26Muhammad Ali
In 1990 Muhammad Ali went to Iraq to meet with Saddam Hussein about releasing 15 American civilians being held in Iraq by Hussein against their will. After meeting with Hussein, Ali got all 15 American prisoners released and they returned to America 3 days later.
27. Elite athletes sleep longer than average humans. Roger Federer sleeps 12 hours a day. Usain Bolt 9-10 hours a day. Le Bron James also sleeps 12 hours. For a long time, while he was struggling with his form, Tiger Woods had a sleep disorder.
28. American basketball player Wilt Chamberlain once challenged Muhammad Ali to a boxing match. Wilt was a foot taller, 60 pounds heavier, and had a 92-inch reach. During a joint press conference, Ali answered every question with “Timberrrrr!” After breaking to meet with his lawyers, Wilt returned and called the fight off.
29. Bo Jackson was drafted in the first round of the 1986 NFL draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but he refused to sign because he believed that they tried to sabotage his baseball career by purposefully making him ineligible for his senior season.
30. Michael Jordan took home economics in high school to learn to cook because he was worried his big ears would make it hard to find a woman who would want to marry him.
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31David Beckham
Snoop Dogg and David Beckham are such good friends that Snoop sends Beckham his new music before it’s officially released.
32. Cristiano Ronaldo refuses to get any tattoos on his body just so he can continue on donating blood.
33. After Usain Bolt broke the 100 m world record at the 2009 Berlin World Championships, the mayor of Berlin awarded him a 12 foot long, 6000-pound piece of the Berlin Wall. Bolt accepted and it is now housed at the Jamaica Military Museum.
34. The most recent of Wayne Gretzky’s 60 NHL records was set sometime after his 1999 retirement. His points-per-game average of 1.921 was second only to Mario Lemieux (2.005), who later came out of retirement and lowered his own average, moving Gretzky to the number 1 spot.
35. Michael Jordan once tipped a waitress a $5 chip for bringing him a drink. Wayne Gretzky stopped the waitress, removed the $5 chip, grabbed one of the many $100 chips on Jordan’s side of the table, and gave it to her. Then he said, “That’s how we tip in Las Vegas, Michael.”
36Phil Mickelson
American professional golfer Phil Mickelson is actually right-handed in everything he does. He only golfs as a lefty because he would mirror his dad’s swing as a child.
37. As a child, Muhammad Ali was refused an autograph from his boxing idol Sugar Ray Robinson. When Ali became a prized fighter he vowed to never deny an autograph request, which he honored throughout his entire career. He even had a special P.O. box for anyone who wanted his autograph.
38. If Wayne Gretzky had never taken a single shot in his career, he would still be the all-time points leader. In other words, he had more assists than anybody has ever had goals and assists.
39. Manny Pacquiao became World Boxing Champion in 1998. Over 20 years later he is still World Boxing Champion with his latest victory being over an undefeated Keith Thurman who was 10 years younger (as of December 2019).
40. Pelé was declared a national treasure by the Brazilian President after the 1962 World cup, to prevent him from transferring to foreign clubs.
41Lewis Hamilton
When Lewis Hamilton was nine years old, the UK bookmaker Ladbrokes took a bet that he would win the World Drivers’ Championship before turning 25. Ladbrokes calculated the odds at 150/1. After Hamilton did so, the bettor received £150,000.
