It has been another difficult year for the world at large and sport has been no exception. However, the sporting world has once more shown its power to overcome and there have been plenty of examples of the triumph of the human spirit in the face of adversity and superhuman achievements.
There is no doubt that 2021 will be a year to remember for many reasons - good and bad - but there is plenty to go down in the annals of sporting history.
Here are some of the athletes that can look back on an annus mirabilis despite the difficulties.
Saul "Canelo" Alvarez
The Mexican boxer turned in another fantastic year in the ring, cementing his place among the pantheon of pugilists past and present. The highlight was undoubtedly the super middleweight division unification bout against the undefeated Caleb Plant. Alvarez won to unite the belts inside 18 months after switching to the division and to mark four wins in his four fights since December 2020 - all three of the wins in 2021 were stoppage victories in title fights and two were against unbeaten champions. A remarkable year for the king of the ring, with 2022 set to be as stellar once he decides what weight he will fight at next. A special mention should go to British heavyweight Tyson Fury whose trilogy fight with Deontay Wilder will live long in the memory and cemented any lingering doubts over his legacy.
Giannis Antetokounmpo
The "Greek Freak" has hit the heights in recent years by being named NBA Regular Season MVP in 2019 and 2020, while also taking home the Defensive Player of the Year trophy last year. This year was arguably even more impressive as the 27-year-old took the Milwaukee Bucks to the NBA championship with Antetokounmpo named Finals MVP. The Bucks bounced back from going 2-0 down to the Phoenix Suns in the Finals with Antetokounmpo dominating proceedings with back-to-back 40-point games.
Mutaz Essa Barshim & Gianmarco Tamberi
The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games men's high jump final came down to the Qatari and the Italian for gold and they matched each other jump for jump. It came down to a jumpoff but the athletes spoke to officials and asked if they could both have a gold medal. They were told that was possible and the sight of the pair embracing led the world to jump for joy. Some were not won over but the majority of sports fans saw it as a moment where sportsmanship raised the bar and a fitting memory for an Olympics like no other. The pair won World Athletics' inspiration award for their shared gold.
Simone Biles
No one arrived in Tokyo with more pressure on them than the gymnast who has for so long redefined her sport. There was shock at her decision to pull out of the team final after struggling with the "twisties." Biles was championed for putting her mental health first and talking about the subject so openly. She was also praised by her teammates for swapping her role as star athlete for becoming their No.1 cheerleader. It might not have been the Tokyo Games that she or anyone else was expecting but her stand might live longer in the memory than any gold medal.
Tom Brady
What a year for the veteran quarterback who ended it as he has ended most of his career - with another Super Bowl ring. Brady was written off after he swapped the New England Patriots for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to maintain his starring role and he came up with the goods as the Bucs won the Super Bowl against the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs. The oldest MVP in Super Bowl history, Brady now has the most rings too and he is not done yet as he guides the Bucs to another playoffs. He is in the conversation for MVP again. Enjoy it while it lasts.
Sunisa Lee
The first Hmong-American to represent the US at the Olympics stepped into the vacuum of Simone Biles and made the leap to global superstar with her gold in the all-around. More impressive than that was the performance to take the US to silver in the team event, where she stepped into replace Biles at no notice in the floor exercise and nailed all three of her routines despite the distractions.
Stephen Curry
The Golden State Warriors talisman is aging like a fine wine and the records have fallen this season for the 33-year-old. In November he put up 50 points and 10 assists in a win over the Atlanta Hawks, becoming the oldest player in NBA history to do so, before reining in Ray Allen as the top scoring three-point shooter. That honor came at Madison Square Garden this month when Curry led the Warriors to a win over the New York Knicks with his 2,974th career trey. Allen was among those there to mark it before Curry credited his teammates for the milestone. It is a record that does little to show just how much Curry has changed NBA basketball.
Christian Eriksen
The Danish midfielder's collapse during his nation's opening game at Euro 2020 shocked the watching world with television cameras staying on the scene as concerns grew. His teammates, led by Simon Kjaer, rallied around their star man before the wider football community did the same. Eriksen has not played since but he has made a recovery and the moment served as a reminder to everyone that some things remain more important than sport. The actions of Kjaer and the other Denmark players helped to save Eriksen's life and maintain his dignity in the most distressing of situations, while the incident itself gave a renewed focus to the availability of defibrillators in the grass-roots game. Harrowing and heartwarming in equal measure. Euro 2020 was won by Italy, who capped off a remarkable run of matches unbeaten with victory over hosts England in the final.
