Pittsburgh has a rich history of athletics... no question about it. Unfortunately, two of the Steel City's brightest stars never got the chance to live up to their full potential on the playing surface.

Roberto Clemente died in a tragic plane crash on his way to provide charity. Mario Lemieux's career was plagued, and ultimately cut short, by Hodgkin's and the resulting frailty from his battle with the disease. Both could have been the all-time best in their respective sports, but neither played enough games to fulfill their destiny.

I pose to you this question... Which player would have been the top athlete in Pittsburgh, and possibly sport, history had they been able to effectively play out their careers?

My somewhat biased vote has to go to Mario because I actually saw him play and believe that he was better than Gretzky ever was as an all around hockey player. Let's face it, I grew up idolizng the guy. It's a close effing call, though.

Who gets your vote?