In the world of domestic athletics, there has been no shortage of stellar athletes who have come from every one of the 50 states that make up the United States of America. In honor of the 250th anniversary of the United States, Sports Illustrated released a list of 250 athletes, the top five from each of the 50 states, honoring the best of the best of each state. Within those 250 names are several athletes who have made a major impact in the pool.
Sports Illustrated selected athletes based on the following criteria (as listed by Sports Illustrated):
- Where an athlete attended high school (for a majority of years or for the final/graduating year)
- Primary residence as a child, if an athlete did not attend high school (homeschool or similar)
- Based on the 1999 list’s spirit of placing athletes “not necessarily to where they were born, but to where they first showed flashes of the greatness to come.”
The list is ordered alphabetically, with Alaska as the 2nd state; readers did not have to look far to see the first swimmer. Lydia Jacoby, whose rise from Alaska swimming to the top of the Olympic Podium in 2021 in the 100 breast helped earn her spot on this list. Jacoby, who famously took down fellow Olympic teammate Lilly King to secure the Olympic gold in Tokyo, ranks 5th among Alaskan athletes in the report, behind a pair of Duke basketball legends in Trajan Langdon and Carlos Boozer (1st and 3rd, respectively), Olympic cross-country skier Kikkan Randall, and dog musher George Attla.
Lydia Jacoby (photo: Jack Spitser)
Though not a swimmer, Michele Mitchell, a nine-time national champion diver at the University of Arizona and a two-time Olympic Silver medalist in 1984 and 1988 on the 10-meter platform, was the next aquatics athlete mentioned as the #4-ranked athlete out of Arizona. Mitchell is also currently the Director of Operations at the University of Kentucky.
The next swimmer mentioned would come out of the state of Colorado: Amy Van Dyken, the six-time Olympic gold medalist, including a four-gold haul at the 1996 games in Atlanta, which included a pair ofwins in the 50 free and 100 fly. Van Dyken was listed as the #3 athlete from Colorado, behind Boxing legend Jack Dempsey and former college football standout and eventual US Supreme Court justice Byron “Whizzer” White.
Moving west to the island state of Hawai’i, the state’s top athlete is Duke Kahanamoku, who is considered the ‘father of modern-day surfing’. However, he also made waves as a competitive swimmer, including three Olympic Gold Medals in freestyle in 1912, 1920, and 1924. Also out of Hawai’i was Clarence “Buster” Crabbe, who won gold in the 400 freestyle at the 1932 Olympics. Crabbe ranked #4 out of Hawai’i.
A few states later, moving to Kentucky, we find Mary T. Meagher, a three-time Olympic Champion at the 1984 Olympic Games and two-time world champion, who has since been found competing at the highest levels of Masters swimming. Meager held both the 100 and 200 butterfly world records for nearly two decades. Meagher only trails ‘The Great One’ Muhammad Ali as the top athlete ever from Kentucky.
Katie Ledecky (photo: Jack Spitser)
When it comes to the sport of swimming and the greatest swimmers ever to do it, one state sits above all the others: the Old Line State of Maryland, which features arguably the two greatest swimmers ever to put on a cap and goggles, Michael Phelps and Katie Ledecky. There is not much to say that has not already been said before about these two, between Phelps and Ledecky, a combined 42 Olympic Medals, among those, 32 of them of the gold variety. Both are the most decorated Olympians in the country (Phelps with 28 total, Ledecky with 14). Phelps, who is regarded as one of the greatest athletes of all time, is not ranked as the state’s top athlete; that honor is given to Babe Ruth, who is regarded as one of, if not the, greatest baseball players in history. Phelps sits at #2 while Ledecky is just behind at #3.
For New Hampshire, one of the women that Ledecky surpassed as the most decorated female Olympic swimmer ever, Jenny Thompson, whose 12 career Olympic Golds rightfully earned her spot on this list, coming in at #12 for the state of New Hampshire. She trails only baseball legend Carlton Fisk, who spent 24 years as a player in the MLB.
For Oregon, Don Schollander, the five-time Olympic Gold Medalist, made his way to the top of the state’s all-time athlete list. Schollander secured four golds at the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo, which at the time was the most from any American at a single Olympics since Jesse Owens in 1936.
