Munich Massacre, Attack On Sri Lankan Cricket Team & More 每 Mind-Numbing Sport Tragedies Of All Time
Which one's the worst in your list?
Sport is the purest form of competition. And the enthusiasm of sport lovers hits an agonising low whenever its purity is disturbed by any form of corruption or external disturbance. The history of sport has seen several attacks that have left fans numb. Some of them have remained in the memory of fans till date. And they revisit those horrifying tales with a heavy heart.
Here's a list of those that are most mind-numbing:
1958 Munich Air Disaster Involving The Manchester United Football Team
Munich-Riem Airport. February 6, 1958. A Manchester United squad, then known as the Busby Babes, boarded a flight to return home after a European Cup match victory. The mood inside the plane was great because they had made it to the semi-finals. The plane refused to take off twice. And then on the third count, it suffered an accident. It happened largely owing to the slush that covered the entire runway. The accident was so intense that 20 of the 44 on the plane died.
1972 Munich Olympics Massacre
This one's so (in)famous that a movie has been made on it. Remember the 2005 Hollywood movie, Munich? The 1972 Munich Olympics were marred by attacks by a Palestinian group of terrorists called Black September. They sneaked into the Olympic village and took hostage 11 Israeli athletes, who were eventually killed in the process. A German police officer, who attempted to protect the hostages, was also killed. The Palestinian terrorists demanded the release of 234 prisoners locked up in an Israeli jail.
2016 Chapecoense Plane Crash
This is quite recent. So much so that it hasn't even been a year since a plane carrying a Brazilian football club members crashed in Colombia. The LaMia 2933 flight was carrying the Chapecoense soccer team from Bolivia to Colombia. The team was scheduled to play the first leg of Copa Sudamericana finals against Colombian team Atletico Nacional. But guess that was never meant to be. Only three of the 22 players had survived. The team is yet to come out of the shock.
Gunmen Attack The Sri Lankan Cricket Team In Lahore (2009)
The Sri Lankan cricket team was on a tour to Pakistan. The cricketers were on their way to the Gaddafi stadium to play the third day of the second Test. No sooner they reached the venue than 12 gunmen opened fire at the islanders' convoy. Six members of the Sri Lankan team were injured but six Pakistani policemen and two civilians were killed. The attackers were later identified to be from the radical group Lashkar-e-Jhangvio.
The Killing Of Colombian Footballer Andres Escobar, 1994
What happens if a footballer of your favourite team scores an own goal? You forgive him and move on right? But that's not what Colombian gangsters do. In a 1994 Football World Cup match, Colombia lost to America 2-1. And that was largely owing to an own goal scored by defender Andres Escobar. The moment the Colombian football team landed home, Escobar was mercilessly shot dead.
