Paul Kennedy's top five sporting moments of 2012

Updated December 21, 2012 07:20:09

The ABC's Paul Kennedy gives his verdict on the top five sporting moments of 2012.

Look back on a whirlwind year's biggest sporting stories and how they unfolded on ABC Grandstand.

Australian surfing had an excellent year with Stephanie Gilmore and Joel Parkinson both claiming world surfing titles in 2012.

Gilmore claimed her fifth women's world surfing title with victory over fellow Australian Tyler Wright in the penultimate event of the year at Biarritz in France.

She was the first ever surfer to win four titles in four attempts from 2007-2010, but fell back to the number three ranking in 2011 when her life was disrupted by a violent assault.

Read the story: Gilmore wins fifth world title

On the men's circuit, Joel Parkinson ended his long wait for a world title at the Pipeline Masters in Hawaii, edging out 11-time winner Kelly Slater to the gong.

Parkinson's title was a reward for consistency 2012 and could have won the championship without a single event victory.

However, he avoided that particular historical footnote by beating compatriot Josh Kerr in the final to take home the Pipeline Masters trophy as an added bonus.

Speaking at his trophy presentation in Hawaii after his bout with Kerr, Parkinson said:

Read the story: Parkinson wins first world surfing title

The Australians returned home with 85 medals - record breaker Jacqueline Freney with her incredible eight gold medals among them - but the London 2012 Paralympics stood out as a major success that put disabled sport truly on the map.

London Games chairman Sebastian Coe said the huge popularity of Paralympic Games showed disabled sport was fast becoming recognised as elite competition.

An unprecedented 2.7 million tickets were snapped up for nearly 45 million pounds ($72.12 million), exceeding 2012 organisers' original target of 35 million.

More than four billion people were estimated to have watched the London Games on television compared to 1.9 billion eight years ago in Athens.

Read the story: Paralympics put disabled sport on the map: Coe

Sydney's famous pressure paid big dividends as the Swans held off Hawthorn to take out the AFL premiership by 10 points.

Read the story: Swans snatch victory in classic grand final

The grand final surprised no one with its intensity - it was a game of bursts and savage swings of momentum, with first one, then the other team looking down and out, before the Swans won 14.7 (91) to 11.15 (81).

Both teams found kicking for goal difficult in blustery conditions, although thankfully earlier predictions of heavy rain and hail proved unfounded.

Veteran Ryan O'Keefe took the Norm Smith Medal, with 28 disposals and an amazing 15 tackles.

In the NRL, the Melbourne Storm won its first premiership since it was stripped it of two titles for salary cap breaches, beating the Bulldogs 14-4.

Read the story: Clinical Storm repel Bulldogs' bite

Sam Perrett had levelled the scores after Storm forward Ryan Hoffman scored the opening try of the match in the seventh minute.

But Melbourne half-back Cooper Cronk stamped his class on the match in the back end of the first half.

Cronk produced a deft pass for Billy Slater to score in the 32nd minute.

Melbourne consolidated its lead in the shadows of the break with Cronk's pin-point kick for winger Justin O'Neill to score in the corner in the 39th minute.

Melbourne maintained its 14-4 half-time lead through to the end of the game with a superb defensive display in the second half.

The Test team's form may have fluctuated of late, but captain Michael Clarke was a shining light for Australia throughout 2012, averaging 106.35 for the calendar year so far.

Clarke came to life on home soil, scoring a historic 329 not out against India, before making another double ton in the next match during the 4-0 series whitewash in January.

While he made a modest contribution in the West Indies in April (scoring 188 runs in 6 innings), he flexed his muscle at home again, smacking two double centuries against South Africa.

While his efforts against the Proteas were ultimately made in vain, they helped him become the world's leading run scorer of 2012 with 1489 runs.

Read the story: Is Clarke as good as Bradman?

But the stakes have been raised in the upcoming 2013 Ashes series with new England skipper Alastair Cook finding phenomenal form after taking over the captaincy from Andrew Strauss.

Cook led England to a first Test series win in India in December in 28 years, coming from 1-0 down to take the four-match series 2-1.

India won the first Test by nine wickets in Ahmedabad, before Cook led his side to a 10-wicket win in Mumbai and a seven-wicket victory in Kolkata.

Cook was named man of the series after top-scoring with 568 runs at an average of 80.28.

