GOAT Index
Two legends at a time. Thousands of votes. One ranking.
Jean-Michel Saive: the case for the GOAT
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Career highlights
The case for the GOAT
Jean-Michel Saive: the case for the GOAT
Belgium · Born 17 November 1969, Liège, Belgium · Career 1980s–2015
Belgian all-rounder known for fighting spirit and spectacular rallies, who became Belgium's first world No. 1 and played at seven Olympics.
Career highlights
- World No. 1 (1994–95)
- World singles silver (1993)
- European singles champion (1994)
- Europe Top-12 winner (1994)
- 7 Olympic Games (1988–2012)
Why Jean-Michel Saive could be the GOAT
Saive reached world No. 1 in 1994 and held it for more than a year in an era when Asian players dominated. He reached a world final and competed at seven Olympics. His longevity and fighting style made him a hero in Belgium and Europe.
What fans say
Jean-Michel Saive is #16 of 18 in the fan ranking, with a 0–4 head-to-head record from 56 Men's table tennis votes. See the full Men's table tennis GOAT ranking
Jean-Michel Saive head to head
How the ranking works. Every head-to-head vote is a result, like a game. The standings use a Bradley–Terry model, the same idea behind chess ratings: beating a highly rated legend counts for more than beating a long shot. Ratings are shown on a chess-style scale centred on 1500.
One vote per matchup per person. If you see a pairing again in another session your new answer replaces the old one, so nobody can stuff the ballot by repeating a matchup.
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Photo credits
Photos come from Wikimedia Commons under the licenses listed. Each links to its source page.