Messi, Mahomes, Griner Named Among Time's 100 Most Influential People of 2023

Paris Saint-German forward Lionel Messi, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner were among the honorees in Time's list of the 100 most influential people of 2023.

Messi's PSG teammate Kylian Mbappé, 2022 French Open and U.S. Open champion Iga Świątek and record-setting alpine skier Mikaela Shiffrin were recognized as well.

Messi, Mbappé, Mahomes, Świątek and Shiffrin all excelled in their respective sports over the last year.

Messi helped Argentina win its third World Cup, taking down Mbappé and France in the final. Mahomes lifted the Vince Lombardi Trophy for a second time while collecting his second Most Valuable Player Award. Świątek is the No. 1-ranked women's player in the world, and the 21-year-old figures to be a fixture near the top of the rankings for the foreseeable future. Shiffrin broke Lindsey Vonn's all-time World Cup wins record for a female alpine skier in January and took down Ingemar Stenmark's overall mark in March.

Griner, meanwhile, hasn't stepped onto a WNBA court since October 2021.

The seven-time All-Star traveled to Russia to compete with UMMC Ekaterinburg when she was arrested at an airport outside Moscow. She spent 294 days wrongfully detained in Russia and returned to the United States in December.

Griner's ordeal brought further scrutiny toward the pay structures in women's sports. In the WNBA specifically, the top stars can earn significantly more overseas than they do playing in the U.S.

"BG's wrongful detainment brought attention to issues like the inequities in pay for women athletes, which sometimes compel us to put ourselves in dangerous situations to maximize our financial worth," Seattle Storm legend Sue Bird wrote for Time.

Griner has said she plans on drawing continued attention to other Americans detained abroad as well.