Gymnastics
Simone Biles
Simone Biles tried to treat the 2016 Summer Olympics like just your average ordinary gymnastics meet. So what if the stage and the stakes were differentIJ The floor was still the floor. The vault still the vault. The uneven bars still uneven. The balance beam still a four-inch wide test of nerves.
And the 19-year-old with the electric smile and boundless talent was still the best in the world. Maybe the best of all-time. Over the course of 10 days in August, the biggest meet of her life ended like pretty much all the others in the four years that came before it: with Biles standing atop the podium, a gold medal around her neck and the sport she's redefining one boundary-pushing routine at a time staring up at her.
Her massive haul in Rio de Janeiro — a record-tying four golds to go along with a bronze for the dominant US women's team — propelled her to stardom and rendered her last name superfluous.
What followed was a run of brilliance: a team gold as a fitting send off to retiring national team coordinator Martha Karolyi. Another in the all-around two days later, where her score of 62.198 bettered Raisman by more than two full points, the gymnastics equivalent of winning a football game by three touchdowns. A third gold came on vault, the first ever by an American woman at the Olympics and Biles' first in major international competition to fill the only hole in her increasingly peerless resume.
A bronze on beam followed thanks to a messy landing on a front flip, her only major form break in Rio. No matter, she put the exclamation point on her gold rush with a gravity-escaping floor routine that ended with Biles rushing to embrace longtime coach Aimee Boorman as their long journey to this moment ended in triumph.
Football
Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo arguably had the best year of his career in terms of trophy collection. The star Portuguese forward won the Champions league and Club World Cup with Real Madrid. However the biggest of the lot was the European Championships he won with Portugal in the summer.
Following a mixed start to the 2015-16 season, Ronaldo stepped up his level when the team needed him most during the business part of the season.
After losing the first leg of the Champions league quarterfinal tie against Wolfsburg 0-2, Real Madrid won the second leg 3-0, thanks to a Ronaldo hat-trick.
That game ended everyone's doubt on Ronaldo's best is behind him.
He then played a key role in his team's run up to win the Champions league for the 11th time.
Even though he wasn't at his full best after being injured against Villarreal, but he still saw glory scoring the final penalty against Atletico Madrid in the Champions league final.
Most of the success would also go to the new manager Zinedine Zidane for stabilizing a team that was struggling to pull itself under the previous manager Rafael Benitez.
Not only were Madrid as a unit a better team, Ronaldo himself started to perform better, far better and he looked happier on the pitch.
He also proved his critics wrong by stepping up in the big games. Goals against Roma, Athletic Bilbao and of course his match winner vs Barcelona silenced the haters who spoke about his inability to shine in big games. Despite all his club level success, there were always doubts hanging over his head on his international performance.
Ronaldo did not do any favour to erase those speculations with two sub-par performances in the opening two European Championship match, which included a penalty miss against Austria.
However, he came good when the team need him the most. An audacious backheel and a trademark header would be enough to help Portugal earn a 3-3 draw against Hungary to qualify for the knockout stages despite not winning a single game in the group stages.
Facing off with tournament dark horses Croatia, few favored Portugal. But they endured and scored a late winner after Ronaldo's close range shot was saved and Quaresma was able to bundle home the rebound from close range.
Following a stalemate against Poland in quarterfinals, Ronaldo scored the first penalty to help Portugal win the match in shoot-out.
Then, Ronaldo came good against his club teammate Gareth Bale, by scoring the opener in their country's 2-0 win over Wales in semifinals.
But only 8 minutes in the final and the dream turned into a nightmare. Dimitri Payet's tackle on Ronaldo's standing leg would take him out of the match. But it did not stop Ronaldo, he emerged from the dressing room bandaged up, Ronaldo acted as an additional manager job. He was motivating and coaching his team, offering guidance when needed as well.
Even though Eder scored the late goal to win the championships, the victory was always for their injured captain Ronaldo, who has finally proved his class in not only the club level but the international stage too.
He capped a majestic year with a fourth Ballon d'or title to cement his place amongst the greats of the game.
Track & Field
Usain Bolt
The sprint king Usain Bolt yet again made the fast tracks his own with another marvelous showing at Rio Olympics, bagging three gold medals.
However, initially there were doubts about his participation in the summer extravaganza.
Bolt was forced to withdraw from the Jamaican national championships, which serve as the Olympic trials, with a grade one tear in his left hamstring.
But to everyone's delight, Bolt competed in the 200m at the london Grand Prix and won it with a run of 19.89 seconds.
At the Rio Olympics, Bolt was uncatchable. The Jamaican won the 100 metres gold medal with a time of 9.81 seconds. With this win, Bolt became the first athlete to win the event three times at the Olympics.
Bolt followed up his 100m win with a gold in the 200m as well, which also made him the first athlete to win the 200m three times at the Olympic Games.
He made a hat-trick of gold in the summer by running the anchor leg for the finals of the 4 x 100m relay event.
With that win, Bolt obtained the 'triple-triple, three sprinting gold medals in three consecutive Olympics, and finished his Olympic career with a 100% win record in finals.
Swimming
Michael Phelps
Considered as one of the greatest swimmers of all-time, Michael Phelps bid adieu to the sport in style, winning an astonishing 23 Olympics gold medals in a glittering career spanning over five Olympics.
The most decorated Olympian of all time with 28 medals, Phelps holds the all-time records for Olympic gold medals in individual events (13), and Olympic medals in individual events (16).
In the 4 × 100m freestyle relay, Phelps won his first gold medal of the 2016 Games and his 19th Olympic gold medal overall. By reaching the finals of the 200-meter butterfly, he became the first swimmer in history to make five finals in the same event. Phelps won his 21st gold medal in the 4×200m freestyle relay together with Conor Dwyer, Townley Haas, and Ryan lochte.
Then, he beat Kosuke Hagino to win the 400m individual medal by 1.95 seconds. With that 13th individual gold medal, Phelps broke a 2,168-year-old ancient Olympic record, set by leonidas of Rhodes. However, in the 100m butterfly, Phelps had to settle for joint silver.
Phelps ended his career with another gold medal In the 4×100-meter medley relay, his 23rd at the Olympics and his 28th medal overall.