5. Tim Donaghy
Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy set off a firestorm of controversy in
2007. That summer, an FBI investigation found that Donaghy had placed
tens of thousands of dollars worth of bets on games that he officiated.
Worse yet, he admitted that he made calls that affected the outcome of
the game, so that he could manipulate the point spread and win his
wagers. Donaghy also went on to say that he was not the only NBA referee
involved in such behavior, and that the league themselves sometimes
ordered officials to extend playoff series to help increase TV ratings
and ticket sales. Commissioner David Stern has denied this charge, and
while the furor surrounding this scandal has died down in recent months,
it nonetheless called into question the integrity of an entire sports
league.
Doping scandals at the Tour de France date back to the early 1900s, but
it was in 1998 that the first major doping scandal erupted, complete
with hotel-room raids by French police and a sit-down strike by riders
on the 17th stage. Stricter drug testing requirements followed, as well
as the formation of the World Anti-Doping Agency. Nonetheless, doping
allegations remain a constant at the Tour de France, with seven-time
former champion Lance Armstrong being a favorite target. Despite
relentless accusations, Armstrong has never been found guilty of using
illegal performance enhancers, although several others have, including
Jan Ullrich and Floyd Landis in 2006 and Alexander Vinokourov and
Cristian Moreni in 2007.
3. The Black Sox Scandal
The subject of the excellent book and movie Eight Men Out, the Black Sox
Scandal involves the involvement of several members of the 1919 Chicago
White Sox in a conspiracy to fix the World Series. As the legend goes,
it was Sox first baseman Arnold Gandil who first came up with the idea
to throw the Series, and used his underworld connections to set things
up. He played on his teammates’ mutual distaste for Chicago owner
Charles Comiskey. Gandil and seven other players (Eddie Cicotte, Oscar
Felsch, “Shoeless” Joe Jackson, Fred McMullen, “Buck” Weaver, Charles
Risberg and Claude “Lefty” Williams) were banned from baseball for their
part in the fix, which led baseball owners to create the new office of
Commissioner of Baseball to oversee league activities.
2. MLB and Steroids
From BALCO to the Mitchell Report and everything in between, baseball
and steroid scandals have become inexorably linked. Several players,
such as former stars Jose Canseco and Ken Caminiti as well as Yankees DH
Jason Giambi, admitted to using steroids during their careers. Several
others, including Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte and Miguel Tejada, were
named in the Mitchell Report, filed by former U.S. Senator George
Mitchell following a lengthy investigation. 500-home run hitter Rafael
Palmeiro tested positive for steroids, while unsubstantiated allegations
continue to surround all-time home run king Barry Bonds. There is no
doubt that few scandals have has as much on a impact on a sport, both in
perception as well as in reality, as the steroid scandal that has
touched Major League Baseball.
1. The O.J. Simpson Trials
Never has a professional athlete fallen from such heights to such depths
as O.J. Simpson has. Simpson, a former Heisman Trophy winner, a
longtime NFL star running back and a member of the Professional Football
Hall of Fame. In 1973, he became the first running back to rush for
more than 2,000 yards in a single season. After his career was over, he
became a football analyst, an actor and a commercial spokesman. Then,
shockingly, he was arrested in 1994 and charged with the murder of
former wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ronald Goldman. The
trial was one of the most publicized legal proceedings ever. Simpson was
acquitted of the murder charges but was later found criminally liable
for Goldman’s death by a civil jury. He and a co-defendant were also
recently found guilty of multiple felony counts, including kidnapping
and armed robbery. The former football star now faces the possibility of
spending the rest of his life in prison.
Of course, by no stretch of the imagination could we include all of the
major scandals to ever cast a pall over professional sports. Among those
that were close, but just couldn’t make the cut, include the fixed
fight between Jake LaMotta and Billy Fox in 1947, the Minnesota Viking’s
Party Boat incident in 2005, the 2007 Formula One espionage scandal
and, of course, the New England Patriots’ Spygate scandal. Any other
notable sporting scandals you think should have been included on our
list? Post your comments below and let us know about them!
No comments:
Post a Comment