Most lists of the greatest athletes of all time tend to be dominated by male athletes, though there have been many female athletes who have excelled and had a significant impact on their sport.

Serena Williams Serena Williams

There have been several lists of great females athletes, and any reliable one should have Babe Didrickson Zaharias and Lottie Dod at or near the top. These two were once named by the Guinness Book of Records as the world's most versatile female competitors. Athlete Jackie Joyner-Kersee is also found at the top of these lists, and may be the greatest modern greatest female athlete.

Here are some details of top female athlete lists that have been published.

  • CBS list of the top 24 female athletes of all time - top of this list form 2016 is Jackie Joyner-Kersee then Serena Williams.
  • Sports Illustrated list of the Top 118 Female Athletes — published in 2000, top of this list is Jackie Joyner-Kersee and Babe Didrikson Zaharias.
  • ESPN list of the top 40 female athletes of the past 40 years from June 2012 had US Soccer player Mia Hamm leading from Martina Navratilova then Jackie Joyner-Kersee.
  • Bleacher Report list of the Top 50 female athletes ever, with Jackie Joyner-Kersee top followed by mulit-sport athlete Babe Didrikson Zaharias.
  • The ESPN SportsCentury program in 1999 created a list of the Top-100 Athletes of the 20th Century (which was limited to North American athletes), which included eight females; Babe Zaharias (ranked 10th), Martina Navratilova, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Wilma Rudolph, Chris Evert, Billie Jean King, Althea Gibson, Bonnie Blair.
  • Seven Wonders - our list of the top 7 greatest women athletes of all time.

Some of the Greatest Female Athletes

Here is a list of some of the top 'greatest female athletes' the world has ever seen, sourced from the above lists and others. If you have someone else to suggest, let me know by commenting below.

The available lists of the greatest female athletes are becoming dated. Women's sport is on the rise, and some great athletes have made their mark in recent years, including gymnast Simone Biles, Serena and Venus Williams, skiier Lindsey Vonn, swimmer Katie Ledecky and so many others.

Name Sport Notes
Lindsey Vonn Skiing She has won three Olympics medals (one gold and two bronzes), 8 World Championship medals, and 20 World Cup globes.
Serena Williams Tennis She has won 23 Grand Slam titles and four Olympics gold medals.
Venus Williams Tennis She has won 7 Grand Slam titles.
Simone Biles Gymnastics She is the most decorated gymnast in the world. She has won 11 Olympic medals, including seven gold, two silver, and two bronze.
Faith Kipyegon Athletics She has won three Olympics medals in the 1500 metres. She won gold at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro, 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Coco Gauff Tennis She has won two majors at the 2023 US Open and 2025 French Open. She also won the 2024 WTA Finals.
Aitana Bonmatí Football She won the Ballon d'Or Féminin in 2023, 2024, and 2025
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce Athletics She has won eight Olympic medals (3 gold medals, four silver medals, and one bronze medal)
Chloe Kim Snowboarding She won two consecutive gold medals at the 2018 PyeongChang and 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
Babe Didrickson Zaharias (USA) Track & Field, Golf, Basketball At the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, she won gold in both the 80-meter hurdles and javelin throw, and took silver in the high jump. She won the British Ladies' Amateur golf tournament. She was the first (and still the only) woman in history to make the cut in a regular PGA Tour event. She achieved All-American status in basketball
Lottie Dod (UK) Tennis, Hockey, Archery, Golf At age 15, she became the youngest woman ever to win the Wimbledon Ladies' Singles Championship, and went on to win it 4 more times. Played field hockey for England national two years after taking up the sport. She won the British Ladies' Amateur golf tournament in 1904. Won the silver medal in archery at the 1908 Olympics in London.
Jackie Joyner-Kersee (USA) Track & Field 4-time Olympian and 6-time Olympic medalist who twice won gold in the Heptathlon. Sports Illustrated voted her the greatest female athlete of the 20th century.
Fanny Blankers-Koen (The Netherlands) Track & Field Sprinter and hurdler who won 4 gold medals in the 1948 London Olympics. In the post-war years she set or equalled 12 world records in events as diverse as the long jump, the high jump, sprint and hurdling events and the Pentathlon. In 1999 the IAAF voted her the greatest female athlete of the 20th century.
Clara Hughes (Canada) Cycling / Speed Skating A 6-time Olympian and the only person (man or woman) to win multiple medals in both summer and winter Olympics
Mia Hamm (USA) Soccer She appeared in the first four Women's World Cups (winning two of them). She also won gold in the 1996 and 2004 Summer Olympics. She has 158 career goals in international competition, more than any other man or woman. Was also named Women's FIFA World Player of the Year the first two times the award was issued
Larissa Latynina (Soviet Union) Gymnastics Gymnast who won a total of 18 Olympic Games medals (9 of them gold)
Martina Navratilova (Czech / USA) Tennis Player with the best winning record (man or woman) in tennis history.
Billie Jean King (USA) Tennis Won 12 Grand Slam singles titles, with a career Grand Slam. Oldest woman to win a singles tournament at age 39. Famously won a "Battle of the Sexes" match, against Bobby Riggs in straight sets in 1973.
Wilma Rudolph (USA) Track & Field In the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome Rudolph became the first American woman to win three gold medals in track and field during a single Olympic Games.