"No distance runners tells me this list is utter nonsense" - Fans react to omission of Track & Field stars in ESPN's Top 100 Pro Athletes since 2000

Fans recently reacted to the omission of a few elite track and field athletes from ESPN's list of Top 100 Professional Athletes in the 21st century. The list includes premier athletes from various disciplines, including swimming, tennis, football, basketball, and baseball.

The compilation majorly focuses on the NFL and baseball players, sidelining the stellar talent in the track and field events. Although legendary sprinters Usain Bolt, Allyson Felix, and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce were included, fans were unimpressed by the ranking allotted to these athletes.

Moreover, the list does not include any middle-distance runners. Fans pointed out the absence of Kenyan long-distance runner Eluid Kipchoge, who has collected four Olympic medals.

"Michael Phelps at #1, Allyson Felix at #63 and no distance runners tells me that this list is utter nonsense," wrote a fan.

"Kipchoge snub is criminal," wrote another fan.

Another fan criticized the list for excluding Sifan Hassan, who clinched gold medals in the 5000m and 10,000m and a bronze medal in the 1500m at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

"INSANE to not have Sifan Hassan in the Top 100."

A fan condemned the list for not acknowledging the efforts of the athletes competing in the decathlon, a grueling ten-event track and field competition.

"The current decathlon record holder should be in the top 100, I don't care if it’s an unpopular event, they gotta be skilled in 10 disciplines," the fan wrote.

Here are a few more reactions:

"Seriously, not a list to be taken seriously," wrote a fan.

"Any list of top athletes that doesn't include Ashton Eaton is fraudulent," another fan expressed.

"Don’t trust or believe anything that ESPN puts out unless you saw it with your own eyes," one of the fans wrote.

Track and Field athletes whose positions in ESPN's Top 100 Professional Athletes list can be questioned

Usain Bolt was ranked ninth in the ESPN's Top 100 Professional Athletes list. (Image by Getty)

Legendary sprinter Usain Bolt, whose 100m and 200m world records set in 2009 still stand, was allotted ninth place in the ESPN's Top 100 Professional Athletes list since 2000. Bolt established his legacy by clinching eight Olympic medals in three editions.

America's beloved former sprinter Allyson Felix was placed 63rd. Felix secured seven golds, three silvers, and one bronze medal in the Olympics. Her feats greatly influenced the trajectory of women's athletics in the USA.

37-year-old Jamaican sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, who dominated the 100m at the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games, was in 77th position on ESPN's Top 100 Pro Athletes list. After collecting eight Olympic medals, the Jamaican sprinter is all set to compete in her last Olympics in Paris.