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1964-
Held world records in the 100- and 200-meter butterfly for nearly two decades.

In the 1980s Meagher was by far the world's best in the butterfly.  Ronald C. Modra

When she stepped up to the starting blocks for the finals of the 200-meter butterfly at the 1979 Pan Am Games in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Mary T. Meagher was hardly an imposing sight. Fishy, as her friends called her, was just an eighth-grader who wore railroad-track braces on her teeth and traveled with a stuffed frog named Bubbles. But this apple-cheeked 14-year-old broke the world record by .1 of a second.

"In her prime, Mary had no weaknesses," says Dennis Pursley, who once coached Meagher. "Motivation, technique, physical attributes -- I don't know that I've ever seen an athlete who didn't have a weakness on that list -- except Mary."

At the 1984 Olympics, Mary T., as she would become known to the world, swept both butterfly events and swam on the first-place U.S. medley relay team. She continued to swim and win for another four years, capped by a bronze medal in the 200 butterfly at the '88 Olympics. But of all her accomplishments, the most enduring was her world record in the 100-meter butterfly (57.93, in 1981); the mark stood until Jenny Thompson broke it in August.

"I never thought my records would stand for so long," says Meagher, who now lives in Peachtree City, Ga., with her husband, former U.S. speed skater Mike Plant, and their two young children. "I'm proud of the records, but the butterfly was something that always came naturally to me."

--L. Jon Wertheim

Athletes were selected by Sports Illustrated For Women, Sports Illustrated and CNN/SI editors, writers and correspondents who considered the athletes' on-field performance and achievements, plus their contributions to women's sports. Because athletic achievement was a key criterion, women whose contributions were made solely in administration and coaching are not included.

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