updated 7:16 p.m. ET Oct. 1, 2008

How do people with raw talent develop into successful athletes? A love of the limelight and a tough-as-nails work ethic are a couple of the special ingredients. But those same personality traits can be translated into other arenas, so to speak, as well. These 10 politicians have the credentials to show that they’ve got the goods on the court and the Hill. So, if the Electoral College ever gets replaced by a touch football match, the parties will know who to pick for their teams.

10. Lynn Swann had a remarkable performance in Super Bowl X for the Pittsburgh Steelers. The second-year wideout out of USC finished with a then-record 161 yards and a touchdown as he became the first-ever receiver to win MVP honors in the Steelers' 21-17 win. However, what not many remember is that Swann spent most of the week leading up to the big game in the hospital, unsure if he would even be able to play.

Two weeks prior, against the Oakland Raiders in the AFC Championship Game, defensive back George Atkinson leveled Swann, giving him a concussion and sending him to the hospital for two days. Just days before the Super Bowl, Swann described his condition: "I get nauseated now and then. The symptoms are the same as being drunk."

Swann ended his career with four Super Bowl rings, three Pro Bowl selections and was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2001. Following his playing days, Swann became a broadcaster, public speaker and philanthropist, and in 2006, ran for governor of Pennsylvania. The Steeler great fell short, gaining 40 percent of the vote in his quest to become the first African-American governor of his state.

9. The only politician to ever throw a perfect game, baseball Hall of Famer Jim Bunning is in his second term as the Senator from Kentucky, before which he served in the House for 12 years.

8. In three attempts, storied distance runner Jim Ryun never won Olympic gold -- his best finish was silver at the 1968 Mexico City Games -- but he did hold the world records in the half-mile, 1,500 meters, and, for eight years, the mile. Almost 30 years later he ran for, and won, a congressional seat in his home state of Kansas, a seat he held for five terms.

This year, before the 2008 Olympics, he wrote a column in the Christian Science Monitor titled "What It Takes to Run for Olympic Gold." In it he argued that, despite having less flash than the 100, the 1,500 is the premier track and field event. "A grueling test of grit and wit, it requires the speed of a sprinter and the endurance of a distance runner. Each of us identifies with this distance, whether we have run, walked, or driven it. That's why it captures the attention and imagination of a global audience."

7. The Governator isn't just a bodybuilder-turned-movie star-turned-politician; he’s the greatest bodybuilder-turned-movie star-turned-politician.

When Arnold Schwarzenegger first retired from bodybuilding to start doing movies, he had won six Mr. Olympia titles. But he got in such good bodybuilding shape to film Conan The Barbarian that, when filming was over, he showed up to the 1980 Mr. Olympia unannounced, competed, and won his record-setting seventh title.

6. In 1996, George Mikan was selected as one of the NBA's 50 greatest players -- and with good reason. As one of the NBA's first "big men," Mikan, perhaps more than any other player, had a profound influence on the game, as anyone who has practiced the "Mikan Drill" can attest. In fact, he was so dominant inside that the league was forced to widen the foul lane, calling it the "Mikan rule."

But Mikan's success in the athletic realm didn't carry over to the political. Mikan challenged Congressman Roy Wier in 1956 for Wier's seat in Minnesota, losing the race by fewer than 10,000 votes. In subsequent years, he returned to basketball, becoming the first commissioner of the ABA, where he, among other things, invented the three-point line.

5. Few recognize the name Ralph Metcalfe. Even fewer know that as a congressman from Illinois in the 1970s, he co-founded the Congressional Black Caucus. But perhaps most egregious is the lack of recognition for his remarkable track and field career.

When reflecting on the greatest track stars of the 1930s, one usually jumps straight to Jesse Owens. But before Owens, Metcalfe was the fastest man in the world. During the 1936 Berlin Games, though, he finished behind Owens to win a silver medal in the 100-meter sprint. While in the same Games, he also took the baton from Owens to win a gold medal and help set a world record in the 4 x 100-meter relay.

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Metcalfe's sportsmanship was legendary. He had also competed in the 1932 Olympics and could have won a gold medal in the 200 meters, but finished third because, as it was later shown, his lane was two meters longer than his competitors'. He decided against filing a protest to force a re-run — a protest he probably would have won — because Americans had swept all three medals.

4. Steve Largent. "Whenever we played Seattle I would sit and watch this guy. Not a big guy, but a guy that had a lot of heart and a lot of determination. … [W]hen I see him I'm like, 'Wow, that's my idol right there.' That's the guy that I tried to really mold myself after."

That was the answer to the question, "Who is the one guy that you hear this player's name and you'll think, 'Wow, there's a special ballplayer,'" and was said by Jerry Rice; simply, the best receiver ever to play football.

Largent played 13 seasons in the NFL, all with Seattle, and was selected to the Pro Bowl seven times. By the time he retired, he had racked up an impressive list of NFL receiving records, including receptions (819), yards (13,089) and touchdowns, where he came in with a cool 100. In 1992, Largent's number 80 was retired by the Seahawks, still the only jersey to be honored by the Seattle franchise, and he was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1995.

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