Top 10 UK Athletes of 21st Century Named

The ESPN UK team have taken a look at the past 24 and a half years of action since the turn of the millennium and have revealed their top 25 athletes from the United Kingdom. For the rankings, the editorial, video and social teams have all had their say on who they think should be considered and where they should be placed on the list, using a voting system to choose between names and create a seeding system.

The list was inspired due to the Olympics getting underway this summer. The Games tend to ignite feelings of nostalgia, with millions across the world tuning in.

Over the last two decades, the UK has continued to produce many iconic sporting stars, making it tough to determine the best 25. With such a plethora of talent to choose from, many big names have missed out on the top 10.

The likes of Rory McIlroy, Wayne Rooney and Lennox Lewis – despite their success at the highest level, fail to make it in the top 10 of the stacked list. However, the following list of names has been considered the best among voters.

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10 Dame Kelly Holmes

Track

Specialising in the 800 metres and 1,500 metres events at the Summer Olympics throughout her career, Dame Kelly Holmes had to show real adversity on numerous occasions as a professional athlete. Joining the British Army at the age of 18 before committing to the track, Holmes used her background in the military to soldier on when the going got tough.

The Brit raced with a stress fracture in her shin at Atlanta 1996 that left her in a cast for seven weeks after. A year later, at the world championships, she was the favourite to win, but tore an Achilles tendon and ruptured a calf in the 1,500m heats. Opting against pulling out, she decided to take injections and power through the pain.

After suffering many setbacks, she picked up her first medal at Sydney 2000. She led in the 800m with just half the final straight to go before eventually claiming bronze. Her career finally took off in Athens four years later, where she made history by striking gold in the 800 and 1,500 metres.

9 Gareth Bale

Britain has produced some of the most talented football players to ever grace a football pitch. Gareth Bale will unquestionably go down as one of the greatest footballers of all time from the UK. The only footballer to feature in the top 10, no one could have predicted the explosion onto the world scene he would have as a young left-back at Southampton and Tottenham.

He’d soon become one of the most feared players in England before moving to Real Madrid – where he helped the Spanish giants to plenty of silverware, including a remarkable five Champions League titles. The Welsh wizard was also instrumental in Wales’ qualification for several international tournaments, playing a huge role in the nation’s run to the semi-final of Euro 2016.

The forward announced his retirement from football in 2023 after playing a part in his beloved Wales’ 2022 World Cup campaign in Qatar.

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8 Sir Mo Farah

Tack

Sir Mo Farah will unquestionably go down as one of the greatest long-distance runners of all time. As well as that, he is a true pioneer of British athletics and is a real fan favourite on the UK shores. With four Olympic gold medals to his name, his first two came in front of a home crowd at the London 2012 Games before winning two more at the Rio 2016 Games.

His double triumph in London will go down as one of the greatest sporting moments of the 21st century. He produced one of the most iconic images at the 2012 Games, pumping his arms and legs before crossing the line and performing his trademark “Mobot” after winning the men’s 10,000m on “Super Saturday” – the day he, Greg Rutherford and Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill all collected gold within 45 minutes.

After failing to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics in 2020, Farah retired from competitive running, making his final appearance in 2023.

7 Sir Chris Hoy

Cycling

Over the course of his career, cycling legend Sir Chris Hoy took part in four Olympic Games from 2000-2012 – winning a total of seven medals (six gold and one silver). His medal wins spanned across a range of events: team sprint, keirin, match sprint, and kilo.

While a large proportion of his success at the Olympics came in Beijing, his most iconic moment came during his last Games in 2012 in London. Not only did he claim gold in the team sprint, but Hoy obtained a new world record in the velodrome – the perfect way to end a glittering career.

6 Sir AP McCoy

Horse racing

Sir AP McCoy is one of the greatest National Hunt jockeys of all time. During his iconic career, he famously won two Cheltenham Gold Cups and the 2010 Grand National. The Northern Irishman was named British Jump Racing Champion Jockey a record 20 consecutive times.

