Sportsman of the Year

The Sportsman of the Year award has been presented annually by Sports Illustrated magazine since its founding in 1954. It is presented to "the athlete or team whose performance that year most embodies the spirit of sportsmanship and achievement." The award's trophy is a ceramic urn depicting Greek athletes. It has been won by a baseball player on eighteen occasions, the most of any sport.

Award Winners

Year	Winner	Sport	Achievement
1954	Roger Bannister	Track and Field	First sub-four-minute mile
1955	Johnny Podres	Baseball	World Series MVP
1956	Bobby Joe Morrow	Track and Field	Double 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	US 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
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	Most Outstanding Jockey
1978	Jack Nicklaus	Golf	British Open champion
1979	Terry Bradshaw	Professional Football	Super Bowl MVP
	Willie Stargell	Baseball	National League MVP, 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
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
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	US Amateur, NCAA champion
1997	Dean Smith	College Basketball	Winningest college coach
1998	Mark McGwire	Baseball	Single-season home run record
	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	Co-World Series MVP
	Randy Johnson	Baseball	Cy Young Award, Co-World Series MVP
2002	Lance Armstrong	Cycling	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	Baseball	2004 World Series champions
2005	Tom Brady	Professional Football	Two-time Super Bowl MVP
2006	Dwayne Wade	Professional Basketball	NBA Champion Miami Heat
2007	Brett Favre	Professional Football	3 time NFL MVP
2008	Michael Phelps	Olympic Swimming	8-time Gold Medal winner at 2008 Summer Games
2009	Derek Jeter	Baseball	Broke Yankees and shortstop career hit records
2010	Drew Brees	Professional Football	Super Bowl MVP and charitable work toward the reconstruction of New Orleans
2011	Mike Krzyzewski	College Basketball	Most wins in NCAA men's Division I history
2012	Pat Summitt	College Basketball	All-time winningest coach in NCAA basketball
2013	LeBron James	Professional Basketball	NBA MVP, NBA Finals MVP, NBA Champion, Olympic Gold Medalist
2014	Madison Bumgarner	Baseball	Three-time World Series Champion, NLCS MVP, World Series MVP
2015	Serena Williams	Tennis	Three major titles, oldest player to be ranked number one in women's tennis during the Open Era
2016	LeBron James	Professional Basketball	NBA Finals MVP, NBA Champion, led Cleveland Cavaliers to first title in franchise history
2017	José Altuve	Baseball	American League MVP, World Series Champion, helped lead Houston Astros to first title and the city's first major championship since 1995
	J. J. Watt	Professional Football	Raised more than $37 million in raid for the city of Houston, TX in wake of Hurricane Harvey
2018	Golden State Warriors team	Professional Basketball	2018 NBA champions, third title in last four years
2019	Megan Rapinoe	Soccer	FIFA Women's World Cup champion, won Golden Ball and Golden Boot
2020	Laurent Duvernay-Tardif	Professional Football	Super Bowl LIV champion, sat out the 2020 season to serve as an orderly during the COVID-19 pandemic
	LeBron James	Professional Basketball	NBA Finals MVP; Voter's rights
	Patrick Mahomes	Professional Football	Super Bowl MVP, pushed the NFL to recognize the Black Lives Matter movement, pushed to encourage voter registration across the country, as well as among his teammates
	Naomi Osaka	Tennis	U.S. Open champion and advocate for social justice
	Breanna Stewart	Professional Basketball	WNBA Finals MVP, spoke out against racism and for women's equality
2021	Tom Brady	Professional Football	Super Bowl LV MVP, 7-time Super Bowl champion