5 Most Inspirational Sports Stars Of All Time

A track-and-field athlete specialising in sprints and the long jump, Jesse Owens rose to prominence in 1935 at the Big Ten track meet in Michigan. It was there that he set three world records and equalled another, described as the greatest 45 minutes in sports.

However, it was a year later that his legacy and icon status was truly cemented. Taking part in the Berlin Olympics, Owens won four gold medals: 100m, 200m, 4x100m relay, and long jump.

Winning four medals is an incredible achievement anyway, especially at one Games, it's the context of his accomplishments that makes them truly inspirational. Adolf Hitler was using the Games as a means of showcasing the strengths of Nazi Germany to the rest of the world, with hopes of German dominance, and propaganda promoting Aryan supremacy, and Owens' success was the single biggest counter to those claims.