# Besides Dale Earnhardt, what other sports legends died while on top? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 20, 2001, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/besides-dale-earnhardt-what-other-sports-legends-died-while-on-top/55177 "2001-02-20T04:21:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Coldfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@Coldfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coldfire)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2001, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/besides-dale-earnhardt-what-other-sports-legends-died-while-on-top/55177/41 "2001-02-22T11:00:04Z")
[FloJo](http://www.channel2000.com/news/stories/news-980921-163942.html) died in 1998, but had retired from athletics nine years before her death. **Vinnie** , do you consider F1 drivers to be the same as horses? 😉 I don’t expect anyone to know _all_ the names I listed in my previous post, but I honestly believe that at least **Gilles Villeneuve** and **Ayrton Senna** should be in that cumulitative list of yours if **Dale Earnhardt** is. MHO, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Vinnie\_Virginslayer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/53a042/32.png) [@Vinnie\_Virginslayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vinnie_Virginslayer)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2001, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/besides-dale-earnhardt-what-other-sports-legends-died-while-on-top/55177/42 "2001-02-23T02:53:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Coldfire \* > \*\*[FloJo](http://www.channel2000.com/news/stories/news-980921-163942.html) died in 1998, but had retired from athletics nine years before her death. > > **Vinnie** , do you consider F1 drivers to be the same as horses? 😉 > I don’t expect anyone to know _all_ the names I listed in my previous post, but I honestly believe that at least **Gilles Villeneuve** and **Ayrton Senna** should be in that cumulitative list of yours if **Dale Earnhardt** is. MHO, of course. \*\* I didn’t realize FloJo retired. Okay, off the list. If you say that Villeneuve is a true legend in F1, I’ll defer to you and put him on the list. I think Senna was already on. [QUOTE] \*Originally posted by imthjckaz \* \*\* > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by beakerxf \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by Sauron \* > > **beakerxf** , I think the basketball player you’re talking about was Len Bias. > > The OP suggests “while they were on top”. I think this means that, who was at or near their prime when death came. > By that criteria, this is my list. > > Thurman Munson, an all-star catcher. > Reggie Lewis, an NBA rising star. > Hank Gathers, an NCAA All american and certain lottery pick in the NBA draft. > Payne Stewart, just won his second US Open. > Greg Moore, a top Indy car driver. > Len Bias, U of Maryland All american and the second overall pick in the NBA draft, by the Celtics. > Derrick Thomas, perrenial Pro Bowl linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs. > NASCAR’s Davey Allison, Alan Kulwicki were rising stars, Adam Petty was but 19 years old with much potential. > They all died too soon, and all had a good chance to continue to be at the top of their game. > \*\* \*\* With all due respect to the great athletes listed above, what I really meant were athletes that were already legends when they died, not athletes who were cut short by death before they had a chance to prove something or were great players. Of that list, Munson and MAYBE Davey Allison belong. Though I wonder if Munson would have been considered a legend if he did not die too early . . . I guess the criteria should be, “Even if they did not die while at the peak of their careers, would they still have been legendary?”. Ray Chapman is a good name, but cannot go on the list. “Would have been in the HOF if he did not die” does not cut it, not that Chapman was not a great athlete. ---
**Author:** ![Drain\_Bead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47774/32.png) [@Drain\_Bead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drain_Bead)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2001, 6:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/besides-dale-earnhardt-what-other-sports-legends-died-while-on-top/55177/43 "2001-02-23T06:49:55Z")
The injury sounds remarkably similar to Go For Wand’s, but I’m relatively sure it wasn’t a filly, and the injury occurred about halfway through the race. It was the left foreleg, and the injury occurred between the knee (dunno if that’s a precise term) and the hoof, right in the middle of that long bone. It basically created a new joint, and the horse kept going for a few strides while its leg bent in a way that no leg should ever bend. As I recall, the coverage (ABC?) showed the injury occurring several times. The poor commentators were nearly in tears. It was horrible. ---
