Lance Armstrong

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Lance Edward Armstrong (born Lance Edward Gunderson on September 18, 1971) is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support. He last rode for (and helped found) UCI ProTeam Team RadioShack.

In October 1996 he was diagnosed as having testicular cancer, with a tumor that had metastasized to his brain and lungs. His cancer treatments included brain and testicular surgery and extensive chemotherapy, and his prognosis was originally poor. He went on to win the Tour de France each year from 1999 to 2005, and is the only person to win seven times, having broken the previous record of five wins, shared by Miguel Indurain, Bernard Hinault, Eddy Merckx, and Jacques Anquetil.

In 1999, he was named the ABC Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year. In 2000 he won the Prince of Asturias Award in Sports. In 2002, Sports Illustrated magazine named him Sportsman of the Year. He was also named Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year for the years 2002–2005. He received ESPN's ESPY Award for Best Male Athlete in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006, and won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Overseas Personality Award in 2003. Armstrong announced his retirement from racing on July 24, 2005, at the end of the 2005 Tour de France, but returned to competitive cycling in January 2009, and finished third in the 2009 Tour de France. He confirmed he had retired from competitive cycling for good on February 16, 2011.

Shaquille ONeal

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Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal, born (March 6, 1972), nicknamed "Shaq" is a former American professional basketball player. Standing 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) tall and weighing 325 pounds (147 kg), he was one of the heaviest players ever to play in the NBA. Throughout his 19-year career, O'Neal used his size and strength to overpower opponents for points and rebounds.

Following his career at Louisiana State University, O'Neal was drafted by the Orlando Magic with the first overall pick in the 1992 NBA Draft. He quickly became one of the top centers in the league, winning Rookie of the Year in 1992–93 and later leading his team to the 1995 NBA Finals. After four years with the Magic, O'Neal signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Lakers. He won three consecutive championships in 2000, 2001, and 2002. Amid tension between O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, O'Neal was traded to the Miami Heat in 2004, and his fourth NBA championship followed in 2006. Midway through the 2007–2008 season he was traded to the Phoenix Suns. After a season-and-a-half with the Suns, O'Neal was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2009–10 season. O'Neal played for the Boston Celtics in the 2010–11 season before retiring.

O'Neal's individual accolades include the 1999–2000 MVP award, the 1992–93 NBA Rookie of the Year award, 15 All-Star game selections, three All-Star Game MVP awards, three Finals MVP awards, two scoring titles, 14 All-NBA team selections, and three NBA All-Defensive Team selections. He is one of only three players to win NBA MVP, All-Star game MVP and Finals MVP awards in the same year (2000); the other players are Willis Reed in 1970 and Michael Jordan in 1996 and 1998. He ranks 5th all-time in points scored, 5th in field goals, 12th in rebounds, and 7th in blocks.

In addition to his basketball career, O'Neal has released four rap albums, with his first, Shaq Diesel, going platinum. He has appeared in numerous films and has starred in his own reality shows, Shaq's Big Challenge and Shaq Vs.. On July 14, 2011, O'Neal announced that he will join Turner Network Television (TNT) as a color commentator on its NBA basketball games.

Peyton Williams Manning

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Peyton Williams Manning (born March 24, 1976) is an American football quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League (NFL). Manning holds the record for most NFL MVP awards with four. He was drafted by the Colts as the first overall pick in 1998 after a standout college football career with the Tennessee Volunteers. He is the son of former NFL quarterback Archie Manning and the older brother of current New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning.

Manning holds NFL records for consecutive seasons with 4,000 or more yards passing and the most total seasons with 4,000 or more yards passing in a career. Manning holds the sixth highest career passer rating (94.9) in NFL history and the highest single-season passer rating (121.1 in 2004). He is the all-time Colts franchise leader in career wins, career passing yards, pass attempts, pass completions, and passing touchdowns.

In 2009, he was listed by The Sporting News as the No. 1 player in the NFL. Also in 2009, Fox Sports named him player of the decade.

Since the Colts drafted Manning in 1998, the team has the highest conversion rate on 3rd down (44.6%) and 4th down (61.1%) plays in the NFL. While leading the Colts to their Super Bowl XLI victory in 2007, Manning helped the team to an NFL record by converting 56.1% of its 3rd downs.

An extremely marketable player outside of football, Manning has appeared in numerous commercials, was featured on the covers of the NFL Fever games for the Xbox, hosted an episode of Saturday Night Live, and guest-voiced on The Simpsons, along with his brothers, Eli and Cooper.

Manning's pre-snap routine has become one of the most recognizable scenes in the NFL. Prior to each play in a football game, the offensive team generally huddles; however, Manning and the Colts almost always skip the huddle, instead using a hurry-up offense with numerous audibles at the line of scrimmage. In 2010, he was named the eighth best player in NFL history, according to the NFL's top 100 show, and is the only active player in the top 10 category.