# SI Sportsperson of the Year 2024 **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [August 11, 2024, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571 "2024-08-11T16:11:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2024, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/1 "2024-08-11T16:11:36Z")
Now that the Olympics are over, it’s time to start _that_ discussion… If you ask me, based on what SI has done in the past, the choice seems obvious, and the only choice is whether it’s one person or two: 1. Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce - but probably only if they can get at least one photo of Kelce with Taylor Swift, so it can get the Swifties to buy the issue 2. Just Mahomes 3. Stephen Curry and Simone Biles - I had LeBron & Bronny at #3 before those last two games in the Olympics 4. Simone Biles, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, and maybe a few other female USA Olympic athletes - why, yes, I do keep saying that every year, don’t I? 5. Curry, LeBron, and maybe Kevin Durant. ---
**Author:** ![SwissMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e79b87/32.png) [@SwissMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SwissMan)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2024, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/2 "2024-08-11T16:29:40Z")
Caitlin Clark will probably be a contender as well. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2024, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/3 "2024-08-11T18:30:01Z")
Past winners, for those interested… [Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sports_Illustrated_Sportsperson_of_the_Year) I’d like to see Simone Biles, but it feels pretty random somtimes. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2024, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/4 "2024-08-11T18:31:54Z")
> [@SwissMan](#): > > Caitlin Clark will probably be a contender as well. As far as impact on her sport, and fan interest in it, she’d be a good choice. ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/5 "2024-08-12T00:28:51Z")
> [@SwissMan](#): > > Caitlin Clark will probably be a contender as well. Put her in as #6. Choosing her over any of the Olympic team members would be sending the message that leaving her off was a mistake. I forgot to add Katie Ledecky to the list for #4. However, I am still fairly convinced that it will be Mahomes, with or without Kelce. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/6 "2024-08-12T01:30:23Z")
On the last day of the Olympics I can’t think of anyone other than an Olympian. Katie, Simone and Sydney feels right in a year when the Olympics reached gender parity for the first time. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/7 "2024-08-12T01:34:49Z")
Can we include [Mallory Swanson](https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/olympics/2024/08/10/mallory-swansons-goal-secures-olympic-gold-for-uswnt/74749962007/) in the Olympian group? She _did_ score the goal that secured the gold medal for the USA in soccer. ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 10:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/8 "2024-08-12T10:36:15Z")
I think it should be Courtney Dauwalter, but nobody on this board agrees with me 🙂. In all seriousness, it probably should be her, and I’d like to thank @Slow_Moving_Vehicle for keeping us abreast of her extraordinary accomplishments. In the real world, it should be Biles. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/9 "2024-08-12T15:32:43Z")
> [@Dead\_Cat](#): > > I think it should be Courtney Dauwalter, but nobody on this board agrees with me 🙂. > > In all seriousness, it probably should be her, and I’d like to thank @Slow_Moving_Vehicle for keeping us abreast of her extraordinary accomplishments. > > In the real world, it should be Biles Ha! Thanks for the acknowledgement. Courtney is still the GOAT on the women’s side, but she hasn’t matched the year she had last year – she won the Hardrock 100 for the third straight year, but skipped Western States and UTMB. She’s had a solid season, winning Transgrancanaria and the Mount Fuji 100 in the spring, before defending her Hardrock title, but 2023 was something unique in ultrarunning. Only one other runner has won the three iconic ultras Western States, Hardrock, and UTMB – the legendary Kilian Jornet – but even he hasn’t won all three in the same year. My longshot for SPOY would be the US Olympic track and field team. They continued their dominance of sprinting and short-distance running (albeit losing the 4x400 mixed relay for the first time in the event’s history), but added gold and bronze in the men’s 1500m, bronze in men’s 5000m, bronze in men’s 10000m, an 8th place finish in the men’s marathon and a 12th in the women’s race. Cole Hocker running down both Jakob Ingebrigtsen and Josh Kerr in the 1500 was a huge upset. Historically, the U.S. has been an also-ran (ha!) in distance running, but four medals in this Games, added to bronze medals in women’s marathon and men’s 5000m three years ago in Tokyo, shows a resurgence of American distance running. We’re still not at the level of the Ethiopians and Kenyans, but we’re not completely overmatched, either. ---
**Author:** ![XOldiesJock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/ec9cab/32.png) [@XOldiesJock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XOldiesJock)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/10 "2024-08-12T15:56:31Z")
**Katie Ledecky** , the most decorated female swimmer of all time. Did Michael Phelps get the nod after his Olympic swimming victories? If he did, she should. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/11 "2024-08-12T16:01:54Z")
> [@XOldiesJock](#): > > Did Michael Phelps get the nod after his Olympic swimming victories? He won in 2008, having earned eight gold medals at the Tokyo Game that year. Ledecky has nine Olympic gold medals, but spread out over three different Olympics. Generally speaking, SI doesn’t seem to use the award to recognize lifetime achievement, but who knows? ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/12 "2024-08-12T16:05:03Z")
