One word - ALI!

That dude is perhaps not just a man. Muhammad Ali has become a symbol of sports all over the world. I remember reading about the 'Cassius Clay' in an old book as a kid and couldn't understand that Clay and and Ali were the same guy (I was like 10-11). My mother had to explain it to me :-)

They guy is up there with most influential people of all times -perhaps he has even become symbol beyond sports