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The 50 Ugliest Moments in Sports

Jean Van de Velde

At the 1999 Open Championship, French golfer Jean Van de Velde fumbled what was a sure upset victory on the final hole. Van de Velde arrived at the 18th tee needing a double-bogey six to become the first Frenchmen to win the Open since 1907. Despite a three-stroke lead, Van de Velde hit a string of errant shots that ended up in the Barry Burn, which guards the 18th green. Instead of taking a drop, the Frenchman removed his shoes and socks and tried to elevate his ball out of the creek. He missed, took the drop and made the putt for a triple-bogey seven, sending the championship into a three-way playoff where he lost to Paul Lawrie. (AP Photo/Str)

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'Assault in the ... In 1983 junior middleweight contender Luis Resto and his trainer Panama Lewis were convicted of assault, conspiracy and criminal possession of a deadly weapon after it was found that Resto had removed stuffing from each of his eight-ounce gloves and tampered with his hand wraps before his fight with unbeaten prospect Billy Collins Jr. at Madison Square Garden. The beating Collins took permanently blurred his vision and forced him to retire from boxing. Director Eric Drath produced a chilling documentary on the fight called “Assault in the Ring,” which aired on HBO. (Courtesy of HBO)
Monica Seles The most bizarre moment in tennis history occurred in 1993 when 19-year-old Monica Seles was stabbed in the back during a match in Hamburg, Germany. Guenter Parche, a deranged fan of Steffi Graf, stabbed Seles between the shoulder blades with a steak knife during her match against Magdalena Maleeva. The injury sidelined Seles for two years. She was the women’s top-ranked player at the time. (AP Photo/Hans Deryk)
Shergar The bay colt with a distinctive white blaze rocked the sport of horseracing when he won the 1981 Epsom Derby by a record 10 lengths – the longest margin of victory in the race’s 226-year history. The win was deemed one of the 100 Most Memorable Sporting Moments of the Twentieth Century by “The Observer.” But two years later, Shergar was stolen by masked gunmen while stabled in Kildare, Ireland. The gunmen were never captured and the horse’s body was never found. (AP Photo/fls)
Black Sox Scanda... While "Shoeless" Joe Jackson is revered for his talents on the field, it was his association with one of the most infamous fixes in sports history that he’s often remembered. Jackson, along with seven White Sox teammates, were paid $100,000 by a betting syndicate to throw the 1919 World Series. Jackson and his teammates were banned after the 1920 season and the conspiracy was the inspiration for Eliot Asinof’s book “Eight Men Out.” (AP Photo)
Stanislawa Walas... Decorated Polish sprinter Stella Walsh cemented a lifetime of track and field achievements when she won the 100-meter gold at the 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. But her win did not come without controversy. Walsh was thought to be a man, despite birth records that clearly indicated she was female. After her death in 1980, an autopsy confirmed that she possessed male genitalia. A detailed investigation later revealed that Walsh was born with both an XX and an XY pair of chromosomes. (AP Photo)
Cassius Clay vs.... During a non-title fight at Wimbley Stadium in 1963, top British heavyweight Henry Cooper floored Cassius Clay (later known as Muhammad Ali) in the fourth round. Clay would end up being saved by the bell, but only after some nifty glove work on the part of his trainer Angelo Dundee. Dundee entered the ring and apparently split Clay’s glove, demanding a new one for his fighter before he could continue. But while the fight was delayed and the corner worked on replacing the glove, Dundee passed smelling salt across Clay’s nose to revive him. The entire incident was caught on tape.
Roberto Rojas Trailing Brazil 1-0 at the 1989 World Cup qualifier in Rio, Chilean goalkeeper Roberto Rojas did the unthinkable when a firecracker exploded near him on the field. The Chilean collapsed into the smoke and slashed open his scalp with a razor blade. He emerged from the smoke bleeding, clutching his head and writhing in pain. The match was called, and Brazil was in danger of missing the World Cup, when TV video exposed Rojas’s cheap trick. Chile was disqualified and Rojas was banned for life.