After giving it to Deion Sanders last year, I suspect someone equally deserving will get the nod this year a- it’ll either be Warren Buffett, the Pillsbury Dough Boy, or Bob Dylan. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/13 "2024-08-12T16:26:38Z")
I’m still confused. What happened with Deion Sanders that made them pick him? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/14 "2024-08-12T16:28:52Z")
> [@XOldiesJock](#): > > **Katie Ledecky** , the most decorated female swimmer of all time. Did Michael Phelps get the nod after his Olympic swimming victories? If he did, she should. Tori Huske, I think, won the most medals in this Olympics. 5. Uh, for Americans, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/15 "2024-08-12T16:36:09Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > I’m still confused. What happened with Deion Sanders that made them pick him? Sanders became head coach of the University of Colorado’s football team last year (leaving a smaller school, Jackson State, where he’d been a successful coach for three seasons). Being Deion, he generated an absolute ton of media coverage, and used the “transfer portal” to completely rebuild the team’s roster, including his two sons (one of whom became Colorado’s starting QB). Early in the season, they played well: they started 3-0, beat rival Colorado State in overtime, and Sanders and the team were featured on a segment of _60 Minutes_. But, they stumbled badly after that, finishing 4-8 (and only 1-8 in the Pac-12). He was a terrible choice for the award, given his team’s actual performance. It’s pretty clear that SI gave him the award for the media impact. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/16 "2024-08-12T16:59:10Z")
It wouldn’t surprise me if Lia Thomas got some consideration. ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/17 "2024-08-12T19:09:12Z")
> [@XOldiesJock](#): > > **Katie Ledecky** , the most decorated female swimmer of all time. Did Michael Phelps get the nod after his Olympic swimming victories? If he did, she should. Yes, he did, but he won eight _at the same Olympics_. Note that Mark Spitz won 7 in 1972 (9 overall, if you include 1968), and he did not. > [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](#): > > My longshot for SPOY would be the US Olympic track and field team. They continued their dominance of sprinting and short-distance running (albeit losing the 4x400 mixed relay for the first time in the event’s history), but added gold and bronze in the men’s 1500m, bronze in men’s 5000m, bronze in men’s 10000m, an 8th place finish in the men’s marathon and a 12th in the women’s race. Cole Hocker running down both Jakob Ingebrigtsen and Josh Kerr in the 1500 was a huge upset. Historically, the U.S. has been an also-ran (ha!) in distance running, but four medals in this Games, added to bronze medals in women’s marathon and men’s 5000m three years ago in Tokyo, shows a resurgence of American distance running. We’re still not at the level of the Ethiopians and Kenyans, but we’re not completely overmatched, either. Er, USA finished third in the mixed 4x400 in 2021, and even that was after it had to be reinstated after a disqualification caused by the second runner lining up outside of her passing zone (because a Japanese official told her where to go - ironically, it almost happened again, but this time an official told the runner to back up into the zone). You might be confusing it with the 4x100 mixed medley swimming relay, which USA did lose for the first time (to China). You are also asking to open the can of worms concerning which of the two tied men’s high jumpers asked for the jump-off rather than agreeing to share the gold medals, especially as that would have given the USA 41. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/18 "2024-08-12T19:31:34Z")
Seems like it should be Simone Biles – great performance, and a great comeback story from four years ago. She does stuff on the vault that the men don’t even do. She made remarkable strides in women’s gymnastics, with two moves named after her. And, she’s probably done now, so it’s a good time to do this – Mahomes will still be around next year. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/19 "2024-08-12T20:26:14Z")
> [@notfrommensa](#): > > It wouldn’t surprise me if Lia Thomas got some consideration. It would surprise me. What has she done in sports this year? Last race was in 2022 I think. > [@Dead\_Cat](#): > > I think it should be Courtney Dauwalter, but nobody on this board agrees with me 🙂. > > In all seriousness, it probably should be her, and I’d like to thank @Slow_Moving_Vehicle for keeping us abreast of her extraordinary accomplishments. No one knows who that is and they aren’t going to use the award to educate people. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2024, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571/20 "2024-08-12T20:33:37Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > No one knows who that is and they aren’t going to use the award to educate people. Exactly. As was discussed at length in threads on previous years’ awards, the award is at least as much about generating sales/clicks/views/media coverage for SI as it is about recognizing a sportsperson. A recipient in a niche sport with a small following and little name recognition among the general public defeats the first purpose above. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/si-sportsperson-of-the-year-2024/1005571.md?page=2)