But this rookie season to remember didn’t come without its own controversy, especially when she was playing.
But things changed when the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that Chiles’ appeal had come past the one-minute deadline, thus dropping her score back to its original tally, and Barbosu was given the bronze medal. Thus, Chiles was ordered to give it back.
“I don’t think my position on speaking about it is going to change, so clearly the nation spoke. We got what we got,” Bosa said at the time.
IMANE KHELIF WINS GOLD MEDAL IN PARIS
The most-Googled athlete of the year was at the center of controversy at the Paris Olympics, as Algeria’s Imane Khelif became the gold medalist in her weight class for boxing, despite questions about gender eligibility.
“RAYGUN” MAKES OLYMPIC HEADLINES FOR ALL WRONG REASONS
Now, while it seemed like a crazy pick back then, Penix is finishing out the season as the Falcons’ starter with Cousins’ future in the organization seemingly at a crossroads after a mediocre first campaign in Atlanta.
However, controversy was also seen throughout the days and months.
Rachel Gunn, who went by the stage name “Raygun” in the Olympics, went viral after failing to get a single point in her performance. Some even believed that Gunn, a university lecturer at Macquarie University, was mocking the competition with her dancing, though she said she had been trying to be as creative as possible.
But when she got to the Olympics, Gunn admitted she was overmatched.
Despite controversy from within and the outside, San Jose State continued to play against opponents that would face them on the court until the Mountain West tournament came around where they earned a bye for being the No. 2 seed.
A new addition to the Paris Olympics this year was Breaking, and one competitor from Australia became a household name, though it wasn’t due to a brilliant performance.
Clark would endure more moments of physicality, including from fellow rookie Angel Reese, who whacked her in the head during a layup attempt. However, both Reese and Clark agreed it had just been a basketball play that didn’t work out at that moment.
NFL players Brock Bowers, Calvin Ridley, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, Za’Darius Smith and Malcolm Rodriguez were all seen doing it. Bowers explained why he had done the move after the game.
Colorado State, the No. 1 seed in the tournament, went on to defeat SJSU, 3-1, to win the title and make the NCAA Tournament.
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As 2024 comes to an end, there are lots of moments in the world of sports to reflect on after 365 days, and many of them are great.
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The NFL rulebook prohibits any sort of political messaging, and Bosa was later fined $11,255 by the league for doing so.
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The Falcons eventually had to explain their draft pick, while Cousins was hit with questions about the awkward situation, even though he hadn’t played a single snap for Atlanta yet.
Let’s take a look at some of 2024’s biggest controversial moments in sports, starting in Paris at the Olympic Games.
Would a recap of controversies come without the shock of the NFL Draft?
OLYMIPCS CHIEF HOPEFUL VOWS TO EXPLORE TRANS ATHLETES BAN AMID GLOBAL OUTRAGE
However, the IOC defended Khelif, as well as Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting, who also won gold in a different women’s weight class despite related outrage.
“I like watching UFC, so I saw it and thought it was cool,” Bowers said.
It wasn’t a necessary physical play, hence the foul call, but it became much more than that as talk shows and media outlets began discussing whether players are being too harsh on Clark, who had taken a beating on the court with some hard fouls prior to that as well. Race was also brought up as part of the discussions.
Bosa, the San Francisco 49ers star defensive end, decided to crash his quarterback, Brock Purdy’s, postgame interview on “Sunday Night Football” wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat.
However, her teammate in Chiles faced quite the controversy when she was awarded the bronze medal in the individual floor exercise.
Perhaps even more wild is Belichick becoming North Carolina’s new head football coach, as he will begin a whole new journey in college for the first time in his career.
NICK BOSA’S MAGA HAT
When the Falcons selected eighth overall back in April, they surprised the entire football world when Washington’s Michael Penix Jr., a top quarterback prospect, was called by commissioner Roger Goodell.