From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishathleteath‧lete /ˈæθliːt/ ●●○ noun [countable] 1 someone who competes in sports competitions, especially running, jumping, and throwing a professional athlete2 someone who is good at sports and who often does sports I was a natural athlete as a kid.
Examples from the Corpus
athlete• Over 150 athletes will compete in the Indoor Championships at Gateshead International Stadium.• Female speaker Atalanta was a mythical huntress and athlete.• Crowds enjoyed seeing a team of transvestites trounce more conventional athletes.• a good athlete• Sports Illustrated for Kids asked a handful of athletes whether they had invented anything when they were kids.• It was discovered that three of our Olympic athletes had taken drugs.• The way he got to that ball shows what a superb athlete he is.• An owner invests years, a fan invests his loyalty, and, there go both, along with the athlete.• The athletes would pump up their compressed-air bottles themselves, beforehand.Origin athlete (1400-1500) Latin athleta, from Greek athletes, from athlon “prize, competition” 