The 47 most dominant athletes in the world

Scott Davis,Alan Dawson,Meredith Cash,Barnaby Lane,Sam Cooper,Tyler Lauletta,Cork GainesJan 5, 2022, 20:42 IST

Shohei Ohtani made MLB history this season.Ashley Landis/AP Images

The sports world returned to a semi-normal in 2021.
We listed the 47 most dominant athletes of the year, including athletes from the Olympics, the four major American sports, soccer, and more.

Novak Djokovic

Novak Djokovic.AP Photo/John Minchillo

Jorginho

Jorginho with the Henri Delaunay Trophy.Getty/Claudio Villa

Elaine Thompson-Herah

Elaine Thompson-Herah.Tim Clayton/Corbis/Getty Images

Simone Biles

Simone Biles smiles after her balance beam routine at the Tokyo Olympics.JEFF PACHOUD/AFP via Getty Images

Tom Brady

Tom Brady.AP Photo/Danny Karnik

Kamaru Usman

Photo by Alex Menendez/Getty Images

Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi.Getty/Lionel Hahn

Giannis Antetokounmpo

Jacob Kupferman/AP Images

Shohei Ohtani

Shohei Ohtani is making history in MLB this season.Ashley Landis/AP Images

Max Verstappen

Verstappen became the first Dutch driver to win the world championship.Bryn Lennon/Getty Images

Paige Bueckers

David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

Connor McDavid

Connor McDavid.Steph Chambers/Getty Images

Emma Raducanu

Emma Raducanu truly dominated at the US Open.Getty/Elsa

Caeleb Dressel

Caeleb Dressel has goals beyond chasing Olympics;Matthias Schrader/AP Images

Jon Rahm

Jon Rahm.AP Photo/Gregory Bull

Jamie Chadwick

Jamie Chadwick is the only winner in W Series history.Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

Kyle Larson

Kyle Larson.Chris Graythen/Getty Images

Candace Parker

Scott Taetsch/Getty Images

Kayla Harrison

Photo by PFL MMA

Maro Itoje

Maro Itoje.Getty/Ian MacNicol

Emma McKeon

Emma McKeon.Attila Kisbenedek/AFP/Getty Images

Roman Reigns

Roman Reigns.Getty/Joe Camporeale

Kevin Durant

Kevin Durant.Matt Slocum/AP Images

Lasha Talakhadze

Lasha Talakhadze.Abbie Parr/Getty Images

Yukiko Ueno

REUTERS/Jorge Silva

Andrei Vasilevskiy

Andrei VasilevskiyMark LoMoglio/NHLI/Getty Images

Jonquel Jones

AP Photo/Ashley Landis

Lewis Hamilton

Hamilton won eight races this season.Buda Mendes/Getty Images

Quan Hongchan

Her father said fans were disturbing their livesXu Chang/Xinhua via Getty Images

Daniil Medvedev

Daniil Medvedev won this year's US Open.Getty/Matthew Stockman

Ryan Crouser

Ryan Crouser.Patrick Smith/Getty Images

The Kordas

Jessica and Nelly Korda.AP Photo/David Dermer

Erling Braut Haaland

Erling Braut Haaland.Getty/Alex Gottschalk

Mikaela Shiffrin

Mikaela Shiffrin.Michel Cottin/Agence Zoom/Getty Images

Khabib Nurmagomedov

Khabib Nurmagomedov coaching Islam Makhachev at UFC 267.Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

Robert Lewandowski

Robert LewanGOALski.Getty/Alexander Hassenstein

Joe Root

Root has scored 23 hundreds in his career.Visionhaus/Getty Images

Breanna Stewart

.AP Photo/John Bazemore

Ariarne Titmus

Ariarne Titmus.Jean Catuffe/Getty Images

Collin Morikawa

Collin Morikawa.AP Photo/Peter Morrison

Alexia Putellas

Bjorn Larsson Rosvall/TT News Agency via REUTERS

Stephen Curry

Stephen Curry.Tony Avelar/AP Images

Derrick Henry

Derrick Henry.AP Photo/Bill Kostroun

Christine Sinclair

Hector Vivas - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images

Katie Ledecky

Al Bello/Getty Images

Jin Young Ko

Jin Young Ko.AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell

Saul Alvarez

Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez.Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images

The most stunning photos across women's sports from the last month — winter sports, national championships, and more

Cookies on the Business Insider India website