Your Favourite Sporting Achievements

[Spymaster]

Watching Dina Asher-Smith's interview today where she announced her retirement from the 200m had me close to tears (yeah alright, I did cry with her).

One of the finest athletes on the planet and clearly an absolutely lovely person, out of her main event due to injury. That's years of very hard work up in smoke but fortunately in DAS's case, she'll be back.

I watched Ian Botham, pretty much single-handedly, beat Australia to win The Ashes, in 1981. I was 14 and I didn't think a single sportsman could get much more perfect than that.

Then Alistair Brownlee carried his brother Johnny, over the line in the Triathlon in Mexico:





What sporting moments have brought a tear to your eye?

 

[dessiato]

England winning the rugby world cup. I cried the first six times I watched it, and it still chokes me a little.

 

[mx wcfc]

Reading winning the Championship with 106 points, and getting into the top division for the first time.
I started watching them in Division 4, in the 70s.

 

[Aladdin]

Italia 90 and Packie Bonner's save

And subsequent goal from O Leary

 

[Bus Honeygun]

I know everyone thinks supporting their team is some lifelong struggle against the odds, but I think following Torquay United for 40 years I have more of a claim than most.

Our promotion game at Southend in 2004 with Leroy Rosenior's team playing some of the best football the fourth division has ever seen got me choked. After years of suffering, finally something to really cheer.

As I get older, I realise my support for United is very much based on emotion. Haven't lived in the town for decades. My mum who took us as a kid gone. All my family and nearly all of my friends have moved out. It's just my last link to the place and the type of constant you cling to as you get older. I often get choked just arriving at the ground now.

 

[The39thStep]

When I won the Hurworth Village mile in work boots beating some Darlington Harrier entrants . Had terrible blisters and had to take a day off work on the Monday .

 

[mx wcfc]

As I get older, I realise my support for United is very much based on emotion. Haven't lived in the town for decades. My mum who took us as a kid gone. All my family and nearly all of my friends have moved out. It's just my last link to the place and the type of constant you cling to as you get older. I often get choked just arriving at the ground now.

Very much the same, except Elm Park has gone, sadly, and RFC now play in a shiny concrete and plastic identikit out of town stadium, now called the "Select Car Leasing Stadium".

There's a bloke at Winchester City FC who's a Torquay fan by birth. We met you lot in an FA Cup 4th qualifying round game a few years ago. Poor bloke was torn in two!

 

[Bus Honeygun]

There's a bloke at Winchester City FC who's a Torquay fan by birth. We met you lot in an FA Cup 4th qualifying round game a few years ago. Poor bloke was torn in two!

Think I know who you're talking about. One of the joys of supporting small clubs.

 

[mx wcfc]

Think I know who you're talking about. One of the joys of supporting small clubs.

When you lot were sadly slipping down the leagues, and Winch moved up one, he used to mourn the fact that we would probably both end up in the same league before long. I think you lot have stopped the slide, and we have got stuck at Step 4, though.

 

[Steel Icarus]

I cry easily, but this question beings to mind Kelly Holmes winning the 800m in Athens 2004. Watched it the other night and it still makes me cry.

 

[Diamond]

Super over of the cricket world cup was a bit special

 

[Bus Honeygun]

When you lot were sadly slipping down the leagues, and Winch moved up one, he used to mourn the fact that we would probably both end up in the same league before long. I think you lot have stopped the slide, and we have got stuck at Step 4, though.

Yeah, I'm normally cautious for obvious reasons with the Gulls, but would assume given the current set-up we'll be challenging this season.

 

[weltweit]

I am drawn to things like Roger Bannister and his sub four minute mile. No one had managed to run a sub 4-minute mile up until that time, but after he proved it was possible a number of other athletes also managed to do it.

 

[A380]

The Springboks beating the All Blacks and winning the World Cup in 1995 and then Mandela coming out in a Springbok jersey. Watched it with my Mum and dad who’d spent years protesting against apartheid (amongst other things) .

 

[dessiato]

Slightly aside from sports events to places.

First time I went to Daytona and drove onto the beach, I thought of the motorsport history there and a tear came to my eye.

First time I went to Wembley. It wasn’t even for a game, it was just for the tour. It was a bit embarrassing because I was with a bunch of students.

 

[krtek a houby]

Fintan McCarthy and Paul O'Donovan getting gold the other day was heartwarming.

And especially when Ireland demolished England at Croke Park, back in '07.

 

[Mumbles274]

It's a great question

2005 Ashes.. That was amazing to watch and listen to

Someone already said Kelly Holmes. It was her face when she crossed the line and help her hands to her face in realisation



Ellen Macarthur coming second in the Vendee Globe. Totally awe inspiring

Ronnie O'Sullivan's fastest 147. You won't see perfection in many if any sports. This is close to it



I could list so many athletics ones if I spent time thinking about it. So many names, Daley Thompson, Sally Gunnel, Michael Johnson, Usain Bolt, Jessica Ennis-Hill...