Boris Onischenko After winning gold in the men’s modern pentathlon at the 1972 Munich Games, the Soviets were well on their way to defending their title at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. Russia's Boris Onishchenko was leading British captain Jim Fox in the fencing portion of the competition when Fox's teammates noticed Onishchenko's sword register a point without him landing a hit. When officials intervened it was discovered that the Russian had rigged his sword electronically to score hits. The Russians were disqualified and Britain went on to win gold. (AP Photo)
Fred Lorz Fred Lorz made history at the 1904 Summer Olympics when he quit running the marathon nine miles in and caught a lift in his manager’s car. He rode with his manager for the next eleven miles before the car allegedly broke down. Lorz walked the remainder of the race to Olympic stadium, where he crossed the finish line a clear winner. But after spectators insisted Lorz didn’t run the entire race, he admitted to cheating and claimed it was a bad joke. (Getty Images)
Mr. Martin and t... What should go down as the greatest scam in equestrian history happened in 1909, when a man dressed to the nines entered the offices of the “Sportsman” newspaper and asked them to print the racing card of the Trodmore Hunt Steeplechase to be held in Cornwall. The man introduced himself as “Mr. Martin” and convinced the editor to publish the results. A large sum went down on Reaper at 5-1 in the fourth race, leaving oddsmakers in the red. The scam? There was no such horse or race being held in Trodmore. Martin was never caught. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Sylvester Carmou... In 1990 jockey Sylvester Carmouche rode Hallowed Dreams to an unprecedented victory on foggy day at Delta Downs in Louisiana. Carmouche’s margin of victory was 24 lengths, which didn’t quite add up when offmakers figured he was a 23-1 longshot to win. It seemed too good to be true, and naturally, it was. Carmouche dropped out of the mile-long race and crossed the track unnoticed through the heavy fog. His cheat was shortly discovered and he was banned for 10 years. (AP Photo/Leslie Hodges)
Andres Escobar One of the most selfish acts in soccer history occurred when Colombian defender Andres Escobar accidentally kicked the ball into his own net during a 2-1 loss to the U.S. at the 1994 World Cup. When Escobar returned home to Medellin, he was shot 12 times and murdered. Many believe Escobar’s death was in retaliation for the gambling losses suffered by several powerful drug lords. (Getty Images)
Jean Van de Veld... At the 1999 Open Championship, French golfer Jean Van de Velde fumbled what was a sure upset victory on the final hole. Van de Velde arrived at the 18th tee needing a double-bogey six to become the first Frenchmen to win the Open since 1907. Despite a three-stroke lead, Van de Velde hit a string of errant shots that ended up in the Barry Burn, which guards the 18th green. Instead of taking a drop, the Frenchman removed his shoes and socks and tried to elevate his ball out of the creek. He missed, took the drop and made the putt for a triple-bogey seven, sending the championship into a three-way playoff where he lost to Paul Lawrie. (AP Photo/Str)
Doug Sanders American golfer Doug Sanders earned unfortunate notoriety when he failed to close out a sure win at the 1970 British Open at St. Andrews. Sanders was leading the field by four strokes and was three-fourths of the way through the final hole when he needed three shots from just 74-yards out to reach the 18th green. Sanders missed the winning putt, downhill from three feet away. He lost by a stroke in an 18-hole playoff to Jack Nicklaus. (Courtesy of ingolfwetrust.com)
Bodyline For the 1932-33 Ashes tour of Australia, a nasty tactic was devised by the English cricket team to combat the extraordinary batting skills of Aussie Don Bradman. The tactic is known as “Bodyline,” where the delivery of the ball is pitched short so as to rise towards the batter’s body on the line of the leg stump. The goal was to create legside deflections, but many considered the tactic intimidating and physically threatening to the striker. While the “cheat” has never been deemed illegal, it sparked a fierce rivalry between England and Australia. (Getty Images)
Wessel Johannes ... The former South African cricket captain was banned for life as both a player and coach after his involvement in a match-fixing scandal in 2000. Though Conje initially denied the allegations, he later admitted to "forecasting" results and accepting as much as $15,000 from a London-based bookmaker for a match in India. He challenged his life-ban in 2001 but his appeal was denied. (AP Photo/Obed Zilwa)
