36 Sports Facts, Records and Rules Blessedly Devoid of Any Information About Pickleball Whatsoever

Come learn about sports. REAL sports!
36 Sports Facts, Records and Rules Blessedly Devoid of Any Information About Pickleball Whatsoever

Last year, our neighbor installed a pickleball court in their backyard, and we heard nothing but the sound of that infernal racket hitting that infernal ball all summer long! When the weather got a little nicer this spring, my wife and I looked at each other like “here we go again,” but the strangest thing happened — the sound never came. 

The fad, like cornhole the year before, seems to have come and gone. Well, you know what comes and never goes? Sports facts! Once these highly interesting tidbits get up in that brain net of yours, theyll never leave. So when you move on to whatever the new fad is this year, youll be able to make friends by spouting these classics at them.

Cy Young

Biggest Loser MLB CRACKED.COM He's better known as the namesake of the yearly award for best pitcher, but Cy Young's prolific career also produced a fair amount of duds. In 22 years, he had a league-record 316 losses.

Longest Coach Suspension in the NFL

Longest Coach Suspension NFL VL BOWL CRACKED COM Saints coach Sean Payton was given a one-year suspension in 2012. And all he did was give his team cash payments for every opposing player they intentionally injured!

The Longest Losing Streak in D1 Football

Biggest Losing Streak D1 FOOTBALL DUAMI CRACKED.COM The Prairie View A&M Panthers didn't taste victory for nearly a decade. They lost 80 straight games from 1989 to 1998.

The Longest Suspension in NHL History

Longest Suspension NHL CRACKED.COM Professional concussion deliverer Billy Coutu was suspended for life when he tried to beat the sh*t out of the exact wrong person: the referee.

Most Pick-Sixes

Most Pick-Sixes NFL CRACKED.COM Jameis Winston led the league in passing yards in 2019, but also just barely squeaked out a league-record 7 interceptions for touchdowns. His 7th came in overtime in the last game of the season.

The Texas Rangers

Biggest Ass-Kicking MLB CRACKED.COM In 2007, the Texas Rangers pulled off the most vengeful comeback in MLB history. At one point losing 0-3, the Rangers came back to win 30-3.

Record Amount of Sacks

Most Ass-Kickings NFL 8 69 8 73 58 CRACKED COM In 2002, Houston's David Carr got sacked a record 76 times. Не led the league in sacks in the '04 and '05 seasons, but never managed to break is '02 record.

Olympic Horse Owners

In ancient times, the horse owners were declared Olympic champion- not the riders. As a result, the first female Olympic champion was Kyniska, daughter of King Archidamos of Sparta. Her four horses won in the 396BC and 392BC Olympiads. CRACKED.COM

The Herean Games

Women used to compete in their own competition: The Herean games. In ancient Greece, a separate festival in honor of Hera (the wife of Zeus) included foot races for unmarried girls. CRACKED.COM

Official Languages of the Olympics

The official languages of the Olympics are English and French. They are only ever joined by the language of the host country. CRACKED.COM

Olympic Mascots

The first official Olympic mascot was Waldi at the 1972 Games in Munich. Не was a dachshund, a German dog breed. CRACKED.COM

Gold Medals

Gold medals are not made of gold. They are mostly silver and finished with gold. The last time they were solid gold was in the 1904 Olympic Games. London CRACKED.COM

The Child Champ

The youngest athlete to ever win a medal was 10 years old. Dimitrios Loundras was the youngest athlete to ever medal in the modern Olympics. Не won bronze in gymnastics at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens. CRACKED.COM

Barefoot World Record

In 1960, Abebe Bikila ran the Men's Marathon barefoot- and won. 11 Не became the first east African to win an Olympic medal- and broke the world record. CRACKED.COM

Olympic Cycling

Need a restart? Fall off your bike! OLYMPIC CYCLING CRACKED.COM After British cycling wunderkind Philip Hindes got off to a bad start in the 2012 Olympics, he very suspiciously fell off his bike, triggering a restart. That suspicion was later cleared up, when he flat out said I just crashed, I did it on purpose to get a restart.

