Sports have long been a platform for men to become gods. These athletes sometimes display talent that appears to be super human.
STORY: Nasty Old Man! Jerry Sandusky Allegedly Wrote Love Letters To Victims
So often we forget these are men and women just like you and I. We all make mistakes; after all, it’s a part of being human. However some of these athletes have messed up in a big way, creating monumental scandals that went down in the athletic history books.
With the Jerry Sandusky sex scandal trial only four days away, GlobalGrind decided to make a list of the greatest mistakes and scandals made by sports personalities over the years.
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Tim Donaghy Betting Scandal
After a 13 year NBA officiating career, Tim Donaghy developed a major gambling addiction to begin with that led him into debt.
It was revealed that Donaghy had placed thousands of dollars in bets on games in which he was referee.
After he was relieved, Donaghy decided to expose the NBA for showing favoritism to certain players in situations where a player should or should not be fouled.
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Bill Belichick Spygate
One of the best coaches of the past decade had his legacy tarnished when it was revealed that he videotaped New York Jets defense’s signals.
It is important to note that this was not the first time the Patriots faced cheating allegations.
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1919 Black Sox
Reputedly orchestrated by the notorious Arnold “The Brain” Rothstein, “The Black Sox” scandal involved several members of the Chicago White Sox conspiring with gamblers to intentionally lose the World Series.
As a result, eight members of The White Sox organization, including superstar “Shoeless” Joe Jackson were banned from Major League Baseball.
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OJ Murder Trial
Both on the field, in his White Ford Bronco and on trial for the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman, OJ has made a full career out of evading the opposition.
Everyone who was born before the 1990s remembers exactly where they were when they heard Johnny Cochran’s now infamous line: “If the glove doesn’t fit, you must acquit.”
Unfortunately, this was not OJ’s last run in with the law. 13 years to the day, he was convicted on armed robbery and kidnapping charges and will probably spend the rest of his life in prison.
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Kobe
In 2003, Kobe Bryant was accused of rape in a story that sent shock waves throughout the sports world.
The purported case occurred after Bryant checked into a spa in tiny Eagle Country, Colorado.
It was here that a 19-year-old hotel employee accused Bryant of raping her.
Bryant admitted to the affair but said the sex was consensual.
The case was never brought to trial as they settled for an undisclosed amount.
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Hey This Is Tiger, Umm Remember Those Messages I Sent You, Delete Them
While married to his wife of almost seven years, Tiger was looking for greener grass on the other side.
Woods had a stable of cocktail waitresses, porn stars, and a British broadcaster on the side.
After admitting to the affairs, Tiger and his wife would soon separate. She would receive a settlement of approximately $100 million.
Get your money girl.
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Michael Vick Dog Scandal
In the early 2000s there was absolutely no one in football as electrifying as Michael Vick.
His career came crashing down in 2007 as he would be indicted and convicted of running a dog fighting operation that had been in existence since 2001.
Electrocution, drowning and smashing the animals repeatedly on the ground were among the inconceivably cruel things Vick and his associates did to losing dogs.
After serving a year and a half in prison, Vick joined the Philadelphia Eagles where he is resurrecting his career.
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Drug Kingpin Sam Hurd Arrested By Feds
Hurd was arrested for trying to buy 10 kilograms of cocaine and half a ton of marijuana from an undercover federal agent.
In the wake of his arrest, we began to hear rumblings that he was one of the league’s big drug dealers with dozens of NFL players as his clients.
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Mike Tyson Bites Ear Off
Before we had Bath Salts, we had Mike Tyson. He brutally took out a chunk of Evander Holyfield’s ear during a match in 1997.
You could make a list on Mike alone.
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Nancy Kerrigan vs. Tonya Harding
Nancy Kerrigan and Tonya Harding probably have the most violent ice skating rivalry of all time.
One so hated the other that she ordered her ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly, along with two other men, to break Kerrigan’s leg so she couldn’t compete in the 1994 Olympics.
Shane Stant followed Kerrigan to practice and used a police baton to try to take her leg out.
Despite the attack, Kerrigan was able to compete and actually finished second in the 1994 Olympics.
Meanwhile, Harding finished 8th in those same Olympic games. Since then, Harding’s life has been all about competing in any C-level celebrity-boxing tournament she can find.
