Athlete Statue Gallery

One of the highest honors for a sports figure is to be represented in the form of a statue. Jackie Robinson, Ted Williams, and Yogi Berra all have larger-than-life sculptures to commemorate their achievements. Bill recalls some of the most famous statues in the world of sports and suggests one more athlete to be immortalized.

Magic Johnson in Los Angeles.

Babe Ruth in Baltimore.

Red Auerbach in Boston.

Statues commemorate all of the above. Legendary Celtics coach and general manager Red Auerbach has a bronze cigar in one hand. This is also true of the statue of former Steelers owner, Art Rooney Sr., in Pittsburgh.

Olympic marathoner Joan Benoit Samuelson in Maine.

University of Texas and Oilers running back Earl Campbell in Austin.
Lou Holtz in South Bend, Indiana.

The statue of Lou Holtz depicts the former Notre Dame coach passing on some instructions to a couple of players. Perhaps he's reminding them to win one for the Gipper.

Stan "The Man" Musial at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, where the Cardinals play.

Tennis great Arthur Ashe at the tennis stadium in New York that bears his name.

Arnold Palmer in Toronto, where he wasn't born and didn’t win the Masters.

Mr. Palmer is seated. He is smiling. He has both arms wrapped tightly around a large trophy. Don't worry, Arnold. Nobody can take it away from you without explosives.

Diego Maradona in Buenos Aires, with his hand - the very "hand of God" with which he illegally punched the ball into the net for Argentina during a 1986 World Cup game against England - over his heart.

Enos Slaughter, another Cardinal, in St. Louis. The statue may be sliding. Or it may be falling down. Or it may be trying to get up.

Acrobatic infielder Ozzie Smith, also in St. Louis, upper body with baseball glove rising out of what appears to be a large snake in the process of swallowing him. A very creepy representation. Maurice "Rocket" Richard in Montreal, sitting still.
"Rocket" Richard sitting still?

Former New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner in Tampa, where he was also the boss.

Play-by-play guy Harry Caray in Chicago, mouth wide open.

Tiger and Earl Woods, together, in Anaheim.

Wilt Chamberlin in Philadelphia, represented twice, once dunking, over a plaque that reads: "The worth of a man is measured by the size of his heart."

Basketball wizard Bob Cousy in Worcester, Massachusetts.

Former Indians ace Bob Feller in Cleveland, apparently trying to throw a bronze baseball over a bridge. Or maybe it's a railroad trestle. What is the sound of a bronze rotator cuff tearing?

Tommie Smith and John Carlos at their Alma mater, San Jose State University, but not until 2005, almost forty years after they raised their gloved fists at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, at which point things began going badly for both of them.

A statue of Bill Russell? Why not? His teams won all the time. He endured a lot of racist abuse, he spoke his mind at considerable risk, and he prevailed. He's an admirable and very accomplished fellow. And he has a great laugh. Great. I'd like to see a statue of Bill Russell laughing. No cigar. No snake. Just Russ laughing. People could decide for themselves what he was laughing at.