Elizabeth Beisel (courtesy of Mike Lewis)
Moving cross-country to Rhode Island, three-time Olympian Elizabeth Beisel comes in at #5 for the state. Beisel’s Olympic medal haul includes a silver in the 400 IM and bronze in the 200 back from London. She is also a three-time World Championship medalist, including a gold in 2011 in the 400 IM.
The final swimmer listed came from Tennessee, as Tracy Caulkins, the 63-time American record-breaker and three-time Olympic Champion, ranks as the #4-ranked athlete from the Volunteer state. After having to wait another four years to make her Olympic debut after the American team boycotted the 1980 games in Moscow, Caulkins managed to make up for the wait in 1984, winning the 400 IM, 200 IM, and another as the breaststroker on the 400 medley relay.
Surprised Ian Crocker didn’t make the Maine list.
I sort of am and sort of am not. Does he belong there? Yes. Is a list like this impossible to catch everyone on? Also yes. Ian Crocker didn’t win any individual Olympic golds (nor did anyone else on the list).
I probably would have put him there. Nobody on the Maine list is that impressive yet in a global sense. Cooper Flagg will almost certainly be #1 on that list by the time he’s done, barring a career disaster. But some of them stand as much larger figures in Maine’s lore. Cindy Blodgett, for example, never made much of an impact at the pro level (she had a cup of tea in the early days of the WNBA), but… Read more »
How does Bode Miller miss for New Hampshire? They even included a much less decorated winter athlete. He is the most successful male American alpine ski racer of all time. This is not an instance where you would place him in another state because he moved as a child. He was born and grew up there.
Swoopes shouldn’t have been the female picked for Texas in the first place. Babe Didrikson Zaharias was totally omitted. Meanwhile she used to win all the polls regarding best female athlete from 1900 to 1950, etc.
Leaving her out was like ignoring Jim Thorpe or Babe Ruth.
Overall I think Olympic sports and women were treated beyond fairly. In sampling each state I thought Sports Illustrated went out of its way to acknowledge so-called lesser sports instead of merely loading up with famous names from the most popular sports.
For example, how can the state of Texas not be represented by a running back? Just sit back and think of the big picture to understand how ludicrous that is. There were too many WNBA players, IMO. That stood out quickly. Sheryl Swoopes has no business on that list ahead of somebody like Earl Campbell, the Tyler Rose.
California could probably have 250 all by itself. That said, very harsh to leave out Karch Kiraly, given his standing… Read more »
While I recognize that the early days of the WNBA lacked the depth we see today, she won three MVP Awards.
NBA players who have won three MVP Awards all would certainly warrant inclusion on the list: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan, Bill Russell, LeBron James, Wilt Chamberlain, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Moses Malone, and Nikola Jokić.
Earl Campbell was a 1x MVP, and 3x rushing champ. Overall had fewer career accolades, but in a sport that had a lot more depth of talent at the time.
I’d call it a coin toss. Including Campbell over Swoopes would’ve been fine with me too, but I strongly disagree with “no business on that list.” I’d probably put Kershaw in the same boat… Read more »
Two significant misses from the gymnastics world – Shawn Johnson for Iowa and Shannon Miller for Oklahoma
Maryland is low-key stacked.
No kidding. I was thinking of legendary others who were associated with that state and not named, like Sugar Ray Leonard and Renaldo Nehemiah
Note to the author of the article: Don Schollander won 5 Olympic medals. All gold. Not 7.
Also. minor thing but Tennessee is not in the Rockies and nicknamed the Volunteer state.
Tell that to the SI author.
Kinda crazy that Ryan Lochte didn’t make the top 5 for Florida. You can’t really argue with Sanders, Smith, and Evert, but certainly Ryan has some accolades over Ray Lewis and Steve Carlton. I would have went with Missy Franklin over Van Dyken for Colorado. Amy never broke a long course World Record (except on relays). Also, how does Ian Crocker not make Maine’s top 5?? Mary Wayte or Megan Quann-Jendrick for Washington over Jordan Chiles. I lean towards Wayte because her career (which already includes an individual Olympic gold medal) would have been much more impressive if not for East German athletes. California omitting Mark Spitz is inexcusable. And if not him, Natalie Coughlin and Dara Torres are right… Read more »
On the Caulkins mention, Tennessee is the “Volunteer State”.