The 50 Most Googled Female Athletes of 2012

[rishabhd]

50. Francesca Piccinini



Google Results From Past Year: 71,400
You may not have heard of her (unless you happened to read our list of the hottest female athletes at the 2012 Summer Olympics), but volleyball player is pretty popular in Italy.

[rishabhd]

49. Kim Yu-Na



Google Results From Past Year: 72,400
South Korea’s Kim Yu Na won gold in figure skating at the 2010 Winter Olympics; however, that was two years ago, so she’s just barely handing in there on our top 50 list.

[rishabhd]

48. Luciana Aymar



Google Results From Past Year: 75,000
In Argentina they call this field hockey player “La Maradona del hockey.” And that’s probably fair, since Aymar has been named World Player of the Year an unprecedented 7 times.

[rishabhd]

47. Simona Halep


Google Results From Past Year: 76,300
Romania’s Simona Halep (the 47th ranked women’s tennis player in the world) had breast reduction surgery back in 2009 in hopes of improving her game. That hasn’t hurt her presence on the web.

[rishabhd]

46. Yanina Wickmayer



Google Results From Past Year: 86,100
Yanina Wickmayer is ranked 23rd in the world, but I think she’s popular just because people like saying “Ya-NINA.”

[rishabhd]

45. Vera Zvonareva



Google Results From Past Year: 87,900
Speaking of awesome names, if Vera Zvonareva isn’t the best name in women’s tennis I don’t know what is. Anyway, though she has fallen from a career-best #2 ranking all the way down to #96, she’s still popular on the web. (I assume this has something to do with the fact that she is gorgeous.)

[rishabhd]

44. Natalie Gulbis



Google Results From Past Year: 91,600
Natalie Gulbis has won just 3 pro tournaments, but she’s consistently one of the most popular women on the LPGA Tour. Don’t ask me why, though. It’s a mystery.

[rishabhd]

43. Tina Charles



Google Results From Past Year: 98,000
Tina Charles won two National Championships with UConn and now has an Olympic gold medal to her name. That’s why she’s one of two women’s basketball players to make this list.

[rishabhd]

42. Michelle Wie



Google Results From Past Year: 98,900
Michelle Wie turned pro when she was just 15. What can I say? People love a phenom.

[rishabhd]

41. Miesha Tate



Google Results From Past Year: 99,900
Miesha Tate has reportedly been signed by the UFC. She’ll be the main opponent of another female MMA fighter also signed recently be the UFC—a woman who we’ll see further on down on this list.

[rishabhd]

40. Natalie Coughlin



Google Results From Past Year: 101,000
U.S. swimmer Natalie Coughlin made her third appearance at the Olympics this past summer, winning her 12th and final medal—a bronze in the 4×100 meter freestyle. That’s a pretty okay career, I guess.

[rishabhd]

39. Candace Parker



Google Results From Past Year: 104,000
Candace Parker is not just one of the best basketball players in the WNBA. She’s pretty much the (very pretty) face of women’s basketball.

[rishabhd]

38. Sam Gordon



Google Results From Past Year: 104,000
This 9-year-old football running back became an international phenomenon when a video of her utter domination (35 TDs, 1,911 yards, 8.2 yards per carry) over boys twice her size went viral. Now she’s on the front of a Wheaties box (obviously) and is among the 50 most Googled female athletes of 2012.
I don’t know about you, but this one made my day.

[rishabhd]

37. Alana Blanchard



Google Results From Past Year: 107,000
Alana Blanchard is supposedly one of the top pro female surfers in the world. Personally, I know nothing about surfing so I can’t judge whether that is true; however, I know why she is so popular in the web.

[rishabhd]

36. Stephanie Rice



Google Results From Past Year: 108,000
After dominating at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Australian swimmer Stephanie Rice was shut out this year in London. However, she was still one of the games’ biggest celebrities. She even hung out with Kobe Byrant.