Read the story: Draw clinches India series win for England

Following Olympic disappointment in the pool, Australia's shining light Sally Pearson lived up to her favourite's tag to take gold in the women's 100m hurdles in London.

Read the story: Pearson storms to hurdles gold

Pearson clocked 12.35 seconds to break the Olympic record held by American Joanna Hayes, set in Athens, by 0.02 of a second.

Pearson just edged out America's defending Olympic champion Dawn Harper (12.37), with countrywoman Kellie Wells (12.48) taking the bronze.

The Aussie champion spent six weeks in Britain prior to the Olympics to escape the build-up, hype and pressure in Australia. After her win, she said:

And without Pearson's heroics, how else would this piece of ABC News 24 television history have come about? Take it away, Michael Rowland.

Tags: sport, olympics-summer, paralympics, surfing, nrl, australian-football-league, cricket, australia

First posted December 21, 2012 07:20:09

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Sporting codes warned about organised crime

Updated December 14, 2011 09:36:01

Australia's elite sporting organisations are being urged to help stop organised crime from flourishing in sport.

A forum involving Victoria Police, Interpol, the Australian Crime Commission and sporting codes such as the AFL and cricket, is being held in Melbourne today.

Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Graham Ashton says the gathering will discuss how to tackle illegal offshore betting.

He warned that the risk that organised crime could corrupt players or officials is just as real in Australia, as it has been overseas.

"We're certainly pleased that it hasn't crept into Australia yet, as it has overseas and we want to keep it that way," he said.

"Certainly online gambling and the internet has brought us closer to the world in many respects and this is particularly timely at the moment to better insulate our sport from those threats."

Cricket Australia is one of the 13 sporting bodies attending the conference.

Sean Carroll is representing the code and says cricket already has a strong focus on preventing corruption and a self-regulation process is in place.

"We provide training for all our players and match officials and we have our own anti-corruption officers at match maintaining the integrity of the playing venue," he said.

Tags: sport, australian-football-league, cricket, corruption, bribery, police, gambling, melbourne-3000

First posted December 14, 2011 09:36:01

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What Makes A Country Into A Sporting Giant?

Ten Moments That Shook the Sports World: One Sportswriter's Eyewitness Accounts of the Most Incredible Sporting Events of the Past Fifty Years

Want to know what really happened? Stan Isaacs knows. He was there!

"The Shot Heard Round the World," in 1951. "The Fight of the Century," in 1971. The horror of the 1972 Munich Olympics. Secretariat's legendary win at the 1973 Belmont Stakes. Stan Isaacs saw them all live. Isaacs covered thousands of sports stories in his more than fifty years as a journalist. But ten moments stand out in his memory. Ten Moments That Shook the Sports World offers Isaacs' eyewitness accounts of the events that changed sports history. This collection offers those old enough to remember these events a chance to relive them, and younger sports lovers will get to hear this history from someone who was there. Isaacs makes sports history live again.

Price: $14.95

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Sports Nutrition That Will Improve Overall Sporting Performance

What is Sports Nutrition?

Sports nutrition plays a huge part in gaining the best sporting performance. If you play hockey, golf, football, tennis or whatever your chosen sport is, having the right nutritional balance is essential. There are many nutrients that can be got by eating the correct foods. Having the correct balance of vitamins, minerals and carbohydrates are essential part of having the proper nutrition health regime.

Try not to get nutrition and sports nutrition mixed up though as both are different. Being an athlete and participating in sports will require more nutrients as a way of keeping the energy levels up to ensure the athlete remains as peak fitness throughout there activities. Being an athlete is more strenuous on the body and that is the main reason why they will require more nutrients that the regular nutrition dieting advice.

During their sporting activities athletes will tend to lose a lot of fluids, everyone has heard of dehydration, which is one of the largest problems faced during sports. Losing fluids will cause you to tire much quicker than normal which will have a negative impact on sporting performance.

The reason why there are professional athlete is that they get paid to perform at their maximum on a daily basis. To do this it is essential that the body gets proper nutrition. It is vital to drink enough water, have a balanced diet by eating the proper foods and also get the proper nutritional intake that your body will need. Different sports will cause the body to require different nutrients. Nearly all professional athletes have a sports nutritionist who help in provide the correct diet for their sporting nutritional needs. Doing so will enable your body to consumes energy efficiently and will aid in overall performance.

In order to make the most of your sporting talents it is essential to have more power, endurance and strength. Only by getting the proper sports nutrition can this be done.

