Notable Twins in Sports

SI Staff | Feb 19, 2014

Notable Twins in Sports /

Notable Twins in Sports

Steve and Phil Mahre

On Feb. 19, 1984, American Phil Mahre (right) won the gold medal while his twin brother Steve (four minutes younger) won the silver medal in men's slalom at the Winter Olympics in Sarajevo, becoming the first brothers to ever finish first and second in an Olympic event. On the 30th anniversary of this historic event, we present a gallery of notable twins in sports.

Daniel and Henrik Sedin

At this point in their lives, it's likely that Vancouver Canucks forwards and identical twin brothers Daniel and Henrik Sedin are accustomed to being mistaken for one another ? just not during games. On Jan. 13, 2014, Daniel was called for a holding penalty against Los Angeles Kings defenseman Drew Doughty. During the delay before the whistle, several players congregated near the corner boards, including Daniel's twin brother Henrik. Apparently the cluster of players resulted in some confusion, which led to Henrik being mistakenly directed by the officials to the penalty box to serve an infraction he didn't commit. (WATCH VIDEO) In 1999, the Sedin twins were regarded as two of the top prospects in the league and requested to play together, which led the Canucks to make a series of trades to grab them with the second and third overall picks. They both won gold with Team Sweden at the Turin Olympics in 2006.

Rex and Rob Ryan

Born five minutes apart, Rex and Rob Ryan are as close as can be. The two cut their teeth together as defensive position coaches in Arizona before moving on to defensive coordinator positions, and during the season, the two exchange phone calls almost daily. But all that falls to the wayside on game day. Head coach Rex's New York Jets are 3-0 against teams with Rob as the defensive coordinator. Rob's Cleveland Browns lost 26-20 in overtime on Nov. 14, 2010, his Dallas Cowboys lost 27-24 on Sept. 11, 2011, and his New Orleans Saints lost 26-20 on Nov. 3, 2013.

Ronde and Tiki Barber

Travis Lindquist/Getty Images; Manuello Paganelli/SI

Rarely are twin athletes as gifted as the Barbers. Tiki was a three-time Pro Bowl running back with the New York Giants and Ronde a five-time Pro Bowl shutdown defensive back with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Ronde is the only NFL player with 25 or more sacks and 40 or more interceptions. In 2006, Tiki became just the third NFL running back in history to rush for 10,000 and rack up 5,000 receiving yards.

Robin and Brook Lopez

Twin 7-footers, who dominated at Stanford, Brooke and Robin Lopez are pretty distinguishable in game and looks. Brooke has a near buzz-cut, was selected 10th overall by the Nets and averages close to 20 points per game over the past few seasons. Robin has a scraggly afro, was selected 15th overall by the Phoenix Suns and isn't a prominent scorer and rebounder like his brother.

Aaron and Andrew Harrison

Kentucky freshmen Andrew and Aaron Harrison will play for John Calipari in 2013-14. Coming out of high school, Aaron, the scorer, was the country's top-ranked shooting guard by Rivals.com, with NBA size and a seamless stroke. As a senior, he averaged 23.1 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.0 steals and was named a McDonald's All-American. Andrew, younger by one minute, is the playmaker, and was also ranked No. 1 at his position. He picked up an All-American nod too, after averaging 14.1 points and 5.1 assists last season while dealing with a hamstring injury.

Mike and Bob Bryan

Clive Brunskill/Getty Images; Peter Read Miller/SI

When opponents see double across the net during a double's match, they are usually in trouble. Doubles partners and twin brothers Bob and Mike Bryan have been the world's top ranked doubles tandem longer than any other, have won the most career doubles titles and Grand Slam doubles titles, and were named the ATP team of the 2000's.

Angela and Amber Cope

Angela and Amber Cope are NASCAR's first set of twins to compete in the same race in one of the sport's top-3 series. Inspired by their uncle and former Daytona 500 winner Derrike Cope, the twins made their Camping World Truck Series debut at Martinsville in 2010.

Markieff and Marcus Morris

The twins from Philly, Markieff and Marcus Morris, committed at the same time to play for the Kansas Jayhawks, and four years later they were drafted 13th and 14th overall, respectively, in the 2011 NBA draft. Markieff has averaged 7.8 points and 4.7 rebounds in 145 games in two seasons with the Phoenix Suns. Marcus joined the Suns in a midseason trade with Houston and averaged 5.7 points in 23 games with Phoenix.

Jason and Jarron Collins

Jason and Jaron Collins were standout basketball players at Stanford well before the Lopez brothers. Jason had an outstanding senior season in 2000-2001 and Jaron was a two-time All-America. Both were drafted by the NBA but have bounced around throughout their respective careers. Jason played an integral part of the New Jersey Nets 2002 NBA Finals run.

Rich and Ron Sutter

Ron and Rich, along with four of their brothers, all played in the NHL during the 1970's and '80's. Ron, the highest draft pick amongst the family, was selected 4th overall in 1982 by the Philadelphia Flyers, and Rich was selected 10th overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins. The twins played together for three years with the Flyers and three years with the St. Louis Blues.

Horace and Harvey Grant

Horace and Harvey Grant were well-respected defensive rebounders and reliable third or fourth scoring options throughout their careers. Horace was drafted 10th overall by the Chicago Bulls, was named four times to the NBA All-Defensive team, and teamed with Michael Jordan for three of his four championships. From 1990 to 1993, Harvey had three seasons with 18 or more points per game but was never touted as a dominant rebounder like Horace was.

