The Best Female Athletes in the World

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Who are the world's best female athletes?
It's a discussion that comes up frequently among sports fans: who is the best athlete in the world? The Oregonian/OregonLive sports staff took a stab at answering that question by ranking the world's Top 10 female athletes.
In case you missed it, we also ranked the 10 best male athletes in the world.
Note: This is not a historical ranking of all-time greatest; it's a list of the world's greatest female athletes today.

No. 10: Lindsey Vonn
Lindsey Vonn, 31, is one of the most accomplished skiers of all time, and she's still going strong. She won her 76th World Cup race in February, which is an all-time women's record. She also has more Super G and downhill victories than any female skier in history.

No. 9: Elena Delle Donne
The 26-year-old Elena Delle Donne is the reigning WNBA MVP and closing in on Maya Moore for the title of best women's basketball player in the world. At 6-5 she has a rare skill set, with the ability to play inside and out. Last season she averaged more than 23 points, 8 rebounds and 2 blocks while shooting 95 percent from the free thrown line. Delle Donne was also a star volleyball player in high school.

No. 8: Hope Solo
How athletic is Hope Solo? The goalkeeper for the US Women's National Team was a forward in high school, scoring 109 goals and leading her team to a state championship her senior season. She made the switch to goalkeeper in college and is now arguably the greatest female goalie of all time. Solo, who has two Olympic gold medals, allowed just three goals during the USA's march to victory in the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, earning the coveted Golden Glove trophy as the best goalkeeper.

No. 7: Lauren Haeger
Lauren Haeger, the 2015 USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Year, is the first player in college softball history to record 70 home runs and 70 wins. She led Florida to a national championship last season while compiling a record of 32-2 with a 1.23 ERA. Haeger, 23, is currently playing for the Dallas Charge of National Pro Fastpitch.

No. 6: Simone Biles
American gymnast Simone Biles, a three-time World all-around champion, is the runaway favorite to win the all-around gold medal at the Rio Olympics. Biles, who turns 19 next week, is rewriting the USA gymnastics record book. She is already the most decorated American female gymnast in World Championships history, with a total of 14 medals.

No. 5: Maya Moore
All Maya Moore does is win. In high school, as a four-year varsity starter, she led her teams to a 125-3 record and four straight state title appearances. At UConn her teams went 150-4 and won two national championships. In five years in the WNBA she has led the Minnesota Lynx to three championships. And she's only 26.

No. 4: Carli Lloyd
With Abby Wambach retiring, Carli Lloyd is the new face of USA women's soccer. Lloyd was the star of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, scoring six goals including a hat trick in the USA's 5-2 win over Japan in the championship game. Her performance helped earn her the 2015 FIFA women's player of the year award.

No. 3: Jessica Ennis-Hill
Britain's Jessica Ennis-Hill is the reigning world champion in the heptathlon, but she won't be competing in Portland this week because of an Achilles injury. She'll be favored to win her second consecutive Olympic heptathlon gold medal this summer in Rio.

No. 2: Katie Ledecky
Katie Ledecky, widely considered the best swimmer in the world, is entering Michael Phelps territory. Still only 18 years old, Ledecky won five gold medals and broke three world records at the 2015 World Championships in Russia. She also became the first swimmer to win the 200, 400, 800 and 1500 meter freestyles in a major competition. There's a good chance she'll sit atop this list after the Rio Olympics.


No. 1: Serena Williams
Hard to believe, but Serena Williams has been winning major tennis championships for nearly 20 years. Since she burst onto the tennis scene in 1998 Williams has won 21 Grand Slam singles titles and 13 doubles titles. She also has four Olympic gold medals (three doubles, one singles). She's still the No. 1 ranked player in the world and is the reigning champion of the French Open and Wimbledon. If she can win at Roland Garros in June, Williams will tie Steffi Graf for the most Grand Slam singles titles in the Open Era. At 34 she's showing no signs of slowing down.

Honorable mention
Do you agree with our list? Who did we miss? Let us know in the comments.
Here are female athletes that were in the discussion and warrant honorable mention status:
Misty Copeland, Alex Morgan, Brittney Griner, Allyson Felix, Lydia Ko, Marta, Ronda Rousey, Dafne Schippers, Elizaveta Tuktamysheva and Brianne Theisen-Eaton.