Latest news with #Sock
Irish Daily Mirror
07-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Croke Park's GAA scoreboard...when outside agencies affect sport
Strange things can happen at sports events - and just like Sunday's all-Ireland semi-final sports fans can find themselves talking about outside agencies, the actions of people not necessarily on the pitch. Derek Foley takes a lot at some well remembered sporting events affected by events unexpected, unpredictable, hilarious, tragic and just weird. SCOREBOARD FLASHA 2001 Norwich City Burnley Championship game at Carrow Road was progressing nicely for Canaries fans, Gary Holt had put their side ahead after just four minutes. City have a famous rivalry, their own Everton-Liverpool, Man Utd-Man City, and it is with Ipswich Town who, contemporaneously, were playing at Old Trafford in the wasn't going well for Ipswich either as 13 minutes in the game Ronny Johnson opened the scoring for the home team ('cleared' but given by the linseman and hotly disputed too).The good news was just too good for someone with access to the Carrow Road electronic scoreboard and 'Manchester United 1 Scum 0' flashed up on screen. Norwich apologised afterwards and somebody was duly REAR ENDS PLEASEUS tennis player Jack Sock won one of the strangest points in tennis history, not least as it was game-winning point against Roger FedererPlaying at the 2017 ATP World Tour finals in 2017 and serving at 2-4 down in the second set, Sock was in trouble as the the rally's fifth shot was a mis-timed drop-lob that popped up high into the air near the came forward with lots of time to simply swat it back to a place of his turned his back and showed Federed his backside - and the startled Swiss, distracted, mis-timed the shot into the net. Game to Sock, 4-3! BROADCAST BLUESNBC were broadcasting a 1968 Jets and Raiders game and, with the Jets leading 32-29 with a minute left on the clock, they cut away to a tear-jerker film Heidi, about a Swiss orphan. Oakland scored twice in the last minute to win 43–32 as exasperated sports fans jammed telephone lines all across the east station finally managed a message "SPORTS BULLETIN: RAIDERS DEFEAT JETS 43–32" just as a paralyzed child in Heidi was taking her first Jack Clary famously wrote: "The football fans were indignant when they saw what they had missed. The Heidi audience was peeved at having an ambulatory football score intrude on one of the story's more touching moments. Short of pre-empting Heidi for a skin flick, NBC could not have managed to alienate more viewers that evening." BEATING THE BRASS BAND AS WELLStanford's football team were a point ahead of UCLA's Golden Bears with four seconds remaining on the clock when the Bears defence picked a short chip kick. Stanford's Marching Band thought time was up and the tubas, trombones, oboes, drummers et al rushed the field. UCLA held their nerve and, picking their way through the celebrating mob, had to make five 'lateral' passes - as Stanford defenders tried to get past the band to make tackles - before touching down to win the TAKES A LIFT IN MATE'S CARAmerican Fred Lorz almost got away with it - but was exposed just as he was about to receive the gold medal for the marathon at the 1904 St Louis Summer after nine miles, he had hopped in his manager's car and was driven the next 11 the car broke down. He hopped out, ran his way back to the stadium where the US crowd erupted to see an American leading, cheering him all the way to breasting the winning tape! WATCH THE BIRDIE YOU IDIOT!Argentina's Roberto de Vicenzo birdied the 17th hole at the 1968 Masters and, now leading, looked in great shape. However, his playing partner Tommy Aaron wasn't paying appropriate attention and instead of logging the birdie wrote down 'four', a par. De Vicenzo finished out and signed for a 66, a shot more than he had actually taken and, at that point, was now relegated to joint-leader. However, Bob Goalby posted a birdie on his run-in - and De Vicenzo missed out on the play-off chance he had earned with his '65'. JUDGE DREADFULRoy Jones Jr made it through to the light-middleweight final and a fight against Korean Park Si Hun at the 1988 Seoul Olympics without losing a round. He then battered Park through