Michel Pollentie... In the 1978 Tour de France, Belgian champion Michel Pollentier won the Alpe d'Huez stage and took the yellow jersey. But Pollentier was accused of cheating when a pear-shaped synthetic bladder (better known as a condom) containing clean urine was found connected to a tube under his armpit during a post-race drug screening. (Courtesy of cycling halloffame.com)
Ron Artest Few can forget Ron Artest climbing into the stands to confront a fan who threw beer on him at a Pistons game in Auburn Hills in 2006. A hard foul sparked a confrontation between Artest and Pistons center Ben Wallace. The argument carried into the stands where mayhem ensued between Artest, Detroit fans and several Indiana Pacers. When Artest finally returned to the court, he decked a Pistons fan who was badgering him in front of the Pacers’ bench. Artest was suspended for 73 games (including the playoffs), the longest non-drug/non-betting related suspension in NBA history. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)
1998 Festina Cyc... Willy Voet brought the 1998 Tour de France to a halt when French customs arrested him for the possession of illegal narcotics, including erythropoietin (EPO), growth hormones, testosterone, and amphetamines. Police raided the hotel rooms of several Festina team members and uncovered more drugs. Four team members were arrested and the scandal forced officials to implement new anti-doping policies and more frequent testing for all tour riders. (AP Photo/Laurent Rebours)
Ben Johnson Ben Johnson's world record-setting sprint at the 1988 Seoul Games was one of the most stunning races in Summer Olympics history. But Johnson wouldn’t go down in the record books for his lightning-quick performance or for defeating American Carl Lewis. Within 24 hours after the race, Johnson tested positive for stanozolol, an anabolic steroid. He was stripped of the gold and went into hiding. (AP Photo/Gary Kemper)
Zinedine Zidane France’s Zinedine Zidane took head shots to another level in the 2006 World Cup final against Italy. After being provoked by Marco Materazzi, Zidane headbutted the Italian and was ejected from the last professional match of his career. (AP Photo/Jasper Juinen)
Royals Fans Atta... In September 2002, a father and son charged onto the field at Chicago's Comiskey Park and tackled Kansas City Royals first-base coach Tom Gamboa. The crazed duo began kicking and punching Gamboa. The entire Royals bench cleared and retaliated against the fans, who were eventually handcuffed and escorted out of the park. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
LaGarrette Bloun... As both teams were walking off the field, Boise State defensive end Byron Hout yelled and tapped Oregon running back LaGarrette Blount on the shoulder pad following the Broncos 19-8 win. Blount reacted by clipping Hout on the chin with a swift right punch that sent the 240-pound DE tumbling to the smurf turf. Police had to escort Blount out of the stadium. Though he later apologized, the senior RB was suspended indefinitely. He was reinstated after 10 games. (Courtesy of ESPN)
Haynesworth's He... Former Titans defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth stomped the face of the helmet-less Dallas Cowboys center Andre Gurodeduring during a regular-season game in Tennessee. The blatant cheap shot costs Haynesworth five games. (AP Photo/John Russell)
Jesse Boulerice In October 2007, Vancouver Canucks forward Ryan Kesler had to be helped off the ice after Philadelphia Flyers’ Jesse Boulerice cross-checked Kesler across the face with his stick. The Flyers were winning 7-2 at the time. (AP Photo/Richard Lam, The Canadian Press)
Romanowski Attac... While Bill Romanowski could appear several times on this list, perhaps his worst offense was his vicious beating of former teammate Marcus Williams during a fight following an Oakland Raiders practice in 2003. (AP Photo/Alameda Police Department)
Michael Schumach... If you’re a British Formula One fan, then you probably still believe that the accident at Adelaide in 1994 was no accident at all. Heading into the final race of the ‘94 season, Michael Schumacher was leading Damon Hill by a single point in the Drivers’ Championship. Hill was trailing Schumacher on lap 36 when Schumacher hit a guardrail and seemingly drove his car into Hill’s line, wrecking him. Neither driver finished, securing a controversial championship for Schumacher, the first-ever for a German driver. (AP Photo/Mark Brock/rmcp)
