In declaring a national day for giving thanks in 1789, George Washington called upon all people to acknowledge "with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God." Barack Obama's presidential proclamation two hundred and twenty years later asks that we gather "with gratitude for all we have received in the past year [and] to express appreciation to those whose lives enrich our own..."

In the spirit of these sentiments, I would like to express my thanks to the sports figures whose signal and singular favors have enriched our contemplation of their games and feats.

Thank you, Usain Bolt. There are athletes who are not merely great in their time but advance our understanding of what is possible. Babe Ruth was one such "quantum athlete;" Bobby Orr was another. Usain Bolt does so by not merely breaking records, but shattering them by inconceivable margins. At the 2009 World Championships, he lowered his own world record of 9.69 for 100 meters, set at the Beijing Olympics, to 9.58 - the first instance since the advent of electronic timing that the 100-meter mark had been lowered by more than one-tenth of a second. Bolt is still learning his craft, and his times will go lower as his technique improves, particularly in his start. But times are only measures; Bolt's greatness is apparent to the naked eye as he accelerates down the track, a horizontal rocket thrilling us with a vision of what man can do.

Thank you, Tom Watson. Chalk one up for the old guys, and for the olde game in the auld country. Major championships are not meant to be won by 59-year-olds, and in the U.S. he likely wouldn't have come close. But golf on the links of Scotland is a different game, the ball's bounce on the firm turf providing an equalizer to a young man's power advantage. The original game - the true game - requires guile and equanimity as well as strength and precision, and for seventy-one-and-a-half holes the five-time Open winner amazed and heartened the golfing world with his imagination and execution. A slender miscalculation at the end cost him the victory - major championships are not meant to be won by 59-year-olds - but his noble effort reminded us all how glorious golf can be at any age, especially when it's played on a course with a bit of brown to it.

Thank you, Roger Federer. I could do without the golden RF crest, and the #15 white jacket he donned upon winning his record-breaking Wimbledon. But I'm thankful for the vulnerability he showed in breaking down in tears after losing the Australian Open to Rafael Nadal, and for the steely determination that won him Wimbledon and the French Open. Those tears spoke of the recognition that Nadal had not merely threatened Federer's dominance but established his own. Roger responded with two Slam victories, including his first on clay, completing the career Grand Slam. Some say the wins were cheapened by the fact that he didn't have to play his nemesis Nadal in either of them. I say that durability is a great champion's hidden skill, and Nadal's knee ailments only highlight how extraordinary Federer's long streak of exceptional, beautiful, winning tennis has been.

Thank you, Joe Mauer. No catcher had ever won the American League batting title before he did so in 2006; he added another in 2008, and this past year he showed the power most observers had expected from him as he matured, leading the league in slugging and the majors in on-base average. He did this while winning a Gold Glove at baseball's most demanding position, and playing for his hometown team. Childhood dreams rarely come true so exactly. Thank you, too, Albert Pujols, for another season of routine greatness. And thank you, Brian Cashman, for spending those oodles of SteinbreDollars on the exact players and people needed to restore the Yankees to the top of the baseball world. There's something right about having the Yankee top hat as a target for snowballs. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, they're worthy of the emotion again.

Finally, thank you, Caster Semenya. This has been an awkward year for the young South African runner. She won the 800 meters at the World Championships, and immediately faced questions and accusations about her gender. I will not pretend to know the exact results of the investigation into her anatomy or physiology or hormonal makeup by the IAAF, track's ruling body. I do know that she was permitted to enter her event, won it, and will get to keep her medal and her prize money. I do not know what the future will hold for her. I am grateful, though, for her presence, which reminds us that the glories and diversity of the natural world do not always fit easily into the categories we create for them. With George Washington, we can be grateful for a Creator's many signal favors, while remaining humble and cautious in proclaiming our certainties about them.

To all who have enriched and entertained us on fields of play in 2009, my hearty thanks.