Athlete You Feel Most Sorry For

[Little Jerry Lawler]

I know it may sound crazy to feel sorry for a professional athlete because they make tons of money and they whine and complain and that can get under your skin sometimes. The universal goal of an athlete is to be the best in your respective sport and some far surpass it while many fall short. Your legacy can be defined by factors that are out of your control such as the team you play for and how that team is ran by the front office.

The athlete I feel most sorry for is Ichiro Suzuki. He has been an extraordinary baseball player for a decade and shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon. You can pencil him in for 200 hits every single year and I believe he could hit 30 home runs a year if he really wanted to. He made the playoffs his rookie season and hasn't been back since. Just think if he was on a decent team like the Tigers or Braves. I feel that Ichiro would have had a World Series title by now but the way things are going, he may not get that title let alone go back to the playoffs if he stays with Seattle.

So which athlete do you feel most sorry for?

 

[Miko]

Mine would be the footballer Owen Hargreaves, heres a guy that made his name playing for Bayern Munich in a holding midfield position and doing a really good job, he won a Champions League in his first season (2000-01) and he played until 2007 for Munich, in all that time he only went 1 year without winning a trophy, of course his injuries would start to surface at this time (he was injured just 15 minutes into the 2002 World Cup), but he was still seen as reliable. Although missing the 2002 World Cup he was selected for Euro 2004 and the 2006 World Cup, of course English football fans being the stupid ***** they are boo'd him at every single opportunity because apparently, he wasnt good enough to play.

Cue another really shit World Cup from our boys in which Owen Hargreaves was our best player, in fact he was really good, basically he was the only thing that kept us in that Wolrd Cup and having spent all those years in germany unlike the rest of the useless ***** he could score a penalty as well, voted young player of the year, World Cup player of the year and in 2007 voted Englands player of the year, he did so well that Sir Alex Ferguson bought him to Manchester United as soon as he could.

2007 Owen Hargreaves goes to Manchester United, in his first season he becomes a first team player and wins the Premier League and once again wins the Champions League, after this it goes downhill for the old boy, in which he has spent most of his time in the US or other countries doing rehabilitation on his knees, they reckon he's only played about 10 minutes of first team football since 2008.

Since then he's been pretty much mocked, which is a shame because when he was fit he was a fantastic player, as evidence by the silly boo boys eating their words but unfortunately for him he's just made of glass, and for a player of his ability to be missing years of football is pretty tragic, I know he still gets paid and all that but it must be horrible, especially as it seemed to take most fans all of 2 months to forget how good he was, Ferguson obviously knows, he hasnt dumped him just yet.

It also sucks for England that this man cant play for the team, as we've had to see the innefective team of Gerrard and Lampard pair together still, and his replacement has been this man.

Who is a bit shit.

I hope he'll sort his injuries out and play for another couple of years, I doubt he'll make the England team again and I dont really want him too as, like giving john Terry the captains armband back, that'll just be a step backwards.

Well, I dont really feel sorry for him as such especially with the post below about the unpaid athletes, that and he still earns loads of money

 

[Captain Morgan Freeman]

The atheletes i feel most sorry for are the atheletes that play (gaelic)football and hurling in Ireland.
In Ireland (gaelic)football and hurling are considerd amatuer sports, this means that they do not get paid by the clubs they play for. They devote many hours every week for training sessions and matches and work hard to keep themselves in peak physical condition all year round, on top of this they also have to hold a steady job aswell.
Some of the greatest sportsmen to play either of theese sports have amassed many medals but have not been given a single cent for their contribution.
Many in fact have had to quit their jobs due to getting seriously injured in a match.

I feel really sorry for theese atheletes as although they play an amatuer sport there is nothing amatuer about the quality and intensity of the game and the preparation each player undergoes for every match.

 

[Nate DaMac]

The athlete I feel sorry for the most would be Tiger Woods. Now I realize that the media coverage that his little discretion received has died down significantly over time, but the dude has had his image crushed over something that is a personal matter. He lost endorsement deals because he cheated on his wife. I repeat, cheating on his wife cost him money from an employer. What other profession could the same thing happen? Are you going to tell me that people on who work on Wall Street are all happily married and have no outside indiscretions? Bullshit.

Now a lot of people go to this "Well he fooled us into thinking that he was a real family man." What the hell are you talking about? The only thing he led us to believe was that he was a mild mannered Golfer. I've never heard him come out and tell everyone that he isn't the kind of guy that has his own demons. Nobodies perfect and the way this guy was massacred by the media was nothing less than despicable.

On the other end of the spectrum, you have this football player by the name of Donte Stallworth. Now here you have a guy who may or may not have been faithful to his spouse, that information has never been spoken of. However, he did fucking kill a man with his vehicle while being intoxicated. Now he lost a decent amount of change due to missing the 2009 season, but the dude only spent 24 damn days in Jail along with some piss ant Community Service and a fine. He's currently a WR for the Baltimore Ravens.

