A multi-sport athlete is an athlete who competes or trains at two or more different sports. A notable two-sport athlete, Deion Sanders achieved the rare feat of playing in both a Super Bowl and a World Series. While he won two Super Bowl titles, a World Series championship eluded him.
The following is a list of professional athletes who have earned recognition as Olympic champions or world champions in other major competitions in at least two distinct sports.
List of athletes The following is arranged by the earliest to accomplish the feat. #Year AchievedAthleteSports Notes11896Carl SchuhmannArtistic gymnasticsGreco-Roman wrestlingAt the inaugural modern Olympic Games in 1896, Schuhmann won gold medals in artistic gymnastics in the team parallel bars, team horizontal bar, and vault. He also captured gold in the Games' sole wrestling event, becoming the first athlete to win four gold medals at a single Olympics.21916Jim ThorpeTrack and field American footballThorpe won gold medals in the pentathlon and decathlon at the 1912 Summer Olympics. In football, he was a three-time champion of the Ohio League, the predecessor to the NFL. He also played professional baseball and basketball.31920Morris KirkseyTrack and fieldRugby unionAt the 1920 Summer Olympics, Kirksey won gold in the 4 × 100 metres relay, silver in the 100 metres, and also helped the American team capture gold in rugby.4Daniel NorlingArtistic gymnasticsEquestrian vaultingAt the 1908 Summer Olympics, Norling represented Sweden, winning gold in the gymnastics team event. He repeated the feat at the 1912 Games in the team Swedish system event, and later added another gold medal in team equestrian jumping at the 1920 Games.51932Eddie EaganBoxingBobsleighEagan competed in boxing during his first two Olympic appearances, capturing gold in the light heavyweight division at the 1920 Summer Olympics. He later switched to bobsleigh at the 1932 Winter Olympics, where he helped the four-man team secure another gold medal. He is the only athlete to win a gold medal in both the Winter and Summer Olympics.61940Babe Didrikson ZahariasTrack and fieldGolfExcelling at sports including basketball and baseball, Zaharias won gold medals in the 80m hurdles and javelin throw, and a silver medal in the high jump at the 1932 Summer Olympics. In golf, she won 10 LPGA major championships.71946Otto GrahamAmerican footballBasketballMonths before beginning his rookie season with the Cleveland Browns in 1946, Graham joined the Rochester Royals of the National Basketball League (a precursor to the NBA), helping them sweep the Sheboygan Red Skins for the NBL title. That same year, he also won his first professional football championship, making him a two-sport champion in 1946. He went on to win four AAFC championships and three NFL championships, all with the Browns.81948Jaroslav DrobnýTennisIce hockeyDrobný won one Wimbledon and two French Open titles in singles, and one French Open title apiece in doubles and mixed doubles. In ice hockey, he won a gold medal at the 1947 World Championships and a silver medal at the 1948 Winter Olympics representing Czechoslovakia.91959Gene ConleyBaseballBasketballThe only athlete to win a World Series and NBA Championship, Conley was a four-time All-Star pitcher and won the 1957 World Series with the Milwaukee Braves. He also spent six seasons in the NBA, winning three straight championships with the Boston Celtics before finishing his basketball career in the Eastern Professional Basketball League.101972Bob HayesTrack and fieldAmerican footballThe only athlete in history to win an Olympic gold medal and a Super Bowl, Hayes won the men's 100 metres and 4 × 100 metres relay at the 1964 Summer Olympics. On January 16, 1972, he won Super Bowl VI as a member of the Dallas Cowboys.111986Christa Luding-RothenburgerSpeed skatingTrack cyclingLuding-Rothenburger captured gold in the 500 metres speed skating at the 1984 Winter Olympics, adding a silver in 1988 and a bronze in 1992, and also claimed gold in the 1000 metres at the 1984 Games. In track cycling, she won the World Championships in 1986 and earned a silver medal at the 1988 Olympics.121994Walter Ray Williams Jr.BowlingHorseshoesWilliams has won a record 47 standard PBA Tour career titles, including the 2001–02, 2002–03, and 2005–06 PBA World Championship. In horseshoes, Williams is a six-time world champion and three-time junior world champion.132008Rebecca RomeroRowingTrack cyclingRomero earned a silver medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics and captured gold the following year at the 2005 World Rowing Championships. In track cycling, she won gold at the 2008 Summer Olympics and is a two-time UCI Track Cycling World Champion.142018Ester LedeckáSnowboardingAlpine skiingAt the 2018 Winter Olympics, Ledecká competed in both snowboarding and alpine skiing, claiming gold in the parallel giant slalom and the Super-G. She won gold again in the parallel giant slalom at the 2022 Winter Olympics.152018Tove AlexanderssonOrienteeringSki orienteeringSki mountaineeringSkyrunningTrail runningSkySnowAlexandersson has won dozens of gold medals at world championships across several different sports, including the World Orienteering Championships, World Ski Orienteering Championships, Skyrunning World Championships, World Championships of Ski Mountaineering, IAU Trail World Championships, and SkySnow World Championships.
Notable exceptions The IOC classifies cross-country skiing, Nordic combined, and biathlon as related sports since cross-country skiing is a core element in each, rather than treating them as distinctly different sports (DDS). Likewise, swimming and water polo are both part of aquatics and thus considered related rather than distinct. Year AchievedAthleteSports Notes1900John Arthur JarvisSwimmingWater poloAt the 1900 Summer Olympics, Jarvis represented Great Britain, winning gold medals in the 1000 metres freestyle and the 4000 metres freestyle, as well as in water polo.1904Leo GoodwinSwimmingWater poloAt the 1904 Summer Olympics, Goodwin represented the United States, winning gold in water polo and in the 4 x 50 yards freestyle relay.Louis HandleySwimmingWater poloAt the 1904 Summer Olympics, Handley represented the United States, winning gold in water polo and in the 4 × 50 yards freestyle relay.Joe RuddySwimmingWater poloAt the 1904 Summer Olympics, Ruddy represented the United States, winning gold in water polo and in the 4 × 50 yards freestyle relay.1912Paul RadmilovicSwimmingWater poloRepresenting Great Britain at the 1908 Summer Olympics, Radmilovic won gold in water polo and in swimming's 4 × 200 metres freestyle relay. He later added two more water polo gold medals at the 1912 and 1920 Games.1924Thorleif HaugCross-country skiingNordic combinedAt the 1924 Winter Olympics, Haug won gold in the 18 kilometre and 50 kilometre cross-country skiing events. She also won a gold medal at the Nordic combined.1928Johan GrøttumsbråtenCross-country skiingNordic combinedAt the 1928 Winter Olympics, Grøttumsbråten won a gold medal in the 18 kilometre cross-country skiing event and Nordic combined. He repeated at the Nordic combined in the 1932 Winter Olympics.1952Heikki HasuCross-country skiingNordic combinedHasu won gold in Nordic combined at the 1948 Winter Olympics and added a silver in the event at the 1952 Games, where he also captured gold in the cross-country relay. At the 1950 World Championships, he won gold in Nordic combined and silver in the cross-country relay.1992Anfisa ReztsovaBiathlonCross-country skiingReztsova won gold in the biathlon at the 1992 and 1994 Olympic Games. She also won a gold medal in cross-country skiing at the 1988 Winter Olympics and three gold medals at the World Championships.
Combat sports
ADCC and IBJJF world champions are grouped as BJJ/Submission grappling—distinct in style, but part of the same grappling discipline.