Warnie named 'Greatest Australian Sporting Star' of past 30 years

Sydney, Oct 18 (UNI) Shane Warne beat competition from Olympic Gold medal winning athletes Ian Thorpe, Susie O'Neill and Cathy Freeman to become the 'Greatest Sporting Star' of Australia in the past 30 years according to a list released by a local magazine.

According to a list released by the 'Alpha magazine, Warne is the greatest sporting talent to emerge in the past 30 years and is rated ahead of star swimmers Thorpe and O'Neil, who won multiple gold medals in Olympics.

Thorpe was third in the list, while Freeman who lit the Olympic flame in the 2000 edition, was sixth.

Warne has taken a world-record 685 Test wickets at an average of 25.25 and former team-mate Ian Healy said the champion leg-spinner deserved to top the list of greatest sporting heroes.

''There's an element of genius about Warnie,'' Healy was quoted by the 'Herald Sun as saying.

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