Football’s Federer and Brazil’s Queen

Skill, grace, effortlessness, accuracy and a burgeoning collection of silverware define German midfield maestro Toni Kroos. Former Argentine playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme dubbed him the closest thing football has to Roger Federer. Kroos was so good, you hardly noticed him playing. And if you decided to focus on him, it almost felt like he was playing a different game, one where midfields weren’t congested and time was abundant. His achievements are quite freakish: a treble winner at 23 with German club Bayern Munich, a World Cup winner with Germany at 24, forming arguably the greatest midfield ever with Luka Modric and Casemiro and being the lynchpin of arguably the greatest Galactico side Spanish club Real Madrid ever assembled, and winning three Champions Leagues in a row.

Kroos won six Champions Leagues in total, the most by any player, including in his final season. And that’s the outlier. He retired at 34, after being called out of retirement to play for his country at Euro 2024. The footballing world wasn’t quite ready for his announcement, but like his passing, Kroos knew the exact moment he wanted to let the ball go.

For a girl born in a little town just six years after Brazil legalised women’s football, Marta has outdone herself and then some. If someone listed down her accolades and asked people to guess who the player in question is, I’d forgive them for answering Lionel Messi. She is the only footballer to win five consecutive Ballon d’Ors, has the most goals (17) at FIFA World Cups, and is the first player to score in five different World Cups. An attacking midfield player who could also play upfront or down the wings, she possessed incredible technique, ball control and mastery of the dead ball. Such was her influence on the women’s game, she was referred to as “Pele in a skirt” in the lead up to the 2007 World Cup. But for all her individual laurels, she never won a global title with Brazil, finishing runners-up in the 2007 World Cup and in three Olympic Games, including her last one in Paris 2024. She finishes as Brazil’s all-time top scorer, male or female. Brazil have always had their King, Pele. They can complete footballing royalty with their Queen, Marta.

As we wind down an epic summer of sports and return to normality, we also bid goodbye to a particularly high number of generational athletes…

Disbanding of tennis’ Big FOUR

Novak Djokovic’s defeat in the final of Wimbledon and early exit in the US Open means this is the first year since 2002 when the Big Four haven’t won a Grand Slam. This marks the inevitable end to the utter dominance of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray and Djokovic. Federer retired in 2022 after teaming up with Nadal and Djokovic in the Laver Cup.

After a teary withdrawal from Wimbledon, Andy Murray partnered Dan Evans in doubles for Paris 2024. His final tournament was reminiscent of Murray’s entire career, where he had to back on incredible self-belief and sheer determination to grind out results, saving multiple match points before prevailing in the deciding tiebreakers in the first two rounds. Despite never reaching the stellar heights of the other members of the Big Four, Murray won three Grand Slams, becoming the first British man to do so since Fred Perry in the 1930s.

Rafael Nadal had withdrawn from the Australian Open and Wimbledon, and lost in the first round of the French Open before the Olympics, his worst result in his favourite tournament, which he’s won an unprecedented 14 times. Add the four US Opens,

two Australian Opens and two Wimbledon titles that he’s won, and he sits second on the all-time list behind Djokovic.

Nadal is also the youngest player to complete the Career Golden Slam, winning all four majors at 25, which leaves you to wonder what could have been if not for his injuries. At the Olympics, he bowed out against Djokovic in singles, the 60th time they played each other. In doubles, he partnered the next big thing, fellow Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz, entertaining everyone before exiting in the quarter-finals. Even after his two defeats, Nadal’s record at Roland Garros reads a ridiculous 115-6. While Nadal hasn’t yet announced his retirement, there is speculation he might follow his great rival and friend Federer and retire after the Laver Cup, or wait for one final swansong at Roland Garros next year.

(I was tempted to add Djokovic to the list of goodbyes before he proved me wrong and won gold at the Paris Olympics.)

The female Bolt and the sub two-hour marathon

Two of the greatest athletes of all time. Both dominated track and field events for well over 15 years. Even though they ended their careers with disappointing results in Paris, their legacies remain untainted.

Jamaican Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is the most decorated sprinter of all time, winning an anomalous five World Championships in 100 metres to go with her two Olympic golds in the same distance. In 2013, she swept the sprinting events at the World Championships by winning 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay, mirroring fellow Jamaican Usain Bolt’s achievements. In 2014, she added the indoor 60m gold to become the only person ever to hold all four sprinting titles simultaneously.

Fraser-Pryce is also the oldest possessor of a global 100m title, winning the 2022 World Championships at 35, as well as the third fastest woman in history over the distance. In a sport where longevity is recherché, she has rewritten the limits of sprinting durability. Bolt and Fraser-Pryce both won their first golds at the 2008 Olympics. Bolt retired in 2017, Fraser-Pryce has since had a child, won two World Championships and an Olympic silver, and retired seven years later after withdrawing from the 100m semi-finals through an injury.

Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge has been the face of long-distance running for a decade. Having burst on the scene as a teenager by winning the 5,000m at the 2003 World Championships, he would go on to win a slew of medals in track events at the Olympics and in World Championships before switching to running on the road. Here, he became the third person to win back-to-back gold medals in Olympic marathons, set the world record twice and did the unthinkable by running the marathon distance in less than two hours, albeit not under the official regulations for pacemakers and fluids.

Kipchoge had won 15 of the 19 marathons he entered before Paris 2024, confirming his status as the ‘greatest of all time’ in distance running. In his final marathon, he dropped back from the lead due to a hip injury and retired after letting the last runner through at the 31-km mark. He gave away his shoes and kit to his adoring fans, promising to continue running to inspire people to do the same.

Other prominent farewells

England great Jimmy Anderson bid farewell to cricket after the first Test of the summer against West Indies. The 42-year-old finishes with 704 Test wickets, the most by a fast bowler and third-most overall, and as England’s leading wicket-taker in one-day internationals. His 23-year career, movement off the pitch and wobble seam will go down in folklore.

Even the great Michael Phelps didn’t win an event over five consecutive Olympic Games. That distinction belongs to Cuba’s Mijain Lopez Nunez, who crowned his glittering career by winning the men’s Greco-Roman 130 kilogrammes category. He departed with the beautiful wrestling tradition of leaving one’s shoes in the mat, signifying retirement.

The two most famous table tennis players of all time, Germany’s Timo Boll and Chinese legend Ma Long, have both confirmed that Paris 2024 was their last major tournament. Boll holds the distinction of being the oldest world number one and has featured in seven Olympics. Long is the most decorated table tennis player in history, bowing out with six Olympic gold medals and 14 World Championship victories.

The writer is a sports enthusiast with a background in supply chain management. X: @tahagoheer

Published in Dawn, EOS, September 8th, 2024