Phil Mickelson
Another athlete who proved that age ain't nothing but a number was the 50-year old Mickelson, who became the oldest golfer to win a major when he lifted the PGA Championship in May. Lefty has had something of a late career surge but this was the greatest title of the lot when it comes to longevity. Elsewhere, Hideki Matsuyama became the first male Japanese golfer to win a major when he put on the green jacket after winning the masters while US phenomenon Collin Morikawa showed the future of the sport is in good hands with a debut win at The Open. The 24-year-old won on his tournament debut just as he had at the PGA Championship last year.
Elaine Thompson-Herah
Jamaica's sprint queen has had a difficult time since she reigned in Rio in 2016 but she put all that behind her in Tokyo. She won the 100 meters in an Olympic record and then took gold in the 200 meters in a new personal best before clocking in a national record as part of the 4x100-meter gold medalists. She followed up that hat trick of golds in Tokyo with a PB in the 100 meters later in August, proving that the rest of the women's field are playing catchup.
Max Verstappen
This could just as easily have been Lewis Hamilton but for a remarkable final lap of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to seal the Dutchman's first Formula 1 drivers' championship. Verstappen led the way for much of the season before the Briton threatened to come back only for it to come down to the last lap of the last race of the season. Even without that drama, his rivalry with Hamilton brought a new generation of fans to the sport.
Robert Lewandowski
The Bayern Munich and Poland goal machine might have missed out on the Ballon d'Or again but many in football consider him to have the strongest claim to being the best player in the world. Lionel Messi, who won the 2021 Ballon d'Or, said that Lewy should get one for 2020 after the awards were canceled. The goals kept flowing for Lewandowksi as he won the Bundesliga title and beat Gerd Muller's record of 42 goals in a calendar year. Next year might be the one where the Pole finally wins the Ballon d'Or and why not? At 33, he seems to be getting better.
There is no doubt that 2021 will be a year to remember for many reasons - good and bad - but there is plenty to go down in the annals of sporting history.
Here are some of the athletes that can look back on an annus mirabilis despite the difficulties.
Saul "Canelo" Alvarez
The Mexican boxer turned in another fantastic year in the ring, cementing his place among the pantheon of pugilists past and present. The highlight was undoubtedly the super middleweight division unification bout against the undefeated Caleb Plant. Alvarez won to unite the belts inside 18 months after switching to the division and to mark four wins in his four fights since December 2020 - all three of the wins in 2021 were stoppage victories in title fights and two were against unbeaten champions. A remarkable year for the king of the ring, with 2022 set to be as stellar once he decides what weight he will fight at next. A special mention should go to British heavyweight Tyson Fury whose trilogy fight with Deontay Wilder will live long in the memory and cemented any lingering doubts over his legacy.
Saul "Canelo" Alvarez Photo: VCG
Giannis Antetokounmpo
The "Greek Freak" has hit the heights in recent years by being named NBA Regular Season MVP in 2019 and 2020, while also taking home the Defensive Player of the Year trophy last year. This year was arguably even more impressive as the 27-year-old took the Milwaukee Bucks to the NBA championship with Antetokounmpo named Finals MVP. The Bucks bounced back from going 2-0 down to the Phoenix Suns in the Finals with Antetokounmpo dominating proceedings with back-to-back 40-point games.
Mutaz Essa Barshim & Gianmarco Tamberi
The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games men's high jump final came down to the Qatari and the Italian for gold and they matched each other jump for jump. It came down to a jumpoff but the athletes spoke to officials and asked if they could both have a gold medal. They were told that was possible and the sight of the pair embracing led the world to jump for joy. Some were not won over but the majority of sports fans saw it as a moment where sportsmanship raised the bar and a fitting memory for an Olympics like no other. The pair won World Athletics' inspiration award for their shared gold.
Mutaz Essa Barshim (left) and Gianmarco Tamberi Photo: VCG
Simone Biles
No one arrived in Tokyo with more pressure on them than the gymnast who has for so long redefined her sport. There was shock at her decision to pull out of the team final after struggling with the "twisties." Biles was championed for putting her mental health first and talking about the subject so openly. She was also praised by her teammates for swapping her role as star athlete for becoming their No.1 cheerleader. It might not have been the Tokyo Games that she or anyone else was expecting but her stand might live longer in the memory than any gold medal.