Having a balanced diet is essential and should be based on several different factors. Such as, the type of sports that you are participating in, age, physical condition and body size.

It is always best to consult with a doctor when changing your diet instead of just deciding one for yourself. To go one step further getting a sports nutritionist will help in giving you the correct diet that will suit your body and help in providing the perfect diet to complement your sport.

When exercising it is vital to remember that a lot of fluids will be lost. When you are working out in the gym, doing weights, running, it is easy to forget the fluid loss that you body is experiencing. That is probably the main reason why water is one of the most important parts of sports nutrition.

It makes up about sixty percent of your body weight and is involved in almost all of your bodily processes.

Your body cannot produce and store water, this is the main reason why it is important to replace all fluids that are lost during exercise. If you don't then dehydration will have a huge part in damaging your athletic abilities. Taking part in sports will require you to consume much more water than eight glasses daily.

Carbohydrates are the most important fuel source. It provides a minimum of sixty to a maximum of seventy percent of our calories. Carbohydrates are found on almost all of the food you consume. Food rich in carbohydrates are fruits, vegetables, pastas, breads, cereals, rice and many more that are too many to mention.

The body converts all starches and sugars in carbohydrates to glucose. The main provider of energy in the body is glucose. That is why an active lifestyle requires more carbohydrates than usual. The body will also store glucose in the liver and muscles that will give your body a energy reserve. If this reserve is not used during sports then it will be more likely to turn into fat. The larger your carbohydrate intake the more energy you will have during sports. If your intake is to high it will have a negative effect as you will begin to increase in fat. Other energy sources include proteins and fats.

Foods that help in providing the most amount of protein would be, eggs, nuts, poultry, fish, meat, beans and dairy products. Proteins will supply about 15 to 20 percent of your daily calorie allowance. The main uses of proteins are in tissue and muscle building.

Find out all about getting the proper nutrition during sports by visiting best advanced sports nutrition. To pick up a free book on nutrition required during sports visit sports nutritional book

Private Labeled Bottled Water for Sporting Events and Participants

Sports and athletics are such a pervasive force in American culture that few people can avoid their impact. Memories of an important game, event, score, or sports outing are often long lasting whether they are at the institution, team or individual level.

Personalized bottled drinking water is an excellent way to create lasting memories and produce high quality messages. Branding messages are available for teams, institutions and individuals.

Private label water is also an ideal vehicle for fund raising by schools, teams and individuals. Sales revenue through personalized bottled water sales at school sporting events helps ease current budget restrictions.

Sports in America

America is a sporting country with a substantial amount of time and resources devoted to the enjoyment of competitive sporting activities. Sports go hand in hand with a health and wellness life style and competitiveness is an important element in building character in our country's youth and future leadership.

From childhood until post retirement, sports and athletics serve to entertain and create role models as part of programs of exercise and healthy living. As children and young adults combine competition with sound programs of academics and extra curricular activities character and integrity are created. Continuing through adulthood, middle age and retirement athletics are a constant factor in American life. Many retirees spend a great deal of their free time pursuing sports based healthy lifestyles.

Sports in America is a major multi-billion dollar industry. Professional teams represent the major cities in America and engage in all major sports. Colleges base a significant amount of their activities and fund raising on sports and this approach permeates high schools, middle schools and grammar schools throughout the nation. Club teams and private leagues can be found in many towns and cities. Suppliers of sports products rank among the Fortune 500 of companies.

In addition to team sports, almost every family in the country is engaged in some form of sports activity with such sports as golf, skiing, water sports, bowling, outdoor events and others ranking high on the list of family oriented activities.

The Value of Memorable Events

Pleasant memories of unique performance or events are the result of many sporting activities. Often the powerful memories of a winning season for a local team, the big game that a child participates in, the unforgettable birdie, eagle or hole in one on the golf course and other memories remind one time and again. Many people derive significant pleasure from these memories.

Over time however, even the most powerful memories fade and memorabilia are often valuable as reminders. These reminders take many forms but serve to create continuity and continued interest in the healthy lifestyle of sports and athletic competition. Since individual and team performance is often the result of many hours of practice and hard work, a reminder of accomplishment is often valuable.

Personalized Bottled Water Memories

Personalized bottled water is an excellent way to preserve the memory of important sporting events. With a custom designed label for each and every occasion, water can be consumed at the event or at a later date. In addition, personalized bottled water is ideal for team sports or individual participants and is an effective vehicle for fund raising events.

