Some of these athletes are right in their primes, some have a long track record of sustained success, and some are athletes just beginning their dominance.
We recently ranked the most dominant athletes in sports in general, but we also chose the most dominant in each sport individually.
From the NFL and NBA to soccer, tennis, golf, track and field, and more, we selected the 31 athletes who stake a claim as the best in the world at what they do.
Men's soccer: Cristiano Ronaldo
Real Madrid forward
Age: 30
Ronaldo took home the Ballon D'or in 2014 and carried Portugal to the World Cup despite being knocked out in the first round. He has 18 goals in 2015 and 50 goals in 47 games for the 2014-15 season.
Women's soccer: Nadine Kessler
German national team midfielder
Age: 27
Kessler won 2014 FIFA's women's player of the year and was leading a German team that's one of the favorites going into the 2015 Women's World Cup. In October she hurt her knee and will now miss the World Cup.
Men's tennis: Novak Djokovic
Serbian tennis player
Age: 27
Djokovic is the No. 1 ranked tennis player in the world, and seems best poised to dominate in the near future. He's the first player to win the year's first three Masters 1000 tournaments — the biggest outside the Grand Slams — and has a 5,000-point lead over Roger Federer for the No. 1 rank.
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