Roberto Alomar Baltimore Orioles second baseman Roberto Alomar spit on home plate umpire John Hirshbeck after Alomar was ejected during the first inning of 1996 game against the Blue Jays. The rift between Alomar and Hirschbeck escalated the next day when the umpire charged into the Orioles’ clubhouse and tried to attack Alomar. (AP Photo/Moe Doiron)
Tie Domi One of the more memorable player-fan altercations of all time happened in 2001 when Toronto Maple Leafs enforcer Tie Domi clashed with a fan while in the penalty box. The Flyers fan was razzing Domi when he turned and squirted the man with his water bottle. The fan leapt onto the glass divider and tried to hit Domi but missed. The glass broke and the man came tumbling into the box. (AP Photo/Miles Kennedy)
Marion Jones In October 2007, five-time Olympic medalist Marion Jones admitted to taking performance-enhancing drugs prior to competing in the 2000 Sydney Games. Jones also admitted to lying about using steroids before two grand juries. She was stripped of her five medals, suspended from competition for two years and sentenced to six months in prison. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow)
Golota Fights Be... “How low can you go?” was the question fight fans had for Andrew Golota after he rattled off a series of intentional blows below the belt during his 1996 bout with Riddick Bowe. The situation came to a head when Golata was disqualified, sparking an all-out brawl between the two corners in the center of the ring. (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)
Antonio Margarit... The former three-time welterweight champion’s career took a turn for the worse in 2009 when “Sugar” Shane Mosley’s trainer, Naazim Richardson, noticed a pasty white substance in his hand wraps prior to their fight. Richardson informed the California State Athletic Commission, who found an illegal knuckle pad lodged in Margarito's wraps. Post-fight lab tests found that the illegal pad contained traces of sulfur and calcium, which combine with oxygen to form what is known as "Plaster of Paris." Margarito was stripped of his California boxing license and banned from competition for one year. (AP Photo/Mary Godleski)
Donald Brashear Donald Brashear has been on both ends of the cheap shot. During the 2004 NHL lockout, Brashear was suspended for the remainder of the season by Quebec's semi-pro Ligue Nord-Americaine de Hockey for repeatedly punching a player in the face while he was lying on the ice. That was a few years after Brashear was struck in the head with a stick by former Boston Bruin Marty McSorely. (AP Photo/George Widman)
Team Spain, Sydn... At the 2000 Paralympics Games in Sydney, Spain's basketball team marched to gold. But not long after their triumph, it was found that only two of the 12-man squad had mental disabilities. They were stripped of their medals. (AP Photo)
John Hartson John Harston is equally revered and hated for his tenacious play. But one such instance of his smash-mouth playing style stands alone from the rest. In 1998, Harston attacked his close friend and teammate Eyal Berkovic during a practice session. Harston fouled Berkovic and viciously kicked him in the head while he was down. A fan caught the training session on tape and sent the footage to “The Sun.” Hartson was docked two weeks wages for a kick manager Harry Redknapp described as “aimed to take Eyal’s head off.” (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Chris Simon After being legally checked into the boards by Rangers forward Ryan Hollweg, Islanders forward Chris Simon retaliated by taking a two-handed swing of the stick that caught Hollweg flush across the chin. Simon was given a 25-game suspension for intent to injure. (AP Photo/Ed Betz)
Clemens, Piazza ... Roger Clemens and Mike Piazza had been involved in a bitter rivalry ever since Clemens beaned Piazza with a fast ball that knocked him out cold. That rivalry was reignited during the 2000 World Series when Rocket launched a broken bat at Piazza during Game 2. (AP Photo/Ron Frehm)
Palmeiras' Peppe... In April 2008 Sao Paolo was enraged after losing 2-0 to Palmeiras. But it wasn't their performance on the field that left the Brazilians fuming. The lockers in their dressing room had been laced with pepper spray, a dirty tactic that came to light after several players emerge from the dressing room coughing and coach Muricy Ramalho had to be hospitalized for severe vomiting. Palmeiras was subsequently fined. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)
Robert Horry Who can forget Robert Horry’s infamous Steve Nash hip check? Horry was hit with a flagrant foul and ejected from the game. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