the fight, posting 86 punches to his opponent's 32, only for the judges to decide the local fighter had won. Jones even won the 1988 Val Barker trophy as best boxer at the Games yet the IOC still refuses to accept the blindingly obvious and the decision still stands. Jones wasn't just good but proved himself brilliant, named nineties 'Fighter of the Decade' by the American Boxing Writers' AssociationSURE I'LL SIT THAT ONE OUTDecathlete Dan O'Brien, already world champion from the year before, was favourite for the gold medal at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics and was being hailed as the 'best athlete in the world' as well as being the focus of a massive Reebok advertising campaign. Leading at the US Olympic trials, O'Brien decided to skip the lower pole vault heights and subsequently failed on his first three attempts which meant he didn't score at all in the event. Dropping from first to 11th, he failed to make Barcelona. WHAT YOURS IS MINE AND MINE IS YOURS - NOT!Mark Roe and Jesper Parnevik were both disqualified from the 2003 Open Golf Championship when they mixed up their scorecards following completing the third round, accidentally signing for each other's scores. Roe was two shots off the leader Thomas Bjorn, would have been playing with Tiger Woods the next day and watched, incredulous, as Bjorn blew up and US 500/1 'no-hoper' Ben Curtis won starting on the same score as Roe would WIN, HE LOSESSugar Ray Leonard was declared the winner of his 1980 rematch with Roberto Duran following the Panamanian turning to the referee in the eighth round and declaring "No mas" ("No More"). Duran, nicknamed 'Hands of Stone' cited stomach cramps afterwards but his incensed trainer said afterward there were no cramps, that it was because of embarrassment and cowardice. A superhero beforehand in his home country, all his Panama advertising and sponsorships were cancelled HAD ONE a small country bordering Guyana, Brazil and French Guiana, was overjoyed when Wym Esajas qualified for the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome - he was set to be Suriname's first Olympian. Of course it was also a first Olympics for Head of Delegation, Fred Glans, who gave his athlete the wrong time for his race which duly went ahead while the athlete was sleeping. Suriname's Olympic committee formally apologised to Esajas in Charlotte Hornets selected Kobe Bryant 13th overall in the 1996 NBA Draft and their head scout Bill Branch traded him with the Los Angeles Lakers for Vlade Divac. Bryant played 20 years for Lakers, won five NBA titles, was 18-time All Star, a double Olympic gold medal winner and on and on and on. Serbian Divac managed one All Star and is best remembered (and he freely admitted to it) in the NBA for frequent 'flopping', that is deceiving officials into calling a foul by purposely falling on the floor upon contact with the BAR WASN'T THE ONLY PLACE WITH A MIXED UP COACHUS Olympics coach Stan Wright was using an outdated race schedule at the 1972 Munich games. All the worse as he was coaching the two fastest men in the world at that point, Rey Robinson and Eddie Hart, who were co-favorites in the 100 metres blue riband event. The quarter-final qualifier went ahead without either Robinson or Hart and all three ended up watching the race live on TV. LOOK MA, I'M ON TOP OF THE Jacobellis wasn't just a good snowboarder, she was the best by some distance - and she knew it. She was so far ahead in 2006 Turin Winter Olympics Snowboard Cross final that there was nobody even visible in second place as the finishing line came into sight. Showboating for the crowd, Jacobellis 'wiped out' on the second last jump and watched helplessly as Switzerland's Tanja Frieden came through for gold. EAR, EAR, WHAT'S ALL THIS THEN?Mike Tyson had a reputation for being mean and moody but it wasn't quite understood just how unstable he could be inside the ring until his 1997 re-match with Evander Holyfield. For some reason, Tyson had added illegal ear-biting to his fighting repertoire and the fight had to be stopped initially in the third round and Tyson warned as he had bitten both of Holyfield's ears. In the fourth Tyson bit Holyfield again, taking a chunk of his ear - yes, he was disqualified.
