Tuesday, January 7, 2014

10 Meaningful Sport Disasters

Original source : http://the10mostknown.com
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In almost all fighting matches in sports, especially in football and soccer games, a friendly match can turn into something aggressive – not between the players but, rather, between their cheering and eager supporters! Because of this tension and the taunting between the supporters, many sports disasters in history often result to stampede. Coupled with overcrowding of fans, poor stadium construction, structural defect, and lax police authorities, many sports events turn into unfortunate disasters. Some of these include the Luzhniki Stadium Disaster, Heysel Stadium Disaster, Oppenheimer Stadium Disaster, and the Hillsborough Disaster, among others. Browse more in this list of 10 Meaningful Sports Disasters!

10- Michael Watson
One of the most meaningful sports disasters when it comes to British boxing was the moment Michael Watson's career ended. It was September 21, 1991, Watson was fighting a rematch against a quite unpopular opponent, Chris Eubank. Throughout the fight, he clearly dominated and by the 11th round, it was evident that he will win the match. However, he unfortunately walked straight to Eubank's powerful punch. By the 12th round, Watson cannot even able to defend himself from the successive blows of Watson. The referee even had to stop the fight! However, it was already too late because Watson already collapsed on the ring for 30 minutes. Although he survived, he was in a coma for 40 days and had to undergo six operations for his brain.

9- Ellis Park Stadium Stampede
One of the most common disasters when it comes to sport is due to stampede, especially during football games where the spectators can get overwhelmingly excited. In this case, the unfortunate event happened in the Ellis Park Stadium during a league soccer match between the Kaizer Chefs and the Orlando Pirates. The stadium was overcrowded with eager fans that when numerous people tried to push themselves inside, they were trapped inside a barbed wire fence. One thing led to another until a stampede resulted, which killed over 47 people.

8- Armand Cesari Stadium Disaster
One of the earliest and meaningful sports disaster was the Armand Cesari Stadium Disaster. The Stade Armand Cesari Stadium, which is located in Bastia, France, was one of the popular stadiums in the country hosting football matches. However, in May 5, 1992, one of the tiers of the multi-purpose stadium collapsed during the semifinal match between SC Bastia and Olympique de Marseille in the French Cup. This disaster, which was allegedly due to the improper construction and structural defects of the terraces, killed more than 18 people.

7- Ayrton Senna's Crash
Known as one of the best and most promising Formula one drivers, the death of Ayrton Senna was considered one of the biggest losses in Formula One Racing. Ironically, what caused his death was faulty steering, which caused him to lose control in his car as it skidded off the track and violently crashed into a wall. Because of the strong impact, one of the suspension bars in his car loosened and struck his head. Because of what happened, many people finally became concerned with the safety issues of race car driving.

6- 1972 Munich Olympics
During the 1972 Olympics held in Munich, West Germany, many people were taken by surprise as 11 members of the Israeli Olympic team were taken hostage and, later on, shot dead by a Palestinian terrorist group known as the Black September. The terrorist group, composed of 8 members, was effortlessly able to walk straight inside the Olympic village armed with bags of weapons. They took hostage of the Olympic team in order to bargain the release of the 234 Palestinian prisoners held in the Israeli jail.

5- Colorful 11 Tragedy
The Colorful tragedy pertains to the unfortunate plane crash carrying the team of Surinamese/Dutch football players known as the Colorful 11 team. It was June 7, 1989 and the team was on their way home coming back from a friendly football match in Holland. They were on board the Suriname Airways Flight 746 from Amsterdam when it violently crashed as it was approaching the Paramaribo Zanderiji Airport in Suriname.

4- Luzhniki Stadium Disaster
Another disaster caused by a stampede is the Luzhniki Stadium Disaster on October 20, 1982. The unfortunate event happened at the Grans Sports Arena of the Central Lenin Stadium in Russia, during the second round match between the FC Spartak Moscow and HFC Haarlem in the EUFA Cup. The stampede caused the deaths of more than 340 supporters. What caused the stampede? Apparently, it all started when a young woman, who lost her shoe while trailing the stairs, tried to retrieve her shoe. People behind her tried helping her by also looking for it. Just then, the jam-packed crown began to stumble on top of one another like a domino effect!

3- Heysel Stadium Disaster
The Heysel Stadium Disaster happened in 1985, during the first ever match between the Liverpool and Juventus, the two most famous clubs in Europe, in the European Cup final. Even before the actual match started, things were already heating up between the eager fans of the Italian and English teams. The Liverpool fans began charging through the Belgian Police line as a response to the taunts of the Juventus supporters. Because of this, the Juventus fans retreated back as far to the wall until it collapsed down to their own fans below. Then, panic ensued and more than 39 people were killed while more than 350 people were badly injured. As a consequence, the UEFA banned English teams from playing in Europe for five years!

2- Oppenheimer Stadium Disaster
Considered as the second worst sports disaster in the history of South Africa, the unfortunate event happened on January 31, 1991 at the Oppenheimer Stadium in Orkney, South Africa. More than 30,000 supporters from the Chiefs and the Pirate attended the game and were admitted inside the stadium, even though it only had a capacity of a maximum of 23,000 people. During the intense match, a ruling came from the referee regarding Chiefs' score, which was objected by the Pirate supporters. Since the audience were not separated based on teams, a brawl ensued all over which cause more than 42 deaths.

1-Hillsborough Disaster
The Hillsborough Disaster took place in April 15, 1989 at the Hillsborough football stadium. It was a semi-final match for the FA Cup between the Liverpool and the Nottingham Forest. The teams were separated so that the Nottingham Forest fans were on the end of the stadium, which has a capacity of 21,000, while the Liverpool fans were in a section with a capacity of only 14,600. Even during the beginning, dense crowds were already pouring in that the police had to open extra gates for entry. Because of this, it created an influx of thousands of supporters in a narrow tunnel leading to an already overcrowded central pen. The weight of the crowd crushed the people who were in front of the terrace to the point that they were already pressed against the steel fences! As a consequence, 96 people died, 766 were injured, and about 300 people were rushed to the hospital.

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