Simone Biles Photo: VCG
Tom Brady
What a year for the veteran quarterback who ended it as he has ended most of his career - with another Super Bowl ring. Brady was written off after he swapped the New England Patriots for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to maintain his starring role and he came up with the goods as the Bucs won the Super Bowl against the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs. The oldest MVP in Super Bowl history, Brady now has the most rings too and he is not done yet as he guides the Bucs to another playoffs. He is in the conversation for MVP again. Enjoy it while it lasts.
Tom Brady (left) Photo: VCG
Sunisa Lee
The first Hmong-American to represent the US at the Olympics stepped into the vacuum of Simone Biles and made the leap to global superstar with her gold in the all-around. More impressive than that was the performance to take the US to silver in the team event, where she stepped into replace Biles at no notice in the floor exercise and nailed all three of her routines despite the distractions.
Stephen Curry
The Golden State Warriors talisman is aging like a fine wine and the records have fallen this season for the 33-year-old. In November he put up 50 points and 10 assists in a win over the Atlanta Hawks, becoming the oldest player in NBA history to do so, before reining in Ray Allen as the top scoring three-point shooter. That honor came at Madison Square Garden this month when Curry led the Warriors to a win over the New York Knicks with his 2,974th career trey. Allen was among those there to mark it before Curry credited his teammates for the milestone. It is a record that does little to show just how much Curry has changed NBA basketball.
Christian Eriksen
The Danish midfielder's collapse during his nation's opening game at Euro 2020 shocked the watching world with television cameras staying on the scene as concerns grew. His teammates, led by Simon Kjaer, rallied around their star man before the wider football community did the same. Eriksen has not played since but he has made a recovery and the moment served as a reminder to everyone that some things remain more important than sport. The actions of Kjaer and the other Denmark players helped to save Eriksen's life and maintain his dignity in the most distressing of situations, while the incident itself gave a renewed focus to the availability of defibrillators in the grass-roots game. Harrowing and heartwarming in equal measure. Euro 2020 was won by Italy, who capped off a remarkable run of matches unbeaten with victory over hosts England in the final.
Paramedics using a stretcher to take Christian Eriksen out of the pitch after he collapsed in Copenhagen, Denmark on June 12, 2021. Photo: VCG
Phil Mickelson
Another athlete who proved that age ain't nothing but a number was the 50-year old Mickelson, who became the oldest golfer to win a major when he lifted the PGA Championship in May. Lefty has had something of a late career surge but this was the greatest title of the lot when it comes to longevity. Elsewhere, Hideki Matsuyama became the first male Japanese golfer to win a major when he put on the green jacket after winning the masters while US phenomenon Collin Morikawa showed the future of the sport is in good hands with a debut win at The Open. The 24-year-old won on his tournament debut just as he had at the PGA Championship last year.
Elaine Thompson-Herah
Jamaica's sprint queen has had a difficult time since she reigned in Rio in 2016 but she put all that behind her in Tokyo. She won the 100 meters in an Olympic record and then took gold in the 200 meters in a new personal best before clocking in a national record as part of the 4x100-meter gold medalists. She followed up that hat trick of golds in Tokyo with a PB in the 100 meters later in August, proving that the rest of the women's field are playing catchup.
Elaine Thompson-Herah Photo: VCG
Max Verstappen
This could just as easily have been Lewis Hamilton but for a remarkable final lap of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to seal the Dutchman's first Formula 1 drivers' championship. Verstappen led the way for much of the season before the Briton threatened to come back only for it to come down to the last lap of the last race of the season. Even without that drama, his rivalry with Hamilton brought a new generation of fans to the sport.
Max Verstappen Photo: VCG
Robert Lewandowski
The Bayern Munich and Poland goal machine might have missed out on the Ballon d'Or again but many in football consider him to have the strongest claim to being the best player in the world. Lionel Messi, who won the 2021 Ballon d'Or, said that Lewy should get one for 2020 after the awards were canceled. The goals kept flowing for Lewandowksi as he won the Bundesliga title and beat Gerd Muller's record of 42 goals in a calendar year. Next year might be the one where the Pole finally wins the Ballon d'Or and why not? At 33, he seems to be getting better.
Robert Lewandowski Photo: VCG
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