Outdated or not, turning 21 is still used as a yardstick to measure adults against each other.
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Have you managed to navigate life sans poorly-advised postcode tattoo? Are you still in your family's good graces enough for them to stump up for the grog at your birthday? On the success scale, are you tracking more towards a Frank Grimes existence or Hank Scorpio?
It’s a huge year, and a large part of the reason why we’ve chosen it as our cut-off point for selecting the 50 best Australian athletes, 21 and under, right now.
To bring this list together we’ve leaned on Sporting News’ stable of experts, pathways managers across the major codes and commentators both near and abroad. The task seems simple: how far has each athlete progressed relevant to his or her sport’s ceiling?
For instance, Liam Wright is Australian rugby’s reigning Under 20s Player of the Year and has already represented the Wallabies against the Barbarians. But how does that compare to Queensland Maroon Coen Hess? Or Melbourne Cup jockey Ben Allen? Or Australia's highest-ranked female golfer, Minjee Lee?
Yeah, not so simple.
It’s not all positivity, though. We've also travelled to stadiums around the world - from the spiritual rugby home of the Old Enemy at Twickenham to outside the Gabba pre-Ashes - to ask Aussie punters: where did it all go wrong for you, what was your career killer?
While we may not all agree who should top the #SN50 list, it's hard not to be excited about what looms as the next golden generation of Australian sport.
