Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic lead all tennis stars at Nos. 5 and 6 on the (deep breath now) Bloomberg Sportfolio/Horrow Sports Ventures 2013 Power 100. Doesn't that just roll off the tongue? Thought so.
In any event, Serena Williams lands at No. 12, and Maria Sharapova rounds out the Top 20. Overall, LeBron James, Tiger Woods, and Peyton Manning lead the list. Caroline Wozniacki's PGA Tour-playing boyfriend Rory McIlroy comes in at No. 14. Serena and Sharapova appear on the list ahead of Rafael Nadal (No. 22) and Andy Murray (No. 31), the former's ranking likely, well, hurt by his injury-riddled 2012 season. (He was the No. 5 athlete on this list in 2011.) Victoria Azarenka comes in at No. 32, finishing out the roster of "seeded" athletes.
Venus Williams enters the list at No. 57 (she was No. 32 in 2010), and the rest of the sport's stars on the list include WTA pros Petra Kvitova, Wozniacki, and Agnieszka Radwanska (at Nos. 79, 80, and 89, respectively). German NBA player Dirk Nowitzki, often seen taking in live pro tennis matches, finds himself at No. 68, and Ana Ivanovic's on-again-off-again boyfriend, Aussie golfer Adam Scott, is at No. 84.
No doubt you're wondering how the rankings were determined. Both on- and off-court exploits were considered. For tennis, world rankings went into effect, which explains Azarenka's high spot, in part. For one, Venus' relatively high placement in light of her recent singles performances can be explained by her off-court conquering:
"The off-field attributes comprise an athlete’s expected endorsement potential (75%), endorsement earnings (15%), and their social media presence (10%). The endorsement potential ... measures an athlete’s name awareness, appeal, influence, trustworthiness, overall popularity, and a number of other attributes. Endorsement data is estimated by industry experts based on comparable athletes. Social media presence is taken from official Facebook fans and Twitter followers."
Learn more about these Power 100 rankings here. What do you think of where your favorite pro(s) show up on the roster?
Got a thought, a tip, or a point to make? Hit me on Twitter @jonscott9.