It has been another astonishing year of sporting drama, from title triumphs for Liverpool, Lewis Hamilton and Naomi Osaka to disqualifications, suspensions and costly cancellations.
Here, the PA news agency looks back on five of the best and worst sporting moments of 2020.
Best moments
Liverpool end 30-year title drought
Magnificent seven for Lewis Hamilton
Naomi Osaka combines activism with success
— NaomiOsaka大坂なおみ (@naomiosaka) September 13, 2020
Osaka won her third grand-slam title in the US Open with a brilliant comeback victory over Victoria Azarenka, but her success will be remembered as much for her impact off the court as on it. The 23-year-old, who is of mixed Japanese and Haitian heritage, used her platform to draw attention to racial injustice, wearing a different facemask for each match bearing the name of a black victim of violence.
Tyson unleashes the Fury on Deontay Wilder
Scotland qualify for Euro 2020
Worst moments
The “Covidiots”
I want to express my deepest apologies to @Barbarian_FC @EnglandRugby and the rugby family for letting you down this week pic.twitter.com/mBPLuL69hA
— Chris Robshaw (@ChrisRobshaw) October 23, 2020
As if losing months of sport to a global pandemic was not bad enough, when action was able to resume there were numerous examples of players breaking the rules for selfish reasons, some of which had major consequences. The likes of Jack Wilshere, Phil Foden, Mason Greenwood, Tammy Abraham, Ben Chilwell and Jadon Sancho mainly damaged their own reputations, but England’s rugby union game against the Barbarians was cancelled – at a cost of around £1million – due to coronavirus protocol breaches by Barbarians players, including former England captain Chris Robshaw.
Kobe Bryant’s death
Novak Djokovic disqualified from the US Open
?NOVAK DJOKOVIC DISQUALIFIED ?
After losing a point, the world No.1 hits a ball towards the back of the court and strikes a line judge…#USOpen pic.twitter.com/52NYof5jgV
— Amazon Prime Video Sport (@primevideosport) September 6, 2020
Djokovic had already come in for heavy criticism after the exhibition Adria Tour he organised in the Balkans resulted in several players and coaches, including himself, testing positive for Covid-19, but worse was to come at Flushing Meadows when the top seed was disqualified after accidentally hitting a female line judge with a ball struck in annoyance during his fourth-round match against Pablo Carreno Busta.
Tiger Woods’ 10 at Augusta
Christian Coleman banned
