Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani had a phenomenal year in 2024. It was the best by a professional athlete in North American sports without question. However, it wasn't enough for one venerable publication.
Once upon a time, Sports Illustrated was considered like the bible of American sports. Published weekly, with fantastic photos and outstanding prose, it was a must-read for sports fans in the United States.
The publication has been on the slide for years now, and some of the choices made for their annual honor of Sportsperson of the Year have reflected that. Political correctness has been an issue in American life for decades, but only in the past 10 years or so has it crept into the field of sports.
The most recent example came in early January when Sports Illustrated passed over Ohtani for the Sportsperson of the Year in favor of American gymnast Simone Biles.
Shohei Ohtani Deserved the Prestigious Honor
Now there is no question that Biles, who won three gold medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics and has 11 Olympic medals in total, is one of the greatest gymnasts of all time. But last year she featured at an event that was two weeks long, while Ohtani dominated the sporting landscape with one of the greatest seasons in baseball history over the course of six months.
In awarding Biles that honor, Sports Illustrated wrote, "The most decorated gymnast of all time is more than her staggering medal count. She has altered the face of gymnastics, sparked sweeping change across sports — and this year capped it all with an astonishing personal comeback."
Sports Illustrated Has Honored International Stars Since its Inception
In the long history of Sports Illustrated, which began in 1954, the magazine has named a foreign-born person one of its top athletes more than 10 times, with England's Roger Bannister, who broke the four-minute mile, being the first back in SI's inaugural year.
Other legendary names that have received the accolade include Canadian ice hockey greats Bobby Orr and Wayne Gretzky, Sweden's heavyweight boxing champion Ingemar Johansson, Scotland's auto racing star Jackie Stewart and Japan's tennis phenom Naomi Osaka.
With Sports Illustrated being an American outlet, it is understandable that the majority of the selections over the years have been US natives. But as the list of the aforementioned foreign honorees has shown, when an accomplishment that is so incredible has been achieved ― like Ohtani's 2024 season that saw him become the first major leaguer in history to surpass the 50-home run, 50-stolen base plateau ― it must be recognized to make the honor retain any sense of legitimacy.
The choice of Biles over Ohtani was a head-scratcher.
Was Ohtani passed over because he is Japanese and Osaka had shared the award just four years ago in 2020?
What possible reason could there have been for the decision?
"No one's ever had a season like Ohtani had in 2024," best-selling author Robert Whiting noted in an email to Notes on a Scorecard. "On the other hand, you could also argue, Biles has, more than once. Still, SI's decline is sad."
Shohei Ohtani: Rise in Global Stardom
The 30-year-old Ohtani was named The Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year for the third time in December, tying him with basketball legend Michael Jordan for the second-most times among men (Tiger Woods, Lance Armstrong and LeBron James have won it four times apiece). Ohtani was a decisive winner, claiming 48 votes from the 74 sports journalists from AP and its members who were polled for the award.
AP selected basketball star Caitlin Clark as its Female Athlete of the Year for 2024, a deserved honor for the rookie who brought record attention to the WNBA last summer. Clark netted 35 votes with Biles coming in a distant second with 25 in the voting.
The fact is that no other outlet but SI named Biles for its annual honor in 2024. Time magazine picked Clark as its Athlete of the Year, choosing her as the sole recipient.
If Shohei Ohtani could not win SI's top honor in a year in which he set benchmarks that could stand for decades, while helping lead the Dodgers to the World Series title, he will never win it. And that is a real shame.
RELATED:
- Shohei Ohtani Selected as AP Male Athlete of the Year
- EDITORIAL | World Series Win Caps Shohei Ohtani's Amazing Year
- Shohei Ohtani Becomes MLB's 1st 3-Time Unanimous MVP Award Winner
Author: Jack Gallagher
The author is a veteran sports journalist and one of the world's foremost figure skating experts. Find Jack's articles and podcasts on his author page, and find him on X (formerly Twitter) @sportsjapan.
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