Schumacher, greatest German athlete of all time
There was no contest in the poll set up by the newspaper Bild.
Following the triumph of the Dallas Mavericks and their iconic player, German Dirk Nowitzki, in the NBA finals, the German newspaper Bild decided to offer its readers a poll to determine the greatest German athlete of all time.
It is evident that despite a return deemed disappointing by most observers, it is indeed Michael Schumacher, 7-time Formula 1 world champion, who remains in the lead in the hearts across the Rhine. Out of 56,652 voters, 28.36% returned to Schumi, far ahead of the Kaïser Franz Beckenbauer (12.95%) and Dirk Nowitzki (12.35%), the latter likely benefiting from his recent newsworthy events to outpace multi-titled athletes like tennis players Steffi Graf and Boris Becker or the legendary Fritz Walter, captain of the Mannschaft during Germany’s first World Cup football victory in 1954.
On the motorsport side, it is worth noting that Sebastian Vettel ranks 10th, with 1.84% of the votes, which is an honorable position and certainly not definitive if his season concludes with another world championship title.
In 24th position, a small surprise in this ranking, as we find the 1961 F1 vice-champion, Wolfgang von Trips. Even though he only gathered 0.40% of the votes, his place is all the more surprising given that the German driver did not have a particularly noteworthy racing career. Having competed in 27 Formula 1 races, with 2 wins and 1 pole position, the Ferrari driver was battling for the title with his teammate Phil Hill in 1961. But during the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, the penultimate race of the season, von Trips was killed following a collision with Jim Clark. 14 spectators were also killed in this accident.
Ranking
1. Michael Schumacher (F1) – 28.36%
2. Franz Beckenbauer (Football) – 12.95%
3. Dirk Nowitzki (Basketball) – 12.35%
4. Steffi Graf (Tennis) – 10.47%
5. Fritz Walter (Football) – 3.99%
6. Boris Becker (Tennis) – 3.18%
7. Magdalena Neuner (Biathlon) – 2.98%
8. Gerd Muller (Football) – 2.53%
9. Max Schmeling (Boxing) – 2.34%
10. Sebastian Vettel (F1) – 1.84%
…
24. Wolfgang von Trips (F1) – 0.40%
…
33. Toni Mang (Moto) – 0.32%
