5 of the best and worst sports moments of 2023

It has been another astonishing year of sporting drama, with triumphs for the European Ryder Cup team, a near-miss for the English women’s footballers and a nightmare title defense for the men’s cricketers.

Here, the PA news agency reviews five of the best and worst sporting moments of 2023.

Best moments

Perfection in throws in the final of the World Championship

Michael Smith fired a stunning nine-dart finish in one of the greatest stages in World Championship history during the early stages of the final with Michael Van Gerwen. In the third leg of the second set it was Van Gerwen who had the first opportunity to reach perfection, only to miss the double 12. However, Smith, pitching second, was right behind him and made no mistake, after seven triples consecutive 20s with a triple 19 and the precious double 12 to drive the Alexandra Palace crowd crazy. Smith’s perfect leg was just his second in a World Championship final and he completed a 7-4 victory.

Unseeded Vondrousova wins Wimbledon

Marketa Vondrousova defeated favorite Ons Jabeur in straight sets to make history as the first unseeded women’s singles champion at Wimbledon. The Czech player took advantage of a nervous performance from Jabeur to claim a 6-4 6-4 victory, just eight months after falling out of the world’s top 100 and winning a slightly less prestigious tournament at The Shrewsbury Club in Shropshire. With the Princess of Wales and tennis royalty Martina Navratilova and Billie Jean King watching from the front row of the Royal Box, Vondrousova recovered from 4-2 down in the first set and 3-1 down in the second to secure his first Grand Slam title. .

The story continues

Europe retains the Solheim Cup after an exciting tie in Spain

Home favorite Carlota Ciganda played a starring role as Europe retained the Solheim Cup after a thrilling 14-14 draw with the United States, the first in the history of the biennial competition. Trailing 4-0 after the opening foursome, Suzann Pettersen’s side bounced back magnificently at Finca Cortesin and, fittingly, it fell to Spanish star Ciganda to ensure the trophy remained in Europe with their fourth win in four games. Pettersen, who will also captain the team at Virginia next year, said: “This is one of the best things I have ever been a part of and is what makes the Solheim Cups so special. It’s going to be a pretty good party tonight.”

Double gold for Great Britain at the World Athletics Championships

Katarina Johnson-Thompson completed a stunning comeback to claim her world heptathlon title, beating American favorite Anna Hall by just 20 points in Budapest. She represented a remarkable return to the top for the 30-year-old after a ruptured Achilles tendon in 2020 and a calf injury at the Tokyo Olympics that forced her to drop out after the first day. Three days later, Josh Kerr succeeded his compatriot Jake Wightman as world champion over 1,500m, overtaking favorite Jakob Ingebrigtsen down the stretch.

Europe recovers the Ryder Cup in Rome

Two years after suffering a humiliating defeat by a record 19-9 margin at Whistling Straits, Europe reclaimed the Ryder Cup from the United States in impressive fashion in Marco Simone. Captained superbly by Luke Donald, who had inherited the job when Henrik Stenson was sacked for joining LIV Golf, the home team got off to an ideal start with an unprecedented 4-0 in the first four and never loosened their grip, with Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm and Viktor Hovland live up to their star fame.

worst moments

Adam Johnson dies after accident in ice hockey game

Ice hockey and the sporting world in general were shocked by the death of Nottingham Panthers player Adam Johnson in what the club described as a freak accident. The 29-year-old American died on October 28 after being hit in the neck by an opposing player’s skate during a game at the Utilita Arena in Sheffield. Born in Minnesota, Johnson played for the Pittsburgh Penguins in the National Hockey League before spending the 2020-21 season in Sweden with the Malmo Redhawks.

WTA Finals leave top players feeling ‘disrespected’

For the third year in a row, a late decision was made on the venue for the season-ending showpiece, and unsurprisingly, Cancun, in the midst of hurricane season, turned out to be a poor choice. World number two Aryna Sabalenka easily won her first match, but then took to social media to criticize the arrangements for the players, who were only able to practice in the temporary arena for the first time the day before the tournaments began. matches. “I am very disappointed with the WTA and the experience so far at the WTA Finals,” Sabalenka wrote. “As a player, I feel that the WTA has disrespected me. I think most of us do. To be honest, I don’t feel safe moving around on this court most of the time.”

Sir Bobby Charlton dies

Tributes poured in from around the football world following the death of Sir Bobby Charlton in October at the age of 86. He was a key member of the victorious 1966 World Cup England team and also enjoyed great success at club level with Manchester United, who became the first English club to win the European Cup in 1968. That The triumph came 10 years after the Munich air disaster, which Charlton and team manager Sir Matt Busby survived but which claimed the lives of eight of Charlton’s teammates. Charlton played in the World Cup final alongside his brother Jack, who died in 2020, and played 106 international matches for England, scoring 49 goals. His death means Sir Geoff Hurst is the only surviving member of the World Cup winning team.

Luis Rubiales eclipses Spain’s victory in the World Cup

Spain’s victory over England in the Women’s World Cup final in Sydney was overshadowed by the actions of Spanish Football Federation president Luis Rubiales, who celebrated his nation’s victory by grabbing his crotch while standing next to the Queen Letizia of Spain and Princess Infanta Sofía, 16, in a VIP box and then kissed Jenni Hermoso on the lips during the trophy ceremony. Hermoso said the kiss was not consensual and, after a long saga that included her mother going on a brief hunger strike, Rubiales finally resigned and was banned from all soccer-related activity by FIFA for three years.

England’s defense in the Cricket World Cup

England arrived in India as defending champions and eager to consolidate their legacy as the leading white-ball team of their generation. They left after six long, hard weeks with their tails planted firmly between their legs, having conjured up a calamitous cocktail of confused selection, tactical naivety and poor form in between. Captain Jos Buttler epitomized their struggles as they endured their worst sequence of results in the tournament, unable to make a dent with the bat as his team was humiliated by Jonathan Trott’s Afghanistan and a Sri Lanka team led by sacked England coach Chris Silverwood . A seventh place finish flattered them a bit.