Sports have existed for centuries, with millions of people playing, watching and experiencing the many emotions they evoke. Here at The Brock Press, I asked the staff about their favourite sports moment of all time. Here’s what they had to say.
Andrew Hawlitzky:
“The Buttfumble is by far my favourite sports moment. Also, it was the only sports moment I know of outside Space Jam or the Mighty Ducks.”
For context, the butt fumble was the result of a play in an NFL game where the quarterback was sat on by one of his linemen, resulting in him fumbling the ball – definitely a top 10 sports blooper of all time.
Lucas Costa:
“There are too many to choose from. But if I had to pick one, I would probably pick Portugal winning the Euro Cup in 2016 because it was the first trophy that Portugal—my family’s home country—has ever won in soccer. I remember the police in Toronto having to close some streets in Little Portugal so we could celebrate. Also, I watched the game with my entire family. And I love Ronaldo.”
Winning the 2016 Euro Cup was a monumental moment in Ronaldo’s career. Personally, I was able to experience that Euro Cup from France and Italy, which will forever live in my memory because of my passion for soccer overseas in Europe.
Lucas also mentioned his honourable mentions, which included the Raptors 2019 championship, Jose Bautista bat flip and the Maple Leafs drafting Auston Matthews first overall.
Nora Chan:
“Swimming is one of the few sports I watch, so I’d have to say Summer McIntosh is my favourite athlete. She’s currently ranked as one of the best swimmers in the world, holding multiple world records and titles. It’s incredibly satisfying to watch her dominate every meet she’s in, and it’s exciting to see a Canadian athlete excel to this extent in the sport.”
Summer McIntosh is still very young at 17 years old and has a long career ahead of her. Between her and Penny Oleksiak, Canada swimming has never been in a better place.
Cameron Sauder:
“The Jose Bautista bat flip will always be legendary. Either that or maybe Vladdy winning the 2023 Home Run Derby? I watched that one with my brothers, and it was a good time.”
Undeniably two great Blue Jays moments over the past 7-8 years. The Jose Bautista bat flip, in my eyes, is the greatest moment in Blue Jays history since Joe Carter’s walk-off homerun in 1993.
Luke Sweeney:
“When the Leafs won the draft lottery in 2016. First time I had hope for the team in my entire life, and Matthews was somehow better than we expected.”
For all Maple Leafs fans, this is sadly one of the greatest moments in recent history. Drafting a generational talent and having him pan out in Toronto is something the fan base has needed for a long time. Matthews is already one of the greatest Maple Leafs of all time at 26 years old. If he were to win a cup in Toronto, he would solidify himself as the greatest Maple Leaf of all time.
Will Grant:
“My favourite sports moment has always been Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir’s Olympic ice dancing. Apart from being national icons in Canadian culture, the technical perfection in their performances was always a treat to watch. The chemistry between them is simply unparalleled in other athletic events that I’ve seen. Ice dancing and figure skating have always been among my favourite sports to watch for the combination of theatrics and raw athleticism.”
Tessa and Scott are two of the best to ever do it. In 2010, they became the first North American duo to win a gold medal at the Olympics in ice dance. They proceeded to win four more medals at the Olympics over the next eight years. They are the Olympics most decorated figure skating duo in history and on top of that, have won an additional four world championships. An underrated sports duo to say the least.
Haytham Nawaz:
“I don’t really watch sports, but I was a boxer growing up and so my fondest sports-watching memories come from professional boxing fights. I think Pacquiao v. Mayweather takes it for me. Even though the fight wasn’t necessarily a tense back-and-forth, the tension leading up to it was enormous and the fight itself showed that Mayweather’s defensive genius is simply impregnable.”
Pacquiao and Mayweather are arguably both top 10 boxers of all time when you consider what they both brought to the sport. Aside from Mike Tyson, Mohammad Ali and Sugar Ray Robinson, Mayweather brought so many eyes to the sport of boxing and finished his professional career 50-0. While Pacquiao is one of the most technically sound boxers of all time. He was not going to KO every opponent but watching him dominate the ring was a treat and is why he deserves to be considered a top 10 boxer of all time.