Charles Barkley Only the great “Sir Charles” could come up with an excuse for trying to spit on an 8-year-old girl. When later interviewed, Barkley said he was trying to hit someone else in the crowd and not the little girl, adding that he was "tired and didn’t have enough spit" to reach him. (AP Photo/Pat Sullivan)
Pedro Martinez New York Yankees bench coach Don Zimmer was hospitalized after tangling with former Boston Red Sox pitcher Pedro Martinez in a bench-clearing brawl during Game 3 of the 2003 AL Championship Series. Martinez later apologized for slinging Zimmer but said he reacted on instinct: "Zim charged me and I think he's going to say something, but his reaction was totally the opposite; (he) was trying to punch my mouth and told me a couple of bad words about my mom. I just had to react and defend myself." (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Dino Ciccarelli Few players spend time in jail for their missteps on the ice, but that’s exactly what happened in January 1988 when Dino Ciccarelli attacked Maple Leafs defenseman Luke Richardson with his stick. Ciccarelli was convicted of assault, fined $1000 and sentenced to a day in jail. (AP Photo/Bill Janscha)
John Cheney Coach Cheney sent one of his players on the floor to "guard" former St. Joes’ star John Bryant. While it's unclear what Cheney instructed, the aftermath left Bryant with a broken arm and an abbreviated senior year. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)
Jonathan Roy Quebec Remparts goalie Jonathan Roy, son of hockey goaltending great Patrick Roy, traveled the length of the ice to fight an opposing goalie during a game in 2008. A fan caught the entire melee on video, but what's most shocking is what wasn't caught on film. Roy Sr., who coached the team, instructed his son to make the charge. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Clement Allard)
Todd Bertuzzi Colorado Avalanche forward Steve Moore was carted off the ice after former Vancouver Canucks forward Todd Bertuzzi hit him from behind and broke his neck during a game in March 2004. (AP Photo/Chuck Stoody)
Michael Vick After five years of funding and operating an illegal interstate dogfighting ring in Virginia, former Falcons star quarterback Michael Vick was busted and convicted on federal charges. He was suspended by the league and sentenced to 21 months in prison. After his release, Vick admitted that his conduct was "not only illegal, but also cruel and reprehensible." (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)
Diego Maradona Maradona is one of the most polarizing figures in soccer history. He was banned for 15 months in 1991 after testing positive for cocaine. Three years later, at the 1994 World Cup in the U.S., he was sent home for using ephedrine. But Maradona’s most infamous moment occurred during the 1986 World Cup in West Germany when the former Mexican star used his hand to score a goal to put his team up 1-0 in the quarterfinals. Despite video evidence that clearly showed Maradona’s hand striking the ball, the goal stood and became known as the “Hand of God.” Nearly 20 years later on his TV show, Maradona finally admitted to purposefully deflecting the ball into the net with his hand. (AP Photo/El Grafico, Buenos Aires)
Mike Tyson In one of the most anticipated rematches in boxing history, former heavyweight title-holder “Iron” Mike Tyson notoriously bit off a chunk of Evander Holyfield’s ear in retaliation for a perceived series of headbutts. The fight became known as the “Bite Fight.” Teddy Atlas, one of Tyson’s former trainers, predicted prior to the bout that Tyson would deliberately seek out a disqualification. (AP Photo/Jack Smith)
Tonya Harding The nastiest moment in figure skating history came in 1994 when former figure skating star Tonya Harding orchestrated an attack on rival competitor Nancy Kerrigan. Harding’s ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly, and bodyguard, Shawn Eckardt, hired Shane Stant to attack Kerrigan during a practice session for the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Detroit. Stant struck Kerrigan in the thigh with a pipe, forcing her to withdraw from the championship. Harding went on to win the event, but after several investigations linked her to the attack, Harding was stripped of the 1994 title and banned for life by the USFSA. (AP Photo/John Gress)
'The Punch' The Punch: Easily the most notorious cheap shot in NBA history, Kermit Washington shocked the league when he nearly killed Rudy Tomjanovich with a devastating sucker punch. The incident was so egregious that author John Feinstein penned a novel around it entitled "The Punch: One Night, Two Lives, and the Fight that Changed Basketball Forever." (John Feinstein, Back Bay Books (2002))

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