Unforgettable Sporting Moments

The Malice at the Palace is known as an infamous NBA brawl b/t Indiana & Detroit in 2004. After an oncourt scuffle, a fan threw a drink at a player sparking an all in fight that resulted in the game being called off, 9 players being suspended for a total of 146 games & fined $11m

In 2016, Miami’s Dee Gordon hit his 1st homer of the season in tribute to team José Fernández who tragically died in boating accident the day before. Gordon cried as he rounded the bases, and embraced his teammates after reaching home. The Marlins would go on to win the game, 7-3

Needing just a draw against Greece to qualify for the 2002 World Cup, England were 2-1 down in the 93rd minute as set piece expert David Beckham hit a stunning 25 yard freekick into the top corner to secure his country a place in the finals and send the nation wild in celebration

The basketball final of the 72 Olympics between the USA & the Soviet Union went down to the dying seconds. The USA prematurely celebrated as 3 secs were added to the clock & the Soviets scored the winner. In protest the USA refused to take the podium to receive their silver medal

The 32/33 Bodyline Series b/w Australia & England is known as the time the gentlemen’s game took a turn. As a tactic to combat Bradman, England stacked the leg side field and tried to intimidate the batsman out with the approach creating a significant divide between the countries

Czechoslovakian runner Emil Zátopek stole the show at the Helsinki 1952 Olympics Games by winning 3 gold medals over the 5000m, 10000m and the marathon. Remarkably the ‘Czech Locomotive’ only decided to run the marathon at the last minute & it was his first attempt at the race

Jason McElwain rose to celeb status in 2006 when the high functioning autistic manager of his school b’ball team was subbed for the final 4 mins of the last home game. J-Mac hit 6 x 3’s & top scored, sending the crowd into pandemonium & attracting international media attention

Having taken 1 point from the only 2 tournaments they’d previously ever played in, nobody was concerned about Greece at the 2004 EUROS. However, Greece shocked the world, overcoming much more establishing football countries to eventually win final 1-0 against host nation Portugal

One of the most iconic images in Australian football history is that of St Kilda’s Nicky Winmar in 1993, lifting his jersey in front of opposition Collingwood supporters who’d been racially abusing him all game and pointing to his skin as show of pride in his Indigenous heritage

3-0 down at 1/2 time of the 2005 UCL final against AC Milan in Istanbul, Liverpool appeared down & out. However, led by their captain Stevie Gerrard, the Reds scored 3 goals in 6 mins in the 2nd 1/2 to level the game & win on penalties in one of the greatest finals ever witnessed

‘The Catch’ was the winning play in the 1981 NFC Championship played between Dallas and San Fran. With 58 secs left & the 49ers facing 3rd-and-3, San Fran’s Dwight Clark made a leaping grab to complete a 6-yard touchdown pass from Joe Montana winning the game for the 49ers 28–27

The 2011 Canadian Grand Prix saw McLaren’s Jenson Button crash twice and re-enter from the pits in last position to pass the entire field’s drivers one by one, eventually overtaking Sebastian Vettel who’d lead for majority of the race to claim an incredible and famous F1 victory

Just two months after the 9/11 attacks, President George W. Bush, dressed in a FDNY jacket, threw the first pitch before Game 3 of the 2001 World Series between the Arizona D-backs and the New York Yankees in New York. Bush’s pitch stands as one of sport’s most unifying moments

The 2003/04 Premier League season went down in history, as Arsenal marched through the entire league campaign undefeated, the first team to do so in 115 years. The Gunners were crowned league champions at their rival Tottenham’s ground, and eventually won the league by 11 points

Western Samoa were playing in their 1st Rugby World Cup game when they shocked hosts Wales in the group stages of the 1991 tournament, winning 16-13. It was the 1st time a non-seed had beaten a seed in the tournament, with the win establishing their reputation as a physical force

South Korea became the 1st ever Asian Football Confederation (AFC) nation to reach the semi final of a World Cup, defeating European giants Spain in a 1/4 final penalty shootout in 2002. No other Asian team have since managed to finish among the top four teams at the tournament

It was the day a 20 year old Kiwi changed the face of rugby. Jonah Lomu destroyed England in the 1995 World Cup semi final with 4 tries, including eluding England’s defence before storming towards & literally steamrolling fullback Mike Catt as he helped his side to a 45-29 win

Having not won a test Down Under in 27 years, the West Indies upset Australia by 8 runs in an epic 2nd test in January 2024. Paceman Shamar Joseph bowled through injury to claim an extraordinary 7-68 in the 2nd innings, sparking emotional celebrations amongst the touring squad

American Greg Louganis braving a head injury to win a diving gold at the Seoul 1988 games is one of the everlasting Olympics memories. Louganis' received 5 stitches to his head during the preliminary rounds before returning to win the final by a record margin of 25 points.

Iceland shock the world when the country with a population of 329,000 & no professional clubs knock England out in the Rd of 16 stage of the 2016 Euros. England's manager Roy Hodgson resigned after the game which was one of the countries most humiliating defeats in their history.