Now tell me, how much media coverage did you see this story get? Not only did Tiger Woods get persecuted for much longer and serve a much harsher punishment in the public eye for something that wasn't even remotely illegal, Michael Vick served a much longer Prison sentence than he did. He fucking murdered man with his vehicle. But since he's not a major star like Tiger or Vick, his far more heinous crime gets ignored by the general public.

So yeah, I feel pretty sorry for Tiger, he got way too much shit for a marital matter that was really no one's business but his and his family's. People are way too involved with the lives of celebrities and it's pretty fucking sickening at times.

 

[IrishCanadian25]

I am shocked that nobody has mentioned Greg Oden. He's a classy guy, a funny guy, and a guy who was a top prospect big man in college. Has he even played a full QUARTER for the Portland Trail Blazers in TWO YEARS yet? I don't think he has. Por guy keeps suffering from these massive injuries, people are lining up to call him a bust, and he's still handling it with grace, humility, and an "I'll come back" attitude. I feel terrible that he hasn't shown us what he can do on a pro level, and has to watch the guy drafted behind him in Kevin Durant become one of the NBA's top 3 guys.

Here's a blast from the past - in pro wrestling, Matt Capotelli. He gets onto Tough Enough and is just a top flight guy the entire time. Al Snow is tough to impress, and yet Matt thoroughly impressed him. He co-won Tough Enough Season 3 with John Hennigan, whom many of us know today as John Morrison. Matt, however, discovered a Brain Tumor that had to be operated on that ended his dream of being a WWE superstar, which he absolutely would have been. WWE even kept him on payroll for a long time and paid for a lot of his medical procedures, but eventually they had to sever ties.

 

[hatehabsforever]

I feel sorry for a lot of the NBA players who played during the Jordan era who were Hsll of Fame calibre but never won a championship due to the Bulls' dominance. Patrick Ewing, Charles Barkley, Karl Malone, John Stockton, guys like that who had stellar careers but have no titles to show for it, while nowadays there are other less deserving players with multiple titles.

 

[Big Sexy]

Jim Kelly. The guy is a Hall of Fame quarterback but was never able to win the Super Bowl. Now there are a lot of qbs like that and athletes in general that were great players but could never win a championship, however, Jim Kelly is a little different. He went to FOUR straight Super Bowls from 1990-1993 and his Bills came up short every single time. Outside of their first appearance they never really came all that close to winning. Scott Norwood missed a game winning field goal attempt in Super Bowl 25 and that happened to be the closest they would ever come. It's hard enough to lose one Super Bowl, let alone four straight.

 

[LSN80]

I have a hard time feeling sorry for most athletes, especially those who had great careers, even if they didnt win the Super Bowl. Jim Kelly and Dan Marino come to mind as people who fit into that category. They were able to fulfill their lietime dreams, play in Super Bowl(s), and make alot of money along the way. Even though both never won a ring, they got to have long, successful careers, and left trmendous legacies along the way. They have nothing to be ashamed of, everything to be proud of, so I don't feel sorry for them, no matter how many Super Bowl(s) they lost.

The athlete I feel sorry for is a little known hockey player named Steve Moore, formerly of the Colorado Avalanche. Moore's "legacy" will be that of receiving perhaps the worst cheap shot in the history of professional sports at the hands of Todd Bertuzzi. Moore had injured Vancouver captain Marcus Naslund on a clean hit early in the 2004/05 season, and some Vancouver players verbally put a bounty on his head. Well, Todd Bertuzzi collected on that bounty, chasing Moore down the ice later in a game later that season, puching him in the back of the head. Moore immediately went unconscious, fracturing his neck in three places. Just like that, the career of a 24 year old was over forever.

Im not suggesting Moore was a star, far from it. He was primarily a 3rd/4th line player, but he was living his dream. One punch to the back of the head took that dream away. Bertuzzi is still playing on a team challenging for the Stanley Cup, while Moore spent 7 months in a hospital, sported a neck brace for a year after, and went through extensive physical therapy following just to be able to live a semi-normal life again. Because of the cheap shot to end all cheap shots, Steve Moore's career was over, as was his ability to live a normal life. In comparison to a Jim Kelly or a Dan Marino as I mentioned, Steve Moore truly puts things in perspective, and hes someone I truly feel sorry for.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Dave Dravecky. He was a major league pitcher who had to retire because of a cancerous tumor in his pitching arm. Eventually, the arm had to be amputated and I often wondered what Dravecky felt about the sad irony of the whole thing. After all, his left arm was the specific part of his body that brought him fame and fortune.......and his left arm was the specific body part that was taken away from him. When something like that happens, you have to wonder exactly what Fate had in mind for you, huh?

