Greatest Underdogs in Sports History

In the same vein as Jim Abbott, Lance Armstrong was able to accomplish a great deal as an athlete while missing a vital body part—in this case, it was one of his testicles. Already an accomplished cyclist, Armstrong was diagnosed with stage three testicular cancer in 2006, which had spread to his lungs, abdomen and brain. After surgery to remove the cancerous testicle, Armstrong was given less than a 40 percent chance to live, let alone to ever cycle again. Despite the odds stacked against him, Armstrong fought back and was in complete remission by January 1998.

His comeback in cycling has been well documented—Armstrong went on to win a record seven straight Tour de France races. As a result, he became a poster boy for cancer survival and athletic perseverance. Unfortunately, doping allegations have somewhat tarnished Armstrong’s legacy, but not in everyone’s eyes.