During his career, he won 4,358 races – with the majority of his wins coming in races over fences. In his last year as a professional, 2014-15, he started the campaign in sensational fashion with 100 winners by August and had set his sights on an unprecedented 300-win season. His hopes were then dampened by a series of injuries which he attempted to ride through. Despite an unfortunate ending, he’s without a doubt one of the greatest athletes in the UK of all time.

5 Dame Laura Kenny

Cycling

Laura Kenny is the most successful British female athlete in Olympic history with six medals to her name – five gold and one silver, winning them across a range of team and individual pursuits in track cycling. Despite taking up trampolining growing up, it was in the sport of cycling where she’d make a name for herself.

A double Olympic champion in London, she followed that up with two more wins in Rio. Her win at Tokyo 2020 made her the first British woman to win consecutive golds at three Games. However, in 2024, she announced her retirement from cycling alongside her fellow cyclist husband, Jason Kenny.

4 Sir Jason Kenny

Cycling

Sir Jason Kenny is currently the most successful athlete from Great Britain at the Summer Olympics. Kenny is the holder of nine Olympic medals – seven gold and two silver – across just four Games.

He is also the most decorated cyclist in Olympic history. He was one of the figureheads of British cycling’s golden generation, with the group delivering Team GB several medals. His longevity and ability to succeed for a prolonged period of time is the main reason why he features above the rest of the cyclists on the list, according to ESPN.

Kenny announced his retirement earlier this year. However, he revealed his new role as men’s podium sprint coach with British Cycling, hoping to help others continue his legacy at Paris 2024.

3 Sir Andy Murray

Tennis

Throughout spells of his professional career, it looked as if Sir Andy Murray would be another ‘nearly man’ in British tennis. A top player, Murray was playing in the same era as the likes of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

After suffering an agonising defeat to Federer at Wimbledon in 2012, Murray became the first player since Ivan Lendl to lose his first four Grand Slam finals. Rather than letting the defeat get to him, the Brit came back and played some of the best tennis of his career.

Just weeks later, he beat Federer in straight sets and claimed Olympic gold at London 2012. From there, it’d only get better for Murray. He won his first Grand Slam that year at the US Open, defeating Djokovic in five sets over five hours. The Scot followed that up by returning to Wimbledon in 2013 and beating Djokovic again in the final. In doing so, he became the first British man in 77 to pick up the famous trophy.

He went on to win Wimbledon again in 2016 – beating Milos Raonic – as well as defending his Olympic title at Rio 2016. In those few years, it saw him become Sir Andy Murray, and he was rewarded for his career triumphs with three BBC Sports Personality of the Year awards between 2013 and 2016.

The last few years have seen Murray deal with several brutal injuries. This year’s Wimbledon was Murray’s last as a player and he was given an emotional send-off appearing on Centre Court at the All England Club.

2 James Anderson

Cricket

England’s leading wicket-taker, and arguably one of the greatest bowlers of all time – James Anderson – revealed that the opening Test against West Indies at Lord’s in July 2024 would be his last. The 41-year-old became the first seamer, and third bowler ever, to reach 700 Test wickets, after Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan in his most recent appearance against India back in March.

Anderson, who made his international debut over two decades ago played in 194 ODIs and 19 T20s before his England white-ball career ended back in 2015. Three years later, he overtook Glenn McGrath’s total of 563 Test wickets to become the most prolific fast bowler ever.

His performances in the 2010-11 series in Australia were heroic and inpisring, helping England to their only away Ashes win since 1986-87.

1 Sir Lewis Hamilton

Formula One

Topping the list is Formula One star, Sir Lewis Hamilton. The Brit is without a doubt, one of the biggest names in sport on the planet. However, it’s fair to say the Brit endured a tough campaign by his standards last year. Hamilton finished third in the Drivers’ Championship, 341 points behind eventual winner Max Verstappen, and failed to win a single race.

Huge news emerged from the world of Formula 1 back in February 2024 with Hamilton set to join Ferrari for the 2025 season. He is the most successful driver in Formula One history with 104 victories to his name. The Brit narrowly missed out on a title in his first season in 2007 before becoming the sport’s youngest ever champion a year later following an epic final-lap showdown with Felipe Massa. Despite edging closer to turning 40, Hamilton still has his eyes firmly set on his eighth championship title, which will no doubt make him the greatest F1 driver of all time.