Videos: Best sports games, races and events of 2015

This content was originally posted in 7DAYS UAE website at: Videos: Best sports games, races and events of 2015 We take a look at some of the games, races and events that kept us at the edge of our seats in 2015. US triple crown horse racing It had been 37 years since Affirmed crossed the finish line first at the Belmont Stakes to win the last Triple Crown. And over those 37 years, horse racing and its fans had seen 13 horses win the first two legs, only to falter — or, in one case, not even line up at the Belmont. American Pharoah finally broke through. He started slow and carried a two-length lead through most of the race. But then, he showed the heart and speed of a champion, pulling away over the last five furlongs to cross the finish line in 2 minutes, 26.65 seconds — ending nearly four decades of close calls. Baseball World Series game one The first inning of game one included the first inside-the-park home run in a World Series in 86 years. Later, there was a power outage that stopped play and knocked the telecast off the air. The game lasted 14 innings and, at 5 hours, 9 minutes, was the longest World Series game one played. Kansas City hit a game-tying home run in the bottom of the ninth and went on to beat the Mets 5-4. And if that wasn’t drama enough, there was the underlying story of starting pitcher Edinson Volquez, who pitched even though his father had died only hours before the game. Japan shine at the Rugby World Cup It was supposed to be a tune-up for perennial title contender South Africa. It ended up being “a rugby miracle” at the World Cup, as the TV announcers called it, pulled off by none other than Japan. The Cherry Blossoms’ only other victory on the world’s biggest stage had come back in 1991. This time, they played South Africa toe-to-toe for more than 80 minutes, and into extra time. Trailing by three, Japan decided against kicking for a tie, and instead got the ball to replacement back Karne Hesketh, who squeezed over for the winning points in a 34-32 victory. Patriots win the Super Bowl Seattle had the ball at the New England one-yard line with two, maybe three, chances to let one of the best running backs in the game, Marshawn Lynch, in for what would have been the winning touchdown. Instead, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll called for a pass. Patriots defensive back Malcolm Butler, a one-time do-everything employee at a fast-food chicken restaurant, had been focusing on that exact play call during the week in practice. He recognised it, stepped in front of the receiver and intercepted the pass to save the game for the Patriots. Carroll then spent hours, days and weeks defending his play call, while Butler no longer had to worry about returning to the chicken joint. 3-wood and the three-putt at the US Open So many majors are remembered as much for who lost at the end, as who won. The 2015 US Open will be remembered for both. There was Dustin Johnson’s hard-to-watch three-putt from 12 feet that cost him the title – a title that went to Jordan Spieth, hardly a fluke winner in anybody’s book. It was the second major of the year for Spieth and he set it up with a 284-yard 3-wood from the near-barren 18th fairway at Chambers Bay that led to a birdie. Four days of listening to players grumble about conditions on the course, then watching most of them play down to their expectations, ended with 30 minutes of pure drama – and with Spieth cradling the trophy. Goals galore in the Women’s World Cup final In a rematch of the previous World Cup final, the US played Japan, who had beaten the Americans on penalty kicks four years earlier. Thanks to Carli Lloyd, this game was anything but a repeat. Lloyd scored in the third minute, then again two minutes later. The United States scored four goals in the first 16 minutes, capped by Lloyd’s long-range strike, and went on for a 5-2 victory. For a while after the match, Lloyd’s Wikipedia page listed her as “President of the United States”.     Read the original story at: Videos: Best sports games, races and events of 2015