Ashley and Courtney Paris

The California natives and University of Oklahoma twin towers were a force between 2006 and 2009. Courtney was named to four consecutive first team All-America teams and won the Associated Press player of the year award in 2007. Both were drafted into the WNBA.

Kelly and Coco Miller

Scott Cunningham/NBAE via Getty Images; Manuello Paganelli/SI

Kelly and Coco Miller became the first set of twins to win the James E. Sullivan award (1999), presented to the nation's top amateur athlete. After illustrious careers at Georgia, both were drafted by the WNBA in 2001. Kelly was taken second overall by the Charlotte Sting and Coco ninth overall by the Washington Mystics.

Devon and Ricardo McDonald

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These NFL-bound linebackers separated when deciding where to play college football. Devon played for Notre Dame and was an integral part of the 1988 championship defense. Ricardo enrolled at Pittsburgh. Devon played four seasons in the pros while Ricardo suited up for 119 games in eight seasons, from 1992 to '99.

Devin and Jason McCourty

Leon Halip/Getty Images; Greg McWilliams/Icon SMI

While both McCourty brothers roamed the secondary at Rutgers from 2005 to 2009, Devin enjoyed the quicker start in the NFL. He picked off seven passes as a rookie with the Patriots, finished second in Rookie of the Year voting, and was named an AP Second-Team All-Pro. Jason was an unheralded sixth round pick by the Tennessee Titans and got his first career interception in Week 3 of the 2010 season.

Joel and Henrik Lundqvist

Another pair of Swedish NHL players, Joel was selected by Dallas and played for the Stars from 2006 to 2009 (he's now a center on Frolunda HC). Henrik is a three-time All-Star goaltender for the New York Rangers and won the Vezina Trophy in 2011-12.

Ozzie and Jose Canseco

Jose hit 462 home runs and won the 1988 AL MVP award before becoming a steroids whistleblower and reality tv personality. Ozzie had a cameo in MLB, making his debut in 1990 and collecting 13 career hits.

Morgan and Paul Hamm

It is unknown whether Paul and Morgan Hamm are identical or fraternal twins. However, both played an integral role in the silver medal-winning U.S. team at the 2004 Olympics. Paul went on to win a gold in all-around at the same Games.

Joey and Stephen Graham

Ron Turenne/NBAE via Getty Images; Bill Frakes/SI

They began their college basketball careers at Central Florida, then transferred to Oklahoma State in 2002. Joey was drafted 16th overall by the Toronto Raptors in 2005 and Stephen went undrafted. Joey signed as a free agent in 2010 to play for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Peter and Chris Ferraro

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The second set of identical twins to play on the same team in the NHL, Peter and Chris joined the league in 1992. They native Long Islanders were fortunate to have the opportunity to play together on the New York Rangers during the 1995-1996 season, but bounced around among various NHL teams thereafter.

Josh and Daniel Bullocks

Both were highly recruited out of high school and wound up at Nebraska. Josh had an outstanding junior season, when he picked off 10 passes, prompting him to leave school early. He was the 40th overall pick in 2005 by the New Orleans Saints. Daniel had a solid four-year career at Nebraska, was co-captain his senior year, and, just like his brother, was drafted 40th overall, but by the Detroit Lions in 2006.

Heather and Heidi Burge

The 6'5 Burge twins were the tallest set of female twins for a period while they were playing in the WNBA. Heather was a member of the Sacramento Monarchs and Heidi played for the Los Angeles Sparks and Washington Mystics. The 2002 Disney movie Double Teamed was based on their lives.

Tom and Dick Van Arsdale

The Van Arsdale twins were guards at Indiana, shared a spot on the NBA All-Rookie team in 1966, and both retired after 12 years. Tom was drafted by the Pistons and played for six teams. Dick was picked by the New York Knicks but after three seasons was selected in the 1968 expansion draft by the Phoenix Suns, where he spent the remainder of his career.

Keith and Kerry Cash

Elsa Hasch/TSN/Icon SMI; Scott Halleran/Getty Images

The Cash brothers formed a dual threat receiving option at the University of Texas. Kerry was a tight end who was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in 1991 and Keith was a wide receiver selected by the Washington Redskins, also in 1991. Their NFL careers ended in 1996.

Rich and Ron Saul

Despite never winning more than half their games in each of the three seasons they played at Michigan State, Rich and Ron Saul made an impact on the offensive and defensive side of the ball. Rich was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams and Ron was picked by the Houston Oilers. Ron made six Pro Bowls as a guard and Rich extended his career to 142 games played.

Karen and Sarah Josephson

Shaun Botterill/Getty Images; Heinz Kluetmeier/SI

Sarah and Karen won the duet event in synchronized swimming for the U.S. in the 1992 Olympics and earned silver medals at the 1988 Games in Seoul.

Herbert and Wilfred Baddeley

While you may not have heard of the Baddeley twins, they made their mark in tennis in the late 1890's. Herbert and Wilfred were doubles partners who won the Wimbledon doubles championship four times (1891, 1894-1896) before opting to pursue law in 1897.

Published Feb 19, 2014

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