Sports are an ever-present, ever-changing part of our world. Each and every game brings about the potential for something memorable. With the recent move into a new decade (yes I know it’s the beginning of March), this is an opportune time to take a look back at what the past 10 years in sports have given us.
The media has been filled with “best of decade” features on all sorts of topics: best music videos (supposedly Beyonce had one of the best music videos of all time), top 10 reality TV moments, best home runs and the list goes on and on. However, for the sake of well-roundedness, let’s take a look at the sports world from a different view. The past decade has been filled with record setting and mind-blowing events, but what about all those weird things that happened?
Plenty of strange things have happened, and it’s about time they receive some attention, at least for the sake of a good laugh. I’m talking about those strange things that happen in the middle of a game, uncalled for, unpredictable and quite simply make you furrow your brow and say, “What?”
Here are the top three of the oddest things that have happened in the sports world since 2000:
3. Butt-headed Zidane head-butts: Zidane’s home country of France took on Italy. The match went into extra time, partially thanks to his goal early in the game, but he just couldn’t keep his cool as the game neared its end. After a little trash talk from Italian player Marco Materazzi, Zidane couldn’t take it anymore and took out his anger in classic French fashion. He could’ve used his fist, his elbow, maybe even his foot (he is a soccer player after all), but instead he chose to use his forehead as he reared back and head-butted the Italian in the chest. Zidane and his bald head were red-carded off the field.
2. Randy Johnson “flips” the bird: During a spring training game in 2001, former Mariner pitcher, shoe-in, Hall of Famer, and Arizona Diamondback at the time, Randy Johnson annihilated a bird flying by while he was pitching. As he was releasing one of his blazing lefty fastballs a dove happened to fly by. The heater and the bird met in the air. What occurred next was an explosion of feathers and the dropping of the jaws of everyone in the stadium. I’m no mathematician, but the odds of that happening have to be incredibly small. Randy Johnson, bird hunter extraordinaire.
1. The Holy Trinity helps the Tigers to victory: If you don’t believe in miracles, you are about to have a personal revelation. In the Division III football national championship game, the Trinity Tigers won the game with no time remaining after completing a 15-lateral play (yeah that’s right, 15!). In a play that seemingly lasted forever, the Tigers covered more than 50 yards and probably ran four miles in the process. Back and forth, up and back, they worked. Fifteen laterals later they were in the endzone celebrating possibly the most miraculous victory in football history.
It has been quite a decade in sports, filled with all kinds of wacky events. Some that are awe-inspiring, some that bring us to our feet and some that make us pee a little (everyone reacts differently). Here’s to another great decade of sports, hopefully packed with more wild and unexpected events.
Contact Colin Zalewski at colin.zalewski@whitworthian.com.
The Jock Strip: The ever-changing season of sports
Published: Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Updated: Tuesday, March 2, 2010
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