FanHouse

FanHouse is posting the top five current athletes for America's top 25 cities with the following criteria: 1) Who would a DC sports fan say is his/her favorite athlete? 2) Would the player's name (or face) be familiar to locals who don't follow sports?

Find your city's top five: ATL | BOS | CHA | CHI | CIN | CLE | DAL | DC | DEN | DET | HOU | IND | LA | MIA | MIL | MIN | NO | NY | SF | PHI | PHO | PIT | SD | SEA | STL

I want to say something before we get started. This is all about judging the most popular and relevant athletes in Washington DC. For those of you who may have forgotten this is a football town, the Redskins dominate the sports landscape for better or worse, depending on your perspective. So let me just apologize in advance to the loyal fans of the Nats and the United.

5. Roy Hibbert: The Magnificent Roy may be young but he's already been on the minds of DC sports fans for a number of years. After rooting against him for four years in high school I've had to learn to love him the same way he had to learn to run when he came to Georgetown (apparently Prep forgot to teach him that). This is going to be the year of Georgetown basketball and Roy will be leading the charge.

4. Alexander Ovechkin: DC isn't a hockey town but the Capitals have maintained a loyal and dedicated fan base despite the NHL's declining popularity in the wake of the recent lockout. It can be argued that Alexander the Great is solely responsible for that anomaly. He's an enigmatic young star at the top of his game and he talks good American. Of course he might be higher on this list if his nicknames weren't so pedestrian.
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3. Chris Cooley: This city loves the H-back the way Dallas loves cokeheads. It doesn't seem to make sense to outsiders, but his popularity can be measured by the prevalence of his jersey. The hot pants might explain the jersey's presence in Dupont Circle, but I've seen it all over the Metro Area.

2. Clinton Portis: The Thursday press conference performances are the primary focus of national attention (and rightfully so), but it's just another piece of the puzzle to locals. There's also the brilliance of his famed Easterns Motors commercials which just add to the time he spends on our television and computer screens. Most importantly, Clinton spends so much time out in public that at some point the prospect of standing next to him failed to make my knees go weak. Bonus points go to Portis for being the best dressed guy in the entire city, even if he is about 5'7" in real life.

1. Hibachi: The Black President. Agent Zero. Gilbert Arenas As if there were any other choice? The Takeover might not have gone "playoff deep" but he is quickly becoming the most beloved athlete DC has seen since John Riggins. He gets obvious points for doubling as a first-rate blogger in the sports blogging capital of the country. On and off the court, Gilbert can fry.

- Kwame Brown Because true love never dies

Unfortunate Snub: Winky Wright Ring Magazine ranks him as the fifth best pound-for-pound boxer in the world but he doesn't resonate with the masses. It's sad, he's a true technician in a great sport that's overlooked far too often. The fact is that Winky is the best fighter to come out of DC since Sugar Ray Leonard. He's getting on in age but there are a pair of brothers waiting in the wings; keep an eye on Anthony and Lamont Peterson. Their recent ESPN Friday Night Fights showcase at the DC Armory should propel them to big fights in the future (especially Anthony). Who needs heavyweights?

Honorable Mention: Caron Butler, Sean Taylor, Santana Moss, Ryan Zimmerman, Antawn Jameson, every other Redskin and Wizard, Jaime Moreno and Bobby Boswell.

Next Year's Top 3 (in order): Gilbert Arenas, Jason Campbell, and Clinton Portis

This post is dedicated to the loving memory of Susan "La Sooze" O'Malley's twenty year reign as the most popular president in DC.

Editor's Note: Unsilent Majority (a.k.a. "The Maj") writes for Kissing Suzy Kolber, where he does his best to feed the meast. We thank him for his contribution to FanHouse.