 

[Dr. Furface]

I'd just about given up on ever seeing a British man win a grand slam, so watching Andy Murray win the US Open and then incredibly, brilliantly win Wimbledon was as good and as emotional as it gets. After all his disappointments and near misses, all the totally undeserved bad press he'd had to live with, and yet at the same time all the weight of expectation he'd carried for years, and to beat Novak Djokovic - not some no-hoper - in both those finals, just made it even more special. Especially Wimbledon, to beat him in 3 straight sets, on a glorious summer day, it was pretty much perfection.

Pass me the tissues, every time...

 

[Smangus]

Coming last in my 3 mile school cross country in the 4th year, despite taking a short cut through the local golf course. Yes I was that shit

 

[planetgeli]

Don't do lists but you can't have a list without this in it.



Last wicket stand, Leach only gets one run (the penultimate run), burnt reviews and that missed run out by Nathan Lyon.

World Cup win was obviously special too.

 

[QueenOfGoths]

Don't do lists but you can't have a list without this in it.



Last wicket stand, Leach only gets one run (the penultimate run), burnt reviews and that missed run out by Nathan Lyon.

World Cup win was obviously special too.

This for me, not just because it was an amazing, amazing feat but a confluence of circumstances meaning my parents were with us and my brother was there at Headingley.

I just remember it being a day full of joy, laughter, family and drinking. Which with Covid was something not repeated for a long while

 

[Steel Icarus]

Oh yeah, Jess Ennis at the London Olympics. She didn't need to win her final event but that determination kicked in and she won anyway. That was good.

The mystery of who was going to light the Olympic Torch in Atlanta 96, then Muhammad Ali hobbled out to do it. Body shaking but eyes blazing.

Had a cry when Liverpool won the League year before last. Oddly didn't in 2005, but I was very, very drunk lol

 

[stavros]

 

[Elpenor]

England Rugby team hitting their highs for me, the comprehensive defeats of Ireland in Dublin and New Zealand in Japan during World Cup 2019 are the two recent high points.

For a single moment, the Jason Robinson try in the 2003 World Cup Final. A dominant carry off a ruck by Lawrence Dallaglio who gives a smart offload inside to Wilkinson, Ben Cohen offers an inside line, but Jonny passes outside him to Robinson who finishes with a dive into the corner.

 

[Steel Icarus]

I didn't cry, but thought David Rudisha's world record 800m in London 2012 was the best performance I've ever seen on the track, possibly with the exception of Bolt's 200m in Berlin. I think it was overshadowed a bit by the golds from Mo, Jess, and Greg, but to win an 800 like that was astounding. The back straight in particular was ridiculous.
The rest of the field were exceptional too; every one set a personal best or national record and the silver medallist Nijel Amos set a world junior record. The Brit in the race, Andrew Osagie, came last with a time good enough for gold in the previous three Olympics.

 

[Aladdin]

Eamon Coughlan winning the World Championships at Helsinki .
With 150m to go he passed the leader giving him a long look and a smile as he went. 07.48mins into video.

I remember it because I watched it from outside a pub in Sneem in the rain. It was being shown on a small telly with rabbits ears...and the tiny pub was packed to the door...
I was on holidays with my family and very young at the time. But I remember the absolute jubilation of everyone shouting and cheering and my dad jumping around in glee...
Funny what you remember from childhood.

 

[CNT36]

Yeah, I'm normally cautious for obvious reasons with the Gulls, but would assume given the current set-up we'll be challenging this season.

Bloke at work they told me they were looking good on Saturday despite losing 3 nil to Argyle. Just couldn't finish but there's a new striker on the way.

He's angry about the referee when they lost in the play offs and is still waiting for the FA to reply to his letter!

 

[Bus Honeygun]

He's angry about the referee when they lost in the play offs and is still waiting for the FA to reply to his letter!

Yeah, I'm not normally a blame-the-ref type but to disallow TWO of our goals on spurious grounds you do begin to wonder.

 

[Hollis]

Thomas De Ghent - Tour de France Stage 8, 2019. The greatest sporting achievement EVER.



Coe -1500m Moscow Olypmics.

Kelly Homes, - 800m and 1500m , Athens 2004

Liverpool - European Cup 1977

Man U - Champions League 1999

 

[flypanam]

In GAA Monaghan winning the Ulster Championship for the first time in 25 years 2013.

In Rugby Ireland besting the AB in Chicago.

Personal achievement representing GB in a three test series against Australia in Tag Rugby. We lost all three games.