February 8th, 2011 - Morning Minute
March may be the month that comes in like a lion, but it was February that produced a lion’s share of great records in sports.
As always, we’ll take a look at some notable achievements in the world of the professionals before casting a net over some of your best efforts approved by Guinness World Records this month.
Adeus ao Fenômeno
That’s what millions of football fans in Brazil and around the world said this month: goodbye to the "Phenomenon" – as in goodbye to Ronaldo Nazário de Lima or, simply: Ronaldo. And that’s how people often said the name of one of the all-time great strikers – with a lilt of awe in the voice inspired by greatness.
Having announced his retirement this month (right), Ronaldo’s career spanned stints at Cruzeiro, PSV Eindhoven, Barcelona, Inter Milan, Real Madrid, AC Milan, and Corinthians at club level. Of course, he did some of his most famous work for his national side, as an integral part of the Brazilian squads that won the FIFA World Cup in 2002, reached the final in 1998 and the quarter-final in 2006.
For his career, Ronaldo has notched a slew of records and personal achievements, but perhaps no two greater than these: the most goals scored in a FIFA World Cup career and the most wins of the FIFA World Player of the Year. His 15 poaches in World Cup competition are most ever and his three wins of the world’s best player award tie him with France’s Zinedine Zidane.
An unmatched bull on the pitch, Ronaldo and his record-breaking ways will surely be missed.
Footballing February
Some other football achievements of note this month: Barcelona saw its record winning streak in La Liga (Spain) competition snapped at 16 consecutive victories, running from 16 October 2010 to 5 February 2011. The Blaugrana outscored opponents by a combined 60-6 margin during the streak and had the victorious run bookended by a pair of 1-1 draws. …Raúl has rediscovered some of his classic touch with Schalke 04 of Germany, to the tune of now having scored the most goals in all European club competitions for a career. His goal against Valencia in the first leg of the round of 16 in this year’s Champions League took the Spaniard to 71, breaking a tie with Italy’s Filippo Inzaghi. …And the Manchester Derby between United and City in February initiated a chain of EPL matches that could very well lay claim to the most expensive sporting contests ever played. My favorite part of that story? How the price tags on these matchups cost more than what NASA spent to fix up the Hubble Telescope!
Odds and Ends
To basketball, a few NBA records this month: Kobe Bryant (above) of the Los Angeles Lakers won his fourth NBA All-Star Game MVP award, equaling Bob Pettit for the most ever; Boston Celtics sharpshooter Ray Allen surpassed Reggie Miller for the most career 3-pointers made, and the number keeps climbing – Allen sits at 2,574 as of this posting; the Cleveland Cavaliers set a record no team ever wants a part of: most consecutive losses in NBA history. The Cavs – who lost LeBron James this past offseason – fell 26 straight times between 18 December and 11 February. Fun fact: they broke their own franchise record, as the previous mark for most consecutive defeats was also set by the Cavaliers across the 1981-82 and 1982-83 seasons. …Kevin VanDam equaled the most wins of the Bass master Classic with his fourth victory in the fishing event. He matches the four triumphs of Rick Clunn all time. …And Trevor Bayne (below) became the youngest ever winner of the Daytona 500, as he took NASCAR's most famous event at the tender age of 20 years and one day.
What You Did This Month
Some of the records certified by Guinness World Records this month:
Longest golf course: The longest golf course in the world is the par-72, 8,548 yd (7,816 m) Jade Dragon Snow Mountain Golf Club in Lijiang, China. The longest hole of the 18 is the 711-yard, par-5 fifth. An absolutely stunning course, too.
Longest breath hold swim under ice: Nikolay Linder (Germany) swam 108 m (354 ft 4 in) under ice without the use of breathing equipment at Lake Weissensee, Austria, on 15 January 2011. The ice under which he swam was 31 cm (1 ft 0.2 in) thick and it took him 1 min 16 sec to complete the swim.
Most consecutive one-arm high bar giants: This mark of 76 was set by David Fahradyan (Armenia) at the Youth Gymnastic Sports School in Yerevan, Armenia, on 13 November 2010. A high bar giant is the completion of a full-body, 360-degree swing around a high bar, beginning and ending with a temporary handstand at the top of the rotation.
Longest marathon playing doubles tennis: The group of Gavin White, Jeganathan Ramasamy, Simon Burk, and David Sears (all Australia) played tennis for 56 hr 37 min 13 sec at the Sydney Olympic Park Tennis Centre in Sydney, Australia, from 10 to 12 September 2010. The group of four was able to play 22 consecutive best-of-5 matches, consisting of 78 sets and 709 games
That'll do it for February. With the Cricket World Cup ongoing, Champions League play progressing and Major League Baseball right around the corner, we should have a lot to talk about when you come back next month!
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