Carl Lewis won Male Athlete of the Year in 1983 & 84
Athlete of the Year (1980s)
Male Athlete of the Year
1980 - United States U.S. Olympic hockey team Hockey
1981 - John McEnroe Tennis
1982 - Wayne Gretzky Hockey
1983 - Carl Lewis Track and field
1984 - Carl Lewis Track and field
1985 - Dwight Gooden Baseball
1986 - Larry Bird Basketball
1987 - Ben Johnson Track and field
1988 - Orel Hershiser Baseball
1989 - Joe Montana Football
Female Athlete of the Year
1980 - Chris Evert Tennis
1981 - Tracy Austin Tennis
1982 - Mary Decker Track and field
1983 - Martina Navratilova Tennis
1984 - Mary Lou Retton Gymnastics
1985 - Nancy Lopez Golf
1986 - Martina Navratilova Tennis
1987 - Jackie Joyner-Kersee Track and field
1988 - Florence Griffith Joyner Track and field
1989 - Steffi Graf Tennis