**Author:** ![Randy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2acd7d/32.png) [@Randy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Randy)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2001, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/besides-dale-earnhardt-what-other-sports-legends-died-while-on-top/55177/44 "2001-02-23T07:33:37Z")
**Prefontaine** At this late hour, I can’t seem to come up with the Olympic Runners first name. (Steve?) ---
**Author:** ![Ruffian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/71e660/32.png) [@Ruffian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruffian)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2001, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/besides-dale-earnhardt-what-other-sports-legends-died-while-on-top/55177/45 "2001-02-23T20:35:40Z")
I’m guessing what you’re remembering is Mr. Brooks’ breakdown, although I don’t really know for sure as I didn’t see that particular incident (I rather ignored the sport after the 1990 Breeder’s Cup mess, until around 1995). If it’s a broken leg, it has to be either Go For Wand or Mr. Brooks. GFW shattered her ankle/fetlock joint, not her cannon bone (the long bone you’re describing), but it was indeed the left front leg. She ran on it a little more after breaking it, too, before falling as the leg simply wasn’t there after a few strides. (They estimate she broke her leg 14 strides before she fell.) Mr. Brooks also fell after his breakdown. It’s actually not one of the ugliest things I’ve ever seen
I saw a two-year-old break both of his knees while leading on a far turn, causing a disastrous pile-up behind him that resulted in two more horses suffering fatal injuries. Bleh. ---
**Author:** ![iampunha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/74df32/32.png) [@iampunha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iampunha)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2001, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/besides-dale-earnhardt-what-other-sports-legends-died-while-on-top/55177/46 "2001-02-23T21:33:29Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Randy \* > **Prefontaine** > > At this late hour, I can’t seem to come up with the Olympic Runners first name. (Steve?) I think it’s [Steve Prefontaine](http://us.imdb.com/Title?0119937), as in the movie starring Jared Leto (Jordan Catalano from “My So-Called Life”). There’s also a (I think) defensive lineman who was killed in a driving accident (the other driver was drunk) who had been drafted by the Indianapolis Colts. Phenomenal player/athlete/person/man. His fiancĂ©e wrote a letter to SI talking about the crash. And how about that soccer player who was murdered after he accidentally shot into his own goal in the (I think) 1994 World Cup? ---
**Author:** ![imthjckaz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/imthjckaz/32/3223_2.png) [@imthjckaz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/imthjckaz)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2001, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/besides-dale-earnhardt-what-other-sports-legends-died-while-on-top/55177/47 "2001-02-24T15:27:18Z")
Nice link, **punha** , but I think [this](http://home.att.net/~gkrishna/running/pre/) one tells more on the life of **Steve Prefontaine**. **Vinnie V** , I am sorry if I misunderstood your op, but I did forget one person, **Roberto Clemente** , who died while being a legend of the game. He died a few months after collecting his 3000th hit, on a humanitarian mission flight to earth quake stricken Nicaragua. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Great\_Zamboni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@The\_Great\_Zamboni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Great_Zamboni)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2001, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/besides-dale-earnhardt-what-other-sports-legends-died-while-on-top/55177/48 "2001-02-24T16:34:35Z")
Why is there only one mention of the 1973 (was it '73?) Marshall University Team that died in that plane crash? They deserve it. We all miss you Dale â˜č ---
**Author:** ![justinh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9fc29f/32.png) [@justinh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/justinh)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2001, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/besides-dale-earnhardt-what-other-sports-legends-died-while-on-top/55177/49 "2001-02-28T20:24:46Z")
Do you actually have to be on top of your sport or just on top? what about that soccer team that crashed in the Andes mountains then ate each other? they might not have been at the top of their sport but they were close to the top of the world. Derrick Thomas was close to the top of the “fathering children by different women without marriage or financially supporting them” club. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/besides-dale-earnhardt-what-other-sports-legends-died-while-on-top/55177.md?page=2)