Liverpool winning the Premier League, the death of Kobe Bryant, Lewis Hamilton’s black power salute, the dejection of Lionel Messi, the agility of Ewa Pajor, Rafael Nadal’s triumph in Paris, teeming crowds at the Cheltenham Festival as the coronavirus spreads: the photographs that tell the story of sport in 2020.
In memory of our friend Daffydd Bynon
- Click on each image for more caption information
Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah celebrates after scoring his team’s second goal against Manchester United at Anfield on 19 January. It was the first time the Kop sang ‘we’re gonna win the league’ and Liverpool moved 16 points clear of second-placed Manchester City with a game in hand.
Lebron James and Quinn Cook cry during the Los Angeles Lakers’ pre-game ceremony to honour Kobe Bryant at the Staples Centre on 31 January. Bryant was killed in a helicopter crash along with eight others, including his teenage daughter Gianna. The day before, James had passed Bryant as the NBA’s third-highest all-time scorer. Bryant’s last public statement was a tweet in which he praised James’s scoring feat.
(L) Robin Montgomery of the United States serves during her junior girls’ singles first-round match against Belgium’s Sofia Costoulas on 26 January at the Australian Open in Melbourne Park. (R) Spain’s Rafael Nadal serves against Argentina’s Diego Schwartzman in their French Open semi-final at Roland Garros in Paris. Nadal beat Novak Djokovic in the final to win his 13th French Open title. “It’s just beyond anything that anyone could have imagined,” said the tournament director, Guy Forget. “Maybe in the future someone will witness something better but, in my mind, that’s the biggest sporting achievement any sport will ever see.”
Tyson Fury knocks down Deontay Wilder during their WBC heavyweight title fight in Las Vegas on 22 February. Fury completed one of the greatest comebacks in modern sports history when he knocked out Deontay Wilder in the seventh round to claim the WBC Title.
(L) Czech Republic’s Ester Ledecka competes in the women’s downhill race in Crans-Montana on 21 February. (R) Australian climber Angie Scarth-Johnson climbs at Gateway Crag in the Blue Mountains in Sydney. Scarth-Johnson was training for selection to represent Australia in sport climbing at the Olympics. The sport would have made its Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020. The Olympics were postponed in March after talks between Japan’s prime minister, Shinzo Abe, and the International Olympic Committee president, Thomas Bach, led to confirmation of a decision made inevitable by the coronavirus pandemic.
Gabriel Ibitoye of Harlequins dives over to score a try against Exeter at Sandy Park on 2 February.
Runners in the opening race of day four pass by the packed main stand at the Cheltenham Festival on 13 March. As the death toll in Britain from Covid-19 increased to become the highest in Europe, the initial policy of Boris Johnson’s government – to dismiss other countries’ rapid responses and allow the virus to spread – was subjected to unforgiving scrutiny. Permitting the “mass gatherings” to continue became an emblem of the government’s inaction, captured most vividly in pictures of teeming crowds at the Cheltenham horse racing festival from 10-13 March.
Maro Itoje and his Saracens teammates walk out for the second half of the European Champions Cup match against Racing Metro at Allianz Park on 19 January. Saracens were docked a further 70 points on 28 January – in addition to the 35 points deducted in November 2019 for breaches of the salary cap – to ensure they finished bottom of the Premiership table.
(L) Bohemians’ supporters watch the match between Bohemians 1905 and SK Dynamo Ceske Budejovice behind a wall amid the new coronavirus restrictions in Prague on 31 May. (R) Exeter’s Jack Nowell receives a drink from his daughter Nori while he exercises at home during the coronavirus lockdown on 13 May. On 24 October Exeter became the fourth club to secure the Premiership and Champions Cup double after they delved deep within themselves to defeat Wasps 19-13 in the Premiership final – opponents who were without four players who had to isolate because of coronavirus.
Jadon Sancho celebrates with a Justice for George Floyd T-shirt after scoring Borussia Dortmund’s second goal during the Bundesliga match against against Paderborn at Benteler Arena on 31 May. Sancho sent out a message of solidarity towards those protesting against the killing of George Floyd by American police.
Liverpool supporters celebrate their team winning the Premier League title outside Anfield following Chelsea’s 2-1 victory over Manchester City on 25 June. Thousands of jubilant Liverpool fans spent the night celebrating the team’s first league title for 30 years, which prompted warnings from police concerned about mass gatherings flouting social-distancing rules. As a huge crowd sang songs and let off flares outside Anfield, Merseyside police assistant chief constable Rob Carden said the region had been “disproportionately affected” by the coronavirus pandemic and its residents had a responsibility to prevent further cases.
Turkish freediving world record-holder Sahika Encumen dives amid plastic waste on the Ortakoy coastline of the Bosphorus in Istanbul on 27 June.
England’s Ollie Pope dives to catch out Kemar Roach of West Indies and win the match during the fifth day of the second Test at Old Trafford on 20 July.
(L) Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina serves the ball to Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia during their semi-final of the Bett1 Aces tennis tournament in Hangar 6 of the former airport Tempelhof on 18 July in Berlin. (R) With the seats at Dodger Stadium empty, Los Angeles Dodger’s starting pitcher Julio Urias throws to a San Francisco Giants batter during the third innings of a baseball game on 26 July.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang celebrates with his teammates after scoring Arsenal’s second goal during the FA Cup semi-final win against Manchester City on 18 July at an empty Wembley. Arsenal beat Chelsea 2-1 in the final to win the FA Cup for a record 14th time.
