A man sits silently in a clubhouse, alone in a sea of teammates, locked in his own private ritual of preparation. Another man is absent entirely; the image of his wife and two young sons -- one of whom clutches a bat and ball -- illustrates one of the realities of athletic life, separation from family. Other images joyously celebrate the ultimate athletic accomplishment, a championship.

This riveting group of images explores the private and public world of the star athlete, and is drawn from The SPORT Collection, one of the largest and most significant collections of twentieth century sports photography in the world. The SPORT Collection is housed in Toronto and is anchored by the photographic archive of SPORT magazine.

In North America, during the early and middle years of the twentieth century, such star athletes epitomized the ideals of ancient heroes. By definition the hero is a legendary man with superhuman powers who confronts danger with bravery. While the falseness of the constructed image of the athlete as hero may have been exposed in recent years, the ideal of legendary sport heroes remains alive, as reflected in these thirty-one images.

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