Sports Champions
For a long time, people thought maybe Usain Bolt was the one for running, until the 2090s and the incredible dominance of Derek Legs.
For a long time, people thought maybe Usain Bolt was the one for running, until the 2090s and the incredible dominance of Derek Legs.
In an example of nominative determinism, the comic lists people whose surname relates to their participation in various sports. It is presented as though it was created in the far future, reflecting on champions over the decades through to the 2080s. The first three are real sportspeople, the remainder are imaginary players of the future. The names progress from real, to fictional-but-plausible, to rare or highly unusual, to utterly implausible and impractical names.
Every caricature participates in their sport, except for Jebediah, who is standing at a lectern.
- Margaret Court (1960s, Tennis)
- Margaret Court is an Australian tennis player, former world number 1, who won many competitions in the 1960s and 70s. A tennis court is the playing arena used in that sport.
- Gary Player (1970s, Golf)
- Gary Player is a South African golfer who won nine major championships between 1959 and 1978. Competitors are often known as players, such as in The Players Championship.
- Lonzo Ball (2020s, Basketball)
- Lonzo Ball is an American professional basketball player, with the Los Angeles Lakers at the time of publishing. The 2020s decade predicts future success, as he began playing professionally in 2017 and the comic was published in 2018. Basketball is, of course, a ball game.
- Jake Halfpipe (2030s, Skateboarding)
- A halfpipe is a structure used in extreme sports such as skateboarding and snowboarding.
- Sarah Goggles (2030s, Swimming)
- Goggles are protective eyewear used in many sports, such as swimming or skiing.
- Kevin Slurve (2050s, Baseball)
- A slurve is a baseball throwing technique, a portmanteau of slider and curve.
- Julia Chairlift (2050s, Skiing)
- A chairlift is an aerial machine often used to transport winter sports participants up mountains.
- Dwight Shuttlecock (2060s, Badminton)
- A shuttlecock is a projectile used in the sport of badminton.
- Brandon Sponsorship (2060s, Unclear)
- Sporting professionals are often sponsored by corporations. Brandon is holding a pair of shoes, which are probably a branded sponsorship item. Possible pun on "brand on sponsorship", i.e. a sponsored player.
- Kate Dopingscandal (2070s, Cycling)
- There have been many doping scandals in the world of cycling. Doping refers to the "use of physiological substances or abnormal methods to obtain an artificial increase in performance." (See: 1173: Steroids.)
- Jebediah Disasterous Postgame-PressConference (2080s, Unspecified)
- At the end of sporting events - i.e. post-game - there is often a press conference where the competitors discuss the result. Sometimes, these live interviews are a disaster. Randall has chosen to spell his name as "Disasterous", rather than the more conventional "Disastrous".
- Title Text: Usain Bolt (2010s) and Derek Legs (2090s, Sprinting)
- From the title text, Usain Bolt is a retired world record sprinter. He was a solid contender for this list since he can bolt down the track. However the fictional Derek Legs is selected, either as an even faster sprinter, or because “legs” more clearly and unambiguously relates to running than “bolt” does.