by Kiall Rowberry

Created on: July 11, 2008

In judging the greatest sportsmen of the 21st century, I can't split two men. These guys share some remarkable similarities, the most important of which is that they are both incredibly humble men who have dominated their sport like nobody else before them.

Eldrick Tiger' Woods and Roger Federer are the modern day giants of world sport, and both have breathed new life into their respective sports.

I'll start with Tiger Woods. Because this is an analysis of the greatest sportsmen of the 21st century, I am only going to judge performances from between January 1, 2000 and today, July 11, 2008.

Tiger's statistics make for phenomenal reading. 145 PGA events for 101 top 10 finishes and 46 wins. He has been ranked the world's number 1 every year except 2003 and 2004 where he fell to 2 and 4 respectively. 12 of his 14 majors have come in this period, and his overall 14 titles places him behind only the great Jack Nicolas' 18 triumphs.

Tiger is also only 32 years old, which for a golfer makes him still very young. This means he is almost a certainty to pass Sam Snead's record of 82 PGA Tour wins as he is only 17 behind. Nicolas' 18 majors are also well within his sights.

Tiger has reinvigorated the sport of golf and he will eventually retire as one of the finest players to have ever stepped onto a fairway.

Roger Federer also boasts an impressive CV. So far he has won 12 grand slam titles, just 2 behind the all time record held by Pete Samprass. He also holds 4 masters cups, and has an unbroken streak of 17 consecutive grand slam semi final appearances both records. His current ranking of world's number 1 player has been standing for 232 weeks, easily passing Jimmy Connors' record of 160 weeks.

Federer has equalled Bjorn Borg's record of 5 consecutive Wimbledon titles, and is the only man in the open era to claim 4 consecutive US Opens he will be aiming for his 5th in September. He also holds the unique record of winning the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open in the same year 3 times.

This century, Federer's win/loss ratio in all matches is a startling 579/123 that is a winning percentage of 82.48. It is fair to say he has been the dominant force on the ATP circuit.

Both Woods and Federer are highly regarded not only for their sporting prowess, but as people. Both contribute heavily to charities and work tirelessly to ensure they can use their positions of power to bring a positive influence to the world.

In 40 years people will still talk of Woods and Federer when discussions turn to great sportsmen. With this century only 8 years old, I can't go past these two as the greatest of that time, on and off the field.

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