Making Their Mark

ONE FOR THE VAULTIn some ways, the record was incidental to the drama that unfolded on an August evening in Athens. Bitter rivals Yelena Isi...

ONE FOR THE VAULT

In some ways, the record was incidental to the drama that unfolded on an August evening in Athens. Bitter rivals Yelena Isinbayeva and Svetlana Feofanova traded icy glares and played mindgames through the evening, all the while raising the bar 8212; literally 8212; in the Olympic pole vault event. The camera-friendly Isinbayeva 22 eventually won gold and broke the world record, after an audacious gamble when she was in bronze place 8212; and she even shook hands with Feofanova. The 4.91 metres she scaled was her 7th world record of the year she did it one more time in October and the only track and field record at the Olympics.

49 IS DIVINE

This wasn8217;t about numbers either; it was more about the magic that Arsenal strewed along the way as they waltzed to a 49-game unbeaten run, including one whole season without defeat. Between their loss to Leeds in May 2003 and then to Manchester United in October 2004, the Gunners fired out all opposition thanks to their star cast led by Thierry Henry. This record won8217;t be broken in a hurry 8212; and certainly not in this style

TRIPLE THE LIGHT FANTASTIC

We should have seen it coming. The verdict, post facto, was that it was a surprise but if there8217;s one person in Indian cricket who can do the unthinkable, it8217;s Virender Sehwag. So the triple century came in Pakistan, off 370-odd balls, was reached a six and it came via a batsman now rated as one of the world8217;s most dangerous. It also laid the foundations of another record: India8217;s first-ever Test win in Pakistan.

ARMSTRONG, MAN STRONGER

The 22-day Tour de France is known as the world8217;s toughest sporting event; to do it even once requires a mixture of speed, endurance and physical fitness. So to win it a record six times in a row must be Special. Lance Armstrong is Special, no doubt; he8217;s not acclaimed as the greatest cyclist of all time but his sixth consecutive TdF win came only eight years after being diagnosed with cancer. Along the way he had to deal with charges of doping; that was nothing compared to the battle he fought against the elements through 2,000 miles of riding, mountain climbs, rain, cold, baking heat and crashes.