1. Guess who? Yes, it’s that man Usain Bolt again, following up his 100m WR with an equally astonishing 200m record of 19.19 seconds.
Bolt’s performance at the world championships has led many journalists and commentators to state that he has now overtaken Woods and Federer as the world’s foremost sportsman. In fact, the only obstacle he now faces is continuing to improve on his own performances. Perhaps that’s why he has turned his eyes to the long jump.
2. England win the Ashes. The England captain Andrew Strauss was deservedly Man of the Series but it was Andrew Flintoff who once again produced one of the iconic moments of the series by running out Ricky Ponting with a bullet throw at the stumps. Even if you’re someone who couldn’t give a monkey’s about cricket, you should be able to appreciate the skill involved in this…
3. If Usain Bolt didn’t exist, Kenenisa Bekele would undoubtedly be the King of Athletics. Read more
1) 9.58 seconds. Usain Bolt.
He may be Sportsman of the Year but is he the greatest athlete of all time?
2) Golf – In any other week the top spot would have been taken by South Korea’s Yang Yong-Eun, who became the first Asian-born winner of a major championship when he beat Tiger Woods at the USPGA. Yang is definitely a contender for the 2010 Laureus Breakthrough of the Year Award. This is Yang’s amazing 75 foot chip for an eagle at the 14th, giving him the lead and ultimately the victory:
This was a week for the big boys. They showed us that form is temporary but class is permanent, that the cream will always rise to the top, that the business end of the season is upon us and that the world of sport loves a good cliche. So here’s our countdown:
1) Golf – Tiger Woods produced a Tigerish performance to overhaul Padraig Harrington and win the World Golf Championship at Firestone. It all happened at the par-five 16th hole where Woods struck a magical 8 iron to give himself a birdie and the lead, after the Irishman carded a disastrous triple bogey. Luckily for the rest of us we’ll get to see the two of them pair up at the USPGA Championship on Thursday.
That 8 iron…
2) Cricket – Australia levelled the Ashes series in emphatic fashion on Sunday afternoon by inflicting an ‘innings and 80 runs’ defeat (that’s huge if you’re not much of a cricket fan) on England. Plenty of great moments from the Aussies but we’ll go for Marcus North’s century as our favourite.
3) X-Games – Travis Pastrana is an X Games legend. Unfortunately even legends get it wrong occasionally, as happened with this Toilet Paper Roll attempt at X Games XV. Read more
1) Surfing – Kelly Slater won the Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year Award. Well we had to, didn’t we?
2) Swimming – Michael Phelps broke the 100m butterfly world record in dramatic fashion at the World Swimming Championships in Rome on Saturday. Trailing in 4th postion at the turn, Phelps put in his customary strong last 50m and overtook Serbia’s Milorad Cavic with about 5m to go. Phelps admitted that his outpouring of emotion came from the build-up to the race and his rivalry with Cavic.
3) Formula One - Ferrari’s announcement that Michael Schumacher will replace Felipe Massa Read more
What a week of sport. Some great moments and a lot of stars making their cases for next year’s Laureus World Sports Awards.
1) Cycling – Mark Cavendish’s win in Paris on the final stage of the Tour de France was a moment to remember. Yes, the jersey winners had already been decided but the race for victory along the Champs-Elysees produced one of the most exhilarating pieces of sporting action this year. The build-up was dramatic as Team Columbia chased down a breakaway group along the streets of Paris at speeds of 60kph. The final sprint was devastating with Cavendish, led out by his Australian team mate Mark Renshaw, leaving his main rivals trailing out of camera-shot in a similar manner to Usain Bolt’s 100m sprint in Beijing a year ago.
You can watch the final minute here.
2) Baseball – Mark Buehrle’s ‘Perfect Game‘ for the Chicago White Sox came a very close second. A Perfect Game occurs when a pitcher scores a victory without allowing the opposition, in this case the Tampa Bay Rays, to reach a single base. Read more
