Burroughs was ranked No. 8 on the list posted at the sports magazine's website.
Jordan Burroughs celebrates after defeating Andrew Howe in the finals of the 2016 Olympic Team Trials in Iowa City (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)In addition to Burroughs, there were a handful of male athletes on the "Fittest 50" list who participate in combat sports, including UFC interim light-heavyweight champ -- and former junior college wrestling champ -- Jon Jones (4th fittest male athlete); boxer Gennady Golovkan from Kazakhstan (No. 12); UFC flyweight champ Demetrious Johnson (No. 17); and UFC's Conor McGregor (No. 39). In addition, WWE star Seth Rollins (Colby Lopez) placed No. 24 on the list.
No. 1 on the men's "Fittest 50" list was track and field star and decathlete Ashton Eaton.
While there were no women wrestlers on SI's "Fittest 50" list of female athletes, again, a number of honorees participate in combat sports, including UFC stars Holly Holm (ranked No. 9); Ronda Rousey (No. 19); Michelle Waterson (No. 26); and Miesha Tate (No. 30). Other women in combat sports on the list included boxing gold medalist Claressa Shields (No. 7); 2012 Olympic gold medalist in judo, Kayla Harrison (No. 31); and Kacy Catazaro, former college gymnast and participant in American Ninja Warrior (No. 46). WWE star Charlotte (Ashley Fliehr) placed 24th on the list.
The top-rated female athlete was Jessica Ennis-Hill, track star and heptathlon participant.
In explaining its "Fittest 50" lists, Sports Illustrated stated, "With the help of a panel of trainers, strength and conditioning coaches, performance experts, pro athlete coaches and more, SI's editors set out to answer the question: Who are the fittest athletes in all of sports? Athletes were assessed based on characteristics that define fitness and conditioning: strength, speed, endurance, agility, flexibility and skill in his or her respective sport." The website listed six consultants who had compiled the list.
"Athletes were assessed on six criteria, including strength: the pushing power of a lineman or the force of an ultimate fighter; speed: the top end of a sprinter or the burst of a running back; endurance: a runner's bottomless reserve or a boxer's ability to keep going in a bout; and agility: the balance of a downhill skier or a euro step at full speed on the break," according to Sports Illustrated.
Many in the wrestling community have expressed frustration with the lack of coverage that Sports Illustrated has provided to the sport, especially in recent years. In the more than 60-year history of the national sports magazine, only one amateur wrestler has appeared on its cover as an amateur wrestler: Dan Hodge, in the April 1, 1957 issue. (In 2002, when the magazine failed to put Cael Sanderson on its cover after completing his college mat career with a perfect 159-0 record and four titles, Sports Illustrated magazine threw upset wrestling fans a bone by including a photo of an "All Hail Cael!" cover mock-up in a later issue.)
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