Scottish Sun
07-07-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Billionaire hedge fund manager, 59, set for shock debut in ATP Challenger event and will partner Wimbledon champ
The American claims he is set to break a long-standing record TOP OF THE BILL Billionaire hedge fund manager, 59, set for shock debut in ATP Challenger event and will partner Wimbledon champ Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) HEDGE FUND billionaire Bill Ackman is set to make his ATP debut alongside two-time Wimbledon doubles champ Jack Sock - at the age of 59. The pair will take to the court tomorrow at an ATP Challenger event - the Hall of Fame Open in Newport, Rhode Island. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 4 Ackman is poised to make a startling late debut in professional tennis Credit: Getty 4 Jack Sock (right) secured doubles titles at Wimbledon in 2014 and 2018 Credit: AFP Ackman has a net worth of £6.75billion through his role as founder and CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management. The New York native has previously shared the court non-competitively with names such as Roger Federer and Stefanos Tsitsipas. Ackman will be joined by Jack Sock, a former tennis pro who peaked at No8 in the singles rankings, and won three Grand Slam doubles titles, including two at Wimbledon. Ackman said via X: "I am playing the best tennis of my life and Jack is one of the greatest doubles players ever. READ MORE ON TENNIS ROYAL BOXING Lineker reveals AJ left him very uncomfortable for seven hours at Wimbledon "If we win, I am pretty sure I will be the oldest person in tennis history at 59 to win ATP points." Ackman is just wide of the mark with that claim thanks to Gardnar Mulloy, who held an ATP doubles ranking at the age of 64. Ackman was initially set to partner tennis maverick Nick Kyrgios after the Aussie suggested they pair up for an ATP event, however, the pro suffered an injury that ruled him out of contention. Sock had officially stepped back from tennis to focus on pickleball, but stepped in to partner Ackman - despite only first meeting him last week. 4 Sock's last ATP event came at the US Open in August of 2023 Credit: AFP 4 Sock boasts three doubles Grand Slam titles and an Olympic gold in mixed doubles from Rio 2016 Credit: Getty Images - Getty JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS It was Sock's request for a wildcard place for the duo that allowed them to participate in the tournament, where they will be sponsored by Nike. Wimbledon star's dad breaks down in tears live on BBC after seeing 'emotional' son beat former finalist Sock previously won the doubles event at the Hall of Fame Open in 2021 alongside partner William Blumberg. They will play Australian duo Omar Jasika and Bernard Tomic in the round of 16, with the latter previously having reached a career high single ranking of No17. A victory over the Aussies would win both players 25 ATP ranking points alongside a cash prize of almost £1,500 - which Ackman says would go to Sock.
The Irish Sun
07-07-2025
- Business
- The Irish Sun
Billionaire hedge fund manager, 59, set for shock debut in ATP Challenger event and will partner Wimbledon champ
HEDGE FUND billionaire Bill Ackman is set to make his ATP debut alongside two-time Wimbledon doubles champ Jack Sock - at the age of 59. The pair will take to the court tomorrow at an ATP Challenger event - the Hall of Fame Open in Newport, Rhode Island. Advertisement 4 Ackman is poised to make a startling late debut in professional tennis Credit: Getty 4 Jack Sock (right) secured doubles titles at Wimbledon in 2014 and 2018 Credit: AFP Ackman has a net worth of £6.75billion through his role as founder and CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management. The New York native has previously shared the court non-competitively with names such as Ackman will be joined by Jack Sock, a former tennis pro who peaked at No8 in the singles rankings, and won three Grand Slam doubles titles, including two at Wimbledon. Ackman said via X: "I am playing the best tennis of my life and Jack is one of the greatest doubles players ever. Advertisement READ MORE ON TENNIS "If we win, I am pretty sure I will be the oldest person in tennis history at 59 to win ATP points." Ackman is just wide of the mark with that claim thanks to Gardnar Mulloy, who held an ATP doubles ranking at the age of 64. Ackman was initially set to partner tennis maverick Sock had officially stepped back from tennis to focus on pickleball, but stepped in to partner Ackman - despite only first meeting him last week. Advertisement Most read in Sport Comment 4 Sock's last ATP event came at the US Open in August of 2023 Credit: AFP 4 Sock boasts three doubles Grand Slam titles and an Olympic gold in mixed doubles from Rio 2016 Credit: Getty Images - Getty JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS It was Sock's request for a wildcard place for the duo that allowed them to participate in the tournament, where they will be sponsored by Nike. Advertisement Wimbledon star's dad breaks down in tears live on BBC after seeing 'emotional' son beat former finalist Sock previously won the doubles event at the Hall of Fame Open in 2021 alongside partner William Blumberg. They will play Australian duo Omar Jasika and Bernard Tomic in the round of 16, with the latter previously having reached a career high single ranking of No17. A victory over the Aussies would win both players 25 ATP ranking points alongside a cash prize of almost £1,500 - which Ackman says would go to Sock. Oldest players to earn ATP doubles rankings points The five oldest players to earn ATP Doubles rankings points according to World Tennis Magazine, and where Ackman would fit should they win tomorrow. Gardnar Mulloy - 64 in 1978 *Bill Ackman - 60 in 2025 Lars Elvstrom - 59 in 2009 Guillermo Oropez - 57 in 2004 Antonio Zugarelli - 55 in 2005 Pancho Segura - 54 in 1976 *Should Ackman, 59, win, his ranking points would not run off until he was 60, meaning he would still have earned an ATP Doubles ranking at 60.