As for all other athletes, I have to say that sympathy isn't something I feel for them. They're young, strong and gifted.....and often very rich. If they're stuck on a team with players that don't have the talents they do, I simply don't find it a cause for sympathy.

It makes me think of Terrell Owens from a few years back. Apparently, he revealed to reporters that he was deeply depressed because he was being paid $7 million dollars a year by his team.....yet he felt he was worth so much more. It just so happened that on the day that interview appeared, a few of us were visiting a Cancer ward where we saw sick children, many of whom had no hope for their present or future. They were mentally down for whatever remained of their lives. I cried all the way home.....then, I turned on the TV and saw Owens doing push-ups in his driveway and moaning about how unfair life is. I've hated him since that day.

I don't feel sorry for athletes who are young, strong and healthy.....only for those who lose it all due to circumstances beyond their control.

 

[Mac Attack]

Ben Roethlisberger

Apart from being a Steeler's fan this guy really has had a lot of things said about him with lack of evidence. Is there a possibility that these things could be true? Yes however since there has been no real evidence I have to feel sorry for him. Brett Favre gets away with allegedly sending nudes to some chick and he really gets no outstanding punishment where Ben even if they weren't true gets ripped apart for an incident that may or may not have occured? I'm sorry but this isn't fair at all. But believe me if it turns out the accusations are true my sorrow is all gone...

 

[Davi323]

Scott Norwood missed a game winning field goal attempt in Super Bowl 25 and that happened to be the closest they would ever come. It's hard enough to lose one Super Bowl, let alone four straight.

Which is why I can't pick Jim Kelly. Jim Kelly, despite never winning the Super Bowl, is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. I feel way more sorry for Scott Norwood. It was one missed field goal, and because of where and when it happened, it ended his career. Ridiculous. He instantly became the butt of every NFL joke there was. After wide right, he simply had nothing left. While he played one more year after missing that kick, truthfully, his distinguished career with the Bills really ended with the missed FG, he simply went through the motions the next year. It wasn't even a gimmie FG. It was a 47 yarder that any kicker in the league could have missed, and Marv Levy knew it was on the very outside of Norwood's range. At least Jim Kelly's career kept going.

 

[Burnout]

I'm picking a athlete that most of you won't know. Irelands own Sonia O Sullivan was an incredible athlete. She was a long distance runner, running usually at 5000m. She was young and had the world at her feet. She had just become World champion at the distance, and the Olympics of 1996 were up. She was hot favorite and eased through the heats. In the final, with the hope of a nation resting on her shoulders, she got very ill and got tailed off very quick. She had to pull out of the race, while balling her eyes out with disappointment. All her training, but her body cracked in the most important race of her life. The whole of Ireland was heartbroken for her, and Sonia expressed her sorrow that she let everyone down. Ireland rallied behind her and she won silver at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, which technically is gold since the original winner was banned for drugs. Although she won her medal in the end, the night lives on as one of the most heartbreaking things to watch for many athletics followers, and I feel sorry for Sonia and the grief she went through that night.

 

[Stormtrooper]

My answer is quite simple.

The athlete I feel most sorry for is Yugoslavian ski jumper Vinko Bogataj. Who is he, you might ask? Well, it's a fairly long story for you youngsters, so let me explain it to you.

In 1961, ABC television in the US started airing a weekly series called the "Wide World of Sports." This series (which lasted until 1998) was quite possibly the greatest sports series in the history of television. Every week it showcased various sporting events, most of which were not "traditional" television sports.

Now, what does Yugoslavian Ski Jumper Vinko Bogataj have to do with Wide World of Sports, and what makes me feel sorry for him? Well, in a 1970 competition, well, this happened:


It is a rather awful fall, which miraculously (according to Wikipedia) he only suffered a minor concussion from. This aired on the Wide World of Sports, and, well, it became famous for it.

Wide World of Sports' opening video was a montage of sporting moments, narrated with:
"Spanning the globe to bring you the constant variety of sport... the thrill of victory... and the agony of defeat... the human drama of athletic competition... This is ABC's Wide World of Sports!"

Naturally, "The Thrill of Victory" was paired with recent clips of people celebrating victories/championships. However, after the 1970 failed jump, Bogataj was paired with "The Agony of Defeat." This didn't change. EVER. Wide World of Sports was on the air until 1997-1998. That's right, some 25 years after the jump, it was still featured as "The Agony of Defeat."

For an example, here's the intro video from 1986 (16 years after the incident):
For 30 years, Vinko Bogataj was "The Agony of Defeat," which gave him unknowing fame in the US, but for failing. That is why i feel sorry for him.

 

[tripolie atche]

Coming from an Eagles fan, I would have to say Donovan McNabb.