(L) Lionel Messi reacts during Barcelona’s 8-2 defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-final at the Estádio da Luz in Lisbon on 14 August. (R) Lucas Hernandez celebrates with the trophy after Bayern beat Paris Saint-Germain in the final at the Estádio da Luz on 23 August.
Olympic skateboard qualifier Tyler Edtmayer of Germany makes a run around the cradle skatepark in Brixlegg on 14 August. Skateboarding will be an official event for the first time at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo which were postponed until 2021 due to the coronavirus crisis.
Spanish rider Maverick Viñales rolls on the ground after he crashed during the first training session before the Moto GP Czech Grand Prix at Masaryk’s circuit in Brno on 7 August.
(L) Lewis Hamilton wears a T-shirt in memory of the late Breonna Taylor after winning the Tuscan Grand Prix at Mugello on 13 September. (R) Hamilton celebrates on the podium with a black power salute after winning the British Grand Prix at Silverstone on 2 August. Hamilton’s victory at the Turkish Grand Prix on 15 November sealed the championship and his seventh title. With it Hamilton achieved what was once thought impossible, matching Michael Schumacher’s record tally and in doing so becoming the most successful F1 driver of all time.
Dutch cyclist Dylan Groenewegen and fellow riders collide during the opening stage of the Tour of Poland in Katowice on 5 August. Fabio Jakobsen spent a week in intensive care after he was pitched through a barrier and into spectators following a collision with Groenewegen but recovered to be back on his bike by the end of November.
(L) Novak Djokovic tries to help a lineswoman after hitting her with a ball during his match against Pablo Carreño Busta at Flushing Meadows in New York on 6 September. The world No1 had blown a golden chance to win the first set of his match when he hit a ball in frustration. It struck the lineswoman in the throat and she fell to the ground in pain. Djokovic immediately rushed to help her but after a 10-minute discussion with tournament officials he defaulted the match and his chance to win his fourth US Open title. (R) Groundstaff stand guard among empty seats on the Suzanne Lenglen court during day two of the French Open in Paris on 28 September.
Wolfsburg’s Ewa Pajor attempts a bicycle kick during the Women’s Champions League semi-final against Barcelona at the Anoeta stadium in San Sebastián on 25 August.
A father and his daughter in Buenos Aires pay homage to Diego Maradona on the day of his death, 25 November 2020.
(L) LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers celebrates with Quinn Cook and his teammates after winning the NBA Championship at AdventHealth Arena in Lake Buena Vista on 11 October. (R) New Orleans Saints’ cornerback Marshon Lattimore knocks the ball away from Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans during the second half of their NFL game in Tampa on 8 November.
Golfers Sophie Powell, Cara Gainer and Gabriella Cowley and their caddies look on as a fire nears the 10th hole during day three of the Rose Ladies Series on the West Course in the first ever ladies’ professional event at Wentworth. The wildfire forced the suspension of play as smoke swept across the course, leading to the area being evacuated by emergency services.
Romain Grosjean emerges from flames after a crash on the opening lap of the Bahrain Grand Prix on 29 November. Grosjean suffered only second degree burns to his hands and was taken to hospital for a check-up. His car had speared through the metal barriers but his head was protected by the halo cockpit protection device made mandatory by the FIA in 2018. Grosjean confirmed his appreciation of the halo device in an Instagram post from his hospital bed. “Hello everyone, I just wanted to say I am OK – well, sort of OK,” he said. “I wasn’t for the halo some years ago, but I think it’s the greatest thing that we’ve brought to Formula 1, and without it I wouldn’t be able to speak with you today.”
Los Angeles Dodgers’ fans watch game two of the World Series between the Tampa Bay Rays and Los Angeles Dodgers at a drive-in organised on the grounds of Dodger Stadium on 21 October. The Dodgers celebrated their first World Series title since 1988 in a manner no one could have imagined prior to the coronavirus pandemic. They triumphed without Justin Turner after their red-headed star received a positive Covid-19 test in the middle of their clinching victory.
Slovenian rider Primoz Roglic of Team Jumbo-Visma wears the overall leader’s yellow jersey during the 20th stage of the Tour de France, an individual time trial over 36.2km from Lure to La Planche des Belles Filles. Tadej Pogacar blew away Roglic’s Tour de France hopes in the Vosges to become the youngest overall winner this century, storming to an extraordinary stage win at La Planche des Belles Filles. What had been expected to be a routine time trial for Roglic, on the eve of the processional stage to the Champs-Élysées, became a humiliation as he conceded almost two minutes to his 21-year-old compatriot and lost the yellow jersey.
Chris Nikic competes in the cycling stage of Ironman Florida with his guide, Dan Grieb, on 7 November at Panama City Beach. Nikic became the first person with Down’s syndrome to finish an Ironman event – swimming 2.4 miles, cycling 112 miles and running a 26.2-mile marathon. He crossed the finish line in 16 hours 46 minutes and nine seconds – less than 14 minutes under the official cut-off time.
