The annuals of sports history are filled with inspiring, heartwarming and unbelievable moments that take our breath away. These moments are impossible to predict but when they happen, they define lifetimes and shape the careers of budding athletes.
2018 Boston Marathon – Sarah Sellers
Image Source: RunnersWorld.com
The 2018 Boston Marathon was run just yesterday and although the school administrator from Japan who won the men’s side was surprising, the runner-up of the women’s run produced a truly movie-worthy sporting moment. Sarah Sellers is full-time nurse at the Banner Health Center in Tucson. The 26-year-old goes on training runs in the mornings before her 10-hour shifts. Sellers has no sponsors and no agent and had only ever run in one Marathon before Boston. She entered the Boston Marathon hoping to win enough money to cover her trip. What she got was a staggering runners-up finish and the $75,000 prize money.
2011 Women’s World Cup – Japan
Image Source: FIFA.com
Just months prior to the 2011 Women’s World Cup, Japan was devastated by an earthquake and a subsequent tsunami. When the dust settled, over 15,000 lives had been lost. Despite the hardship their countrymen were facing, Japan’s women’s soccer team traveled to Germany to take on the best at the World Cup. The team shocked many by not only making into the knockout stages but making it all the way to the final to face the United States. Many believed that would be the end of Japan’s heroic World Cup appearance. The US team had long been the favourites and very few pundits gave Japan a chance. The team had one more surprise in them though and Japan’s women returned with the World Cup to a country eager to celebrate their victory.
2016 World Triathlon Series – Brownlee brothers
Image Source: Independent.co.uk
When the World Triathlon Series stopped in Cozumel, Mexico in 2016, Jonny and Alistair Brownlee were favourites to win. The pair had dominated the series placing first and second at the last event in Rio. Johnny had a near perfect run and came into the closing section in first place with some distance between himself and his brother Alistair who was second. However, in the last 100 meters of the run, Jonny’s legs began to give way and he pulled to the side of the road. With race officials about to hand him a bottle of water, brother Alistair grabbed him by the arm, helped him over the last few meters and pushed him over the line. In doing this, Alistair not only gave up finishing first but while the pair were stumbling to the finish line, South Africa’s Henri Schoeman passed them to take the victory. Jonny secured second and Alistair settled for third.
2008 Big 10 Indoor Track Championships – Heather Dorniden
During the 2008 Big 10 Indoor Track Championship in Minneapolis, four women lined up for the 600-meter final including the University of Minnesota runner Heather Dorniden. The indoor track hosting the event was 200 meters and, as a result, the race would encompass three laps of the track. The starter gun fired and the women were off. The first lap was completed without incident. As the four woman were completing the second lap, Heather was tripped from behind and fell hard. With just one 200-meter lap to go in what was essential a sprint race, everyone in the stadium believed that Heather was out of contention. She had other ideas. Without skipping a beat, Heather popped right back up and began a furious chase. She had caught the third placed runner with 100 meters to spare and on the home stretch she caught and passed the other two to complete one of the greatest comebacks in sport’s history.
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