Even though he didn't deliver PHI a Super Bowl trophy, McNabb still did a lot for that franchise but that still wasn't good enough for most Eagles Fans. I know the Eagles have never won a Super Bowl & that the city of Philadelphia had a 25 yr drought where none of their teams from the Big 4 sports had won a championship until the Phillies did it in 08, but I don't get why there was a love/hate relationship with McNabb when someone like Allen Iverson was continued to be beloved in Philly. Yes AI had good individual stats, but winning wise he got out of the 1st round only ONCE since he led the Sixers to their 2001 NBA Finals apperance. Also, Iverson demanded a trade out of Philly around Christmas of '06, while McNabb never asked for one.

Anyways back to McNabb, I also feel sorry for him because of all the shit he has gone through since the day he got into the NFL.

-He got booed on draft day by the Eagles fans there, because most were expecting that they would select Ricky Williams.
-The 1-4 record in NFC Championship games, including losing 3 straight of them at one point.
-The injuries he had throughout his career. (The broken ankle that cost him 6 regular season games in 02, a season-ending sports hernia injury in 05, a season-ending torn ACL the following season, etc.)
-The comments made by Rush Limbaugh during the 03 season.
-The Super Bowl loss to NE which eventually led to TO calling him out & refusing to speak with McNabb, and which also led to:
-The TO Saga in 2005.
-Kevin Kolb being selected early in the 07 draft, & McNabb was even benched in a 2008 regular season game in favor of Kolb.
-Getting traded to WAS where he was benched during a 2-minute drill of a game against the Lions & in the last 3 regular season games in favor of Rex Grossman of all people lol.

Now, once the lockout ends or whenever Free Agency starts, it looks like McNabb will be going somewhere else (my guess is Minnesota). Even though he's not with Philly anymore, I hope he can start & win a Super Bowl ring wherever he ends up.

 

[Fizzy]

The athlete I feel sorry for would easily be Sean Taylor. Here is a guy who was twenty-four years old and not even in his prime yet. He still had a good 10+ years left in the NFL. He was a very good free-safety and had made the pro bowl the year of his death, and the year before. He was also an all pro selection on the year of his death. At the time of his death he had an 18 month old daughter. Imagine how difficult her life will be now. Taylor was really coming into his own as a safety and was starting to make a name for himself as one of the leagues best. His life was unfortunately cut short through no fault of his own. I teared up when the Redskins lined up with only 10 players on the field for the first play against the Bills.

 

[FunKay the Inevitable]

I have to cheat here somewhat and pick a team. I'm going to pick the Busby Babes. The Busby Babes were a group of extremely talented players trained and brought through the youth system of Manchester United football club. It was unique at the time that a core group of players in one team were brought up through a youth system and not purchased from rival clubs. It's still unique today. These players won the football league championship in the 1955/1956 and 1956/1957 seasons with an average age of 21 & 22 respectively. They had their futures ahead of them. Then in February 1958, on a trip back from Yugoslavia, the airplane carrying the team crashed in Munich airport, killing eight of the Babes and severely injuring two of them to the point where they would never play again. Young men at the very start of their careers with so much potential. Damn shame, especially when you think about what they could've become.

 

[Shotlycrue]

On par w/ some of the other posts made about athletes known primarily for their failures, I gotta go w/ Bill Buckner.

He's a guy that was career .290 hitter, had 174 HRs, 2700, 1200 RBIs and was the 1980 batting champ, yet there is only one moment that he will be remember for which is game 6 of the 1986 World Series when Mookie Wilson hit a slow grounder that hopped between his leg...

For a solidly above average player to only have that tied to his legacy is a shame.

 

[Post]

Vladimir Konstantinov

Days after winning the Stanley Cup w/the Detroit Red Wings, not only did Vladdy's playing career come to an end, but his life (and quality of life) was forever changed.

From Wikipedia-
"Following a private party on June 13, 1997 celebrating the Red Wings’ Stanley Cup triumph, Konstantinov, along with Russian hockey legend Viacheslav Fetisov, and team masseur Sergei Mnatsakanov hired a limousine to drive them home. The driver, Richard Gnida, whose license was suspended at the time for drunk driving, lost control of the limousine and hit a tree on the median of Woodward Avenue, in Birmingham, Michigan. The driver was intoxicated at the time. Konstantinov spent several weeks in a coma before finally pulling through."

This guy had it all as far as talent was concerned and was tough as nails and could hit with the best of them. He even finished 2nd in Norris trophy voting that year to Brian Leetch. There is a very good possibility that if the limo accident never happened, Nick Lidstrom might not have so many Norris trophies, and the Wings would have a few more Cups.

Vladimir Konstantinov is still living in the Detroit area and requires full time nursing care. It is obvious that he has limited mental capacity. While he is able to walk with the assistance of a walker, most of the time he is wheel chair bound. His wife is gone...moved to New Jersey with his only daughter. How fucking sad is that.