is right up there i think. But another would have to be (even tho he went a little crazy) Diego Maradona... I remember in a world cup semi final Maradona who played as a striker(goal scorer) ran back in defence from on end of the feild to the other stole the ball from the opposition turned around indvidually worked the ball through the other team to score a goal.. No one could dribble a soccer ball like Deigo.. He was the man. I am lucky enough to have a ball signed by the great himself...:)
FG

Posted by: feelgood76 at June 20, 2009 8:18 AM

Mine is the blind guy from NSW who did an Hawian ironman event.... awesome. I am not sure but think he died a couple of years ago. can anyone help with the details?

Posted by: unknownauthor at June 18, 2009 9:26 PM

Without doubt, its Gillian Rolton. For those of you who don't remember who she is:

Gillian Rolton ended the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games with a broken collarbone and broken ribs - and her second gold medal in a row. Rolton was a member of the winning three-day equestrian event team, along with Andrew Hoy, Phillip Dutton and Wendy Schaeffer. She suffered her injuries when her beloved mount Peppermint Grove fell and skidded during the endurance phase of the event. She remounted, unaware that she had suffered the fractures, and rode on, now unable to use her left arm. She and the horse came down again at the next obstacle, a water jump, and she somersaulted into the water. She then waded out, boarded the horse again, and galloped for another three kilometres, clearing 15 more fences, to finish the course. An ambulance took her to hospital, where she refused pain-killing drugs because she felt she might be needed for the final team jumping round the next day. She wasn’t, but Rolton’s gallantry served as an inspiration to her fellow riders, and the entire Australian team.
(from the AOC website).

I met Gillian at a conference and she was absolutely lovely. She brought out her medals and said that they belonged to all Australians and was happy for us to "play with them". Then she introduced us to her horse, Peppermint Grove". What a great team! He'd be my equal sporting hero!

Posted by: willow29 at June 17, 2009 3:42 PM