The technology is available to create a cost effective, high quality personalized label that imparts a lasting message. Application of a custom designed label to a quality water bottle adds a powerful individualized advertising component to a high quality refreshment drink.

Often referred to as consumable advertising, personalized bottled water can include graphics and pictures as well as text that can refer to a specific event and can often be modified for subsequent events. Designed labels can be stored for future use and other occasions.

An additional feature of personalized bottled water is the fact that water bottles can be stored for future occasions and for extended periods if the water contains no minerals or contaminants. An important feature of branded drinking water is the long term nature of the message. Many people who receive private label water tend to retain the bottles because of the uniqueness of the message and quality of the label.

Create a Personal Message and Brand

Although brand creation has been identified with businesses, individuals can create their own brand image related to their interest in sports. Private labeled water for the golfer, hunter, fisherman or sports car enthusiast can convey a personal message or one related to an individual's club or organization. Personalized branding can create interest and enjoyment at later events or family gatherings.

The key to the creation of an effective message is the development of a focused, crisp, unique message that is simple yet powerful. As a result, care must be taken during label design to stay on message and keep the communication simple

For those individuals that are involved in sports and athletics as a business, personalized bottled water can provide a powerful brand image and message and complement marketing and business development efforts.

An Ideal Fund Raiser

Personalized bottled water is ideal for events and fund raising with a custom designed label prepared for the particular event. Often, bottles of water can be sold at these events at a profit and represent a wholesome, effective way of raising funds for booster clubs and other organizations.

Private labeled water is flexible for fund raising because the basic label can be modified for other sporting events at a later date. In addition, schedules and other information pertinent to sporting events can be easily added or altered.

Today, many schools are under significant budget reduction pressure and sporting events for schools offer new ways to increase revenue. Sales of water with a branding message attached in the form of custom label have proved very popular and water can be sold at a profit at events. Further, when the label is retained by the school or the supplier, modifications for latter events are easy and fast.

Water is a major component of a healthy life style and, compared to other fund raising products like candy, pizza and sugar laden soft drinks, offers a quality alternative to the consumer.

Personalized Bottled Water for the Individual

For many individuals sports like golf, sport fishing, running and other outdoor activities represent important parts of their lives and private labeled drinking water can serve as a reminder of their enjoyment with the sport.

Specific uses include boat outings, golf weekends, hunting parties, bowling teams and leagues and many other sports applications that are made more memorable and enjoyable with personalized water for the individual or occasion. The applications are only limited by the user's imagination.

Some bottled water companies can create a custom background label that serves as a template for many different types of events or sports activities. Some vendors include standard templates that an individual can use for their own message. The best suppliers have technology that gives the individual, team or institution the ability to design their own labels. .

The Element of Quality

An overriding feature in the creation of personalized bottled water is the consideration of quality in three areas:

o Quality of water

The basic element of private labeled bottled water is, of course, water and there are many differences in the quality of bottled water. Ultra pure bottled water produced by a combination distillation/filtration/ozonation process is considered by many to be the best quality because it does not contain minerals, contaminants or bacteria.

o Quality of packaging

Since personalized bottled water combines health, refreshment and advertising, the packaging component of the mix must make a quality statement. Substandard bottle quality will seriously compromise the strength of the message.

o Quality of labeling design, printing and application

The label is the element that states the message and the message must be communicated in the strongest and clearest possible way. The label should be developed by a graphics designer or with technology that will aid the consumer in developing their own quality image. Printing is especially critical and the printing process should allow labels are guaranteed to have the same quality of any top-shelf brand in your grocer or quality food store.

All labels should be water proof and preferably laminated to ensure a long service life.

What to Look For In Private Label Water

Personalized bottled water has become increasingly popular for sporting events, teams and participants. This is particularly true with the advent of e-commerce that allows users the ability to design a label and purchase water online through the internet.

Quality is the critical issue because the label serves as a statement for the team, institution or individual. If any portion of the water/package/label mix contains substandard quality, then the entire message is compromised.

Dealing with a reputable vendor with a reputation for quality, customer service and the ability to design labels and place orders on line will guarantee customer satisfaction.

Jon M. Stout is Chairman of the Board of Element H2O an Ultra Pure bottled water company located in Chantilly, Virginia. For more information about bottled water, private label bottled water [http://www.elementh2o.com/Store] and bottled water delivery [http://www.elementh2o.com/local] go to the Element H2O website.