Manny Pacquiao is number 24 on the Bloomberg Business Week Power 100 Athletes; up from 72 last year; ranked higher than Derek Jeter, Dwight Howard, Venus Williams

Manny Pacquaio has a way of being amazing on many levels — but what amazes me more than anything is to watch his rise through the “Power Athlete” rankings that are released each year by Bloomberg-Business Week — a ranking that is based 50% on performance, and 50% on of-field clout. This year Peyton Manning, Shaun White, and Tiger Woods are 1,2,3. Last year Manny cracked the top 100 at 72; this year, he’s all the way up to number 24, which makes him the fourth highest non-American on the list, after Roger Federer (15), Raphael Nadal (16), and David Beckham (21). Here’s how the listing reads:

Manny Pacquiao
Power 100 rank: 24
Rank last year: 72
Sport: Boxing
Age: 32
Most recent notable achievement: Won WBC Super Welterweight World Title
Earnings: $35 million
Key sponsors: Nike, McDonald’s, Alaxan

Why he’s on the list: Known as “Pacman the Destroyer,” Manny Pacquiao is often rated as the world’s pound-for-pound best boxer, with championships in eight different weight divisions. Elected to the House of Representatives in his native Philippines, Pacquiao continues to fight.

Iconic sportsmen who rank behind Manny? Check this out and grin:
Kevin Durant (25)
Derek Jeter (26)
Dwight Howard (27)
Venus Williams (32)
Brett Favre (34)
Dale Earnhardt Jr (42)
Troy Polamalu (45)
Kevin Garnett (47)
Carmelo Anthony (48)
Steve Nash (51)

I remember back in 2004-2005 when Manny was beginning his run, and they started talking about him rising to the elite levels of global sport, and I just had a hard time picturing it. He seemed so unlikely — this cheerful, respectful, humble guy who embodied the Filipino character in so many ways. He had none of the brashness or overt egotism that you see in the others at the top of a list like this. I just couldn’t see America embracing Manny as a superstar the way those of us with Pinoy leanings do. But … I was wrong — which says something not only about the amazing Manny Pacquiao, but also about the sometimes surprising US of A, who has adopted Pacman as its own.

Manny rocks! Love it!

Oh — and Manny’s nemesis Floyd Mayweather?

Um…not on the list.

Here is the complete list.

1 Manning, Peyton
2 White, Shaun
3 Woods, Tiger
4 Mickelson, Phil
5 Brady, Tom
6 O’Neal, Shaquille
7 Brees, Drew
8 Armstrong, Lance
9 Pujols, Albert
10 Ohno, Apolo Anton
11 James, LeBron
12 Phelps, Michael
13 Vonn, Lindsey
14 Bryant, Kobe
15 Federer, Roger
16 Nadal, Rafael
17 Manning, Eli
18 Williams, Serena
19 Beckham, David
20 Wade, Dwyane
21 Westwood, Lee
22 Foster, Arian
23 Johnson, Jimmie
24 Pacquiao, Manny
25 Durant, Kevin
26 Jeter, Derek
27 Howard, Dwight
28 Furyk, Jim
29 Johnson, Chris
30 Halladay, Roy
31 Crosby, Sidney
32 Williams, Venus
33 Peterson, Adrian
34 Favre, Brett
35 Rodgers, Aaron
36 Jennings, Greg
37 Rivers, Philip
38 White, Roddy
39 Gordon, Jeff
40 Donovan, Landon
41 Hamilton, Josh
42 Earnhardt Jr., Dale
43 Fitzgerald, Larry
44 Cabrera, Miguel
45 Polamalu, Troy
46 McNabb, Donovan
47 Garnett, Kevin
48 Anthony, Carmelo
49 Lewis, Ray
50 Johnson, Calvin
51 Nash, Steve
52 Wainwright, Adam
53 Willis, Patrick
54 Cano, Robinson
55 Ellis, Monta
56 Lester, Jon
57 Votto, Joey
58 Stoudemire, Amare
59 Stricker, Steve
60 Gasol, Pau
61 Turner, Michael
62 Stewart, Tony
63 Johnson, Andre
64 Clijsters, Kim
65 Duncan, Tim
66 Nowitzki, Dirk
67 Howard, Ryan
68 Tomlinson, LaDainian
69 Teixeira, Mark
70 Braun, Ryan
71 Wayne, Reggie
72 Hamlin, Denny
73 Longoria, Evan
74 Charles, Jamaal
75 Ortiz, David
76 Ovechkin, Alex
77 Gonzalez, Carlos
78 Paul, Chris
79 Tulowitzki, Troy
80 Pierce, Paul
81 Rodriguez, Alex
82 Lysacek, Evan
83 Sharapova, Maria
84 Hernandez, Felix
85 Ryan, Matt
86 Stamkos, Steven
87 Donald, Luke
88 Harvick, Kevin
89 Mauer, Joe
90 Schaub, Matt
91 Wright, David
92 Jones-Drew, Maurice
93 Els, Ernie
94 Lincecum, Tim
95 Sabathia, CC
96 Martin, Mark
97 Harrison, James
98 Rondo, Rajon
99 Rose, Derrick
100 Holliday, Matt