With another interesting year of sports coming to a close, 2022 has been filled with incredible moments in a variety of sporting areas. There have been stories of greatness from the underdogs and champions setting new records.
The year probably went down in history as the year of the ‘Greatest of All Time’, with many of those in the ‘GOAT’ conversation in their respective sporting areas achieving some crowning glory, ending their careers, or in a very sad development like Pele’s, died like legends.
Read the top 10 sports moments in 2022:
1. The ‘King of Soccer’, Pelé, dies at the age of 82
An eventful year for the sport ended on a sad note when one of its greatest exponents: Brazilian icon Pelé died at the age of 82.
Pelé, who is considered by many to be the ‘King of Soccer’, died less than three days before the end of the year (2022).
Regarded as one of the ‘GOATS’, Pelé unfortunately spent the last month of his life in hospital fighting colon cancer and died after multiple organ failures as a result of the disease.
Pelé was the most beloved footballer of his generation or any other, the eternal master of the beautiful game.
Born Edson Arantes do Nascimento in October 1940, Pelé played his first game for Santos as a 15-year-old in 1956.
Pelé won the World Cup with Brazil in 1958, 1962 and 1970. His sumptuous array of skills made him the epitome of his country’s golden era of soccer.
When Pelé finally retired in 1977, he had scored more than 1,000 goals, including 77 for Brazil.
In fact, while the debate of who is GOAT continued again in 2022, there is no doubt that Pelé is firmly in the conversation.
2. The ‘GOAT’ debate and Messi’s Argentina winning the World Cup
The 2022 Qatar World Cup final was full of intrigue. From the early goals to the late drama, it also ended on a satisfying note for many soccer fans. For some, Lionel Messi cemented his place as the GOAT by leading Argentina to World Cup glory.
Despite all the controversy surrounding the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, affairs on the pitch did not disappoint and the host nation could not have dreamed of a better finish than Argentina and France, whose star men played for Paris Saint -Owned by Qatar. Germain – came face to face.
While Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal had fallen at an earlier stage, Kylian Mbappe’s France dragged on to face Argentina in the final.
Mbappé converted first from the penalty spot before firing a brilliant first-time volley into the far bottom corner just 97 seconds later, ultimately forcing extra time despite Messi coming close to a storybook ending shot. fierce in the 97th minute that was saved by Hugo. you cry.
Mbappé’s World Cup performance likely placed him as one of the youngest in the ‘GOAT’ conversation. For Messi, that was his last World Cup.
3. Serena Williams withdraws at the US Open
Fans said goodbye to arguably the greatest women’s player of all time at the US Open.
The 23-time Grand Slam champion announced ahead of the tournament that she would focus on other undertakings, including being a “mother” after the final Grand Slam in 2022. Williams exceeded many expectations by reaching the third round in only her fourth tournament in more than a year.
However, her third round draw with Ajla Tomljanovic proved to be a step too far for the 40-year-old, who went down 7-5. [4]6-7 6-1 at the hands of the Australian in New York.
Later, Serena succumbed to a loss that ended her legendary 27-year professional career.
The report says that Serena noted that she was likely to return to tennis.
4. The consequences of Ronaldo and Erik ten Hag
Manchester United have announced that Cristiano Ronaldo is leaving the club by mutual consent.
The club thanked the Portuguese for his contribution during the two stages in which he scored 145 goals in 346 games.
The Portuguese star has joined Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr on a two-year deal worth €200m a year with commercial benefits included.
The 37-year-old Portugal captain is a free agent after leaving Manchester United following a controversial interview in which he criticized the club.
Al Nassr, a nine-time Saudi Pro League champion, described the signing of the former Real Madrid star as “a story in the making”.
The club said it would “inspire our league, nation and future generations to be the best version of themselves.”
After months of speculation about his future, Ronaldo went nuclear at Manchester United with an explosive interview from which there would be no going back.