Golf Rules

It's illegal to kneel on a towel GOLF CRACKED COM In 1987, pro golfer Craig Stadler kneeled on a towel while hitting out of a sand trap. Unbeknownst to him--or any PGA reps in attendance - that constituted the illegal practice of building a stance.. A random TV viewer called in to report the crime against golf, and Stadler was indeed DQd for not reporting his penalty.

Running Backwards

You could, at one time, run the bases backward BASEBALL CRACKED.COM In a 1908 game, a Detroit Tiger successfully stole second base -- but his goal wasn't to steal the base, it was to distract the catcher, allowing another baserunner to steal home. When it didn't work, he ran back to first base to try it over until he got it right. MLB changed the rules the next day, calling the reverse-steal a travesty of the game.

Fencing Rules

If you challenge a ruling, you can't leave the court FENCING www.allstar CRACKED.COM When Shin A-lam contested a controversial call at the 2012 Olympics, she was forced to stand on the piste while the call was reviewed, which took 75 minutes. She was essentialy forced to filibuster for a fair call, and was ultimately dragged off by security.

The Forward Pass

The clumsy forward pass loophole FOOTBALL M CRACKED.COM Until 1978, anyone on the field could toss the football forward at any time, provided they made it look like an accident. Then the Holy Roller incident occurred-- John Madden's Oakland Raiders faux-fumbled the ball to each other until they bumbled into the endzone for a last-minute, come-from-behind victory.

Stanley Cup

You had to defend your championship HOCKEY CRACKED.COM Up until 1914, almost any other team in the leaegue could challenge the current holders of the Stanley Cup, at any point in the season, and force a de facto championship.

Ambidextrous Pitchers

Ambidextrous pitchers can't sneak-attack BASEBALL CRACKED.COM While the temptation to wind up every pitch with a mystifying martial arts cartwheel must be immense, the sad fact is that ambidextrous pitchers have to literally tell the umpire which hand they're using for every batter.

Fans Making Calls

If the ump missed it, the fans made the call BASEBALL CRACKED.COM Until 1911, there was a rule in the MLB that said Should the umpire be unable to see whether a catch has been fairly made or not, he shall be at liberty to appeal to the bystanders.

Tennis Do-Overs

You give your opponent a do-over if your hat falls off TENNIS CRACKED.COM If your hat falls off during a match, your opponent has the option to declare it a hindrance and redo the stroke. In 2008, Nathalie Dechy's hat fell off as she was delivering her killing blow, and her opponent was able to call shenanigans and ultimately win the match.

Touching Bases

You HAVE to touch all the bases -- no excuses! BASEBALL CRACKED COM In 2008, a Red Sox runner's Achilles tendon snapped as he was rounding 2nd base during a home run trot. The umps declared that someone had to go play footsie with all the bases, and allowed them to substitute a runner mid-play.

Emergency Backup Goalies

Any jerk at the game could become the goalie HOCKEY COME CRACKED.COM Every NHL team has a spare goalie waiting in the wings, though they're rarely called upon. Rarer still, if they blow through two goalies in one game, they can sign any ol' schmoe for a one-game contract. In 2020, zamboni driver David Ayres got to play a game for the Carolina Hurricanes. Не won!

The Longest Point in Tennis History

The longest point in tennis history took 29 minutes. GRACKED.COM There is no time limit in tennis. In a match between Vicki Nelson and Jean Hepner in 1984, the ball was hit back and forth 643 times before a single point was awarded.

Source: NY Times 

Turkish Soccer Fans

Soccer fan gets booted from stadium; rents a crane. CRACKED.COM Turkish soccer fan Ali Demirkaya got a temporary ban from his local stadium, but he still refused to miss a game. He spent $86 to watch from a crane parked nearby.

Source: Time

Jerry West’s Silhouette

THE SILHOUETTE IN THE NBA LOGO WAS TRACED FROM A PHOTOGRAPH OF FORMER LAKERS GUARD JERRY WEST. NBA TAKERS West, who as manager 4 helped the Lakers bui

Aussie Football

Aussie Football is a rough game. It's a mixture of soccer, rugby, and pandemonium. But John Bourke took it to a new level. In a 1985 match, Bourke tri

Tags:

Scroll down for the next article
Forgot Password?