5. Morocco shocked the world, reached the semifinals of the World Cup
Morocco led Africa to reach the semifinals of the 2022 World Cup. Never before has an Arab team gone this far. Never before has a team gotten so much support from all over the world. The team inspired the Africans.
Morocco turned out to be the great dark horse of Qatar 2022. The Atlas Lions held Croatia to a deadlock in their first game before beating Belgium in their second game and then Canada to round out their group stage in style.
Morocco was still a huge underdog heading into their round of 16 tie against Spain, but they edged out the 2010 winners on penalties and then turned it into a scalping Iberian doubleheader by beating Portugal in the quarterfinals.
6. Sport pays tribute to Queen Elizabeth II
The UK, like the rest of the world, went into mourning in September following the death of Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth II.
All Premier League, EFL and Women’s matches were postponed on the weekend of the news, as were games in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Tributes were paid from the world of sport to the Queen on the day of her state funerals.
The sport came to a standstill across the UK on Monday as Britons paid their final respects to Queen Elizabeth, while organizations and individuals posted messages of condolence.
The English Football League also wrote on its Twitter page: “On the day of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral, the EFL and its clubs would like to join the nation in reflecting on the late Sovereign’s remarkable life of service to country. And our thoughts are with the Royal Family.”
7. Oleksandr Usyk retains world titles after defeating Anthony Joshua
Ukrainian Aleksander Usyk in August 2022 defeated British-Nigerian boxer Anthony Joshua by split decision to win the heavyweight title rematch.
Usyk landed more solid shots on Joshua in the final round and the former champion tried to counter with his own punches.
Usyk retained the IBF, IBO, WBA and WBO titles by split decision.
The first judge had 115-113 in favor of Joshua while the second 115-113 to Usyk and the third 116-112 to Usyk.
Usyk, 35, had beaten the defending champion in London last year.
8. Roger Federer says goodbye to tennis
Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer retired from tennis in September.
“Next week’s Laver Cup in London will be my last ATP event,” he had said in a statement posted on his Twitter account.
The 41-year-old 20-time Grand Slam title winner had been out of action since a quarterfinal loss at Wimbledon in 2021 before undergoing yet another knee surgery.
According to Sportsmole, the images of Federer sitting next to his biggest rival and fellow GOAT contender Rafael Nadal, with both players in tears at the end of the greatest era in sports history. They were some of the defining images of the year.
As it happened, Federer’s last match ended in defeat, but that was of secondary importance as he came out alongside Nadal in a thrilling doubles match for Team Europe against Team World, with his other great contemporaries Novak Djokovic and Sir Andy Murray watching.
The main event, however, came after the match itself, as tributes were paid to Federer and he got the chance to say goodbye to a beloved tennis world.
9. Tobi Amusan: Nigeria’s greatest sprinter of all time
Nigerian sprinter Tobi Amusan fought her way to victory with courage, hard work and determination to become the country’s greatest sprinter of all time.
The 25-year-old became the first Nigerian track and field world champion and record holder in the 100m hurdles event at the World Athletics Championships in Oregon.
A report from The PUNCH noted that Amusan ran a time of 12.12 seconds, shaving almost a tenth of a second off the previous world record held by American Keni Harrison (12.20 seconds), in the semifinals of the event, before going on to win gold in the final at Hayward Field two hours later.
However, his winning time of 12.06 seconds in the final was not recognized as a world record due to regulations regarding a strong tailwind aiding runners.
Amusan was honored by the president, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retired). She was also honored by the Governor of Ogun, her home state, Dapo Abiodun, for achieving such remarkable feats and making Nigeria proud.
10. Senegal wins first AFCON title
Senegal lifted the Africa Cup of Nations trophy for the first time, having previously lost in the 2002 and 2019 finals.
The Senegalese men’s soccer team won the coveted AFCON trophy for the first time in their country’s history.
Former Liverpool star Sadio Mane was his country’s star player at the tournament, leading the team to victory by defeating Mo Salah’s inspired Egyptian side on penalties.
