Unforgettable snippets in time from the sports we love
They are snippets in time, unforgettable snapshots that gloriously capture the soaring euphoria and gut-wrenching agony of the games we love, not to mention the randomness of a moment that might’ve gone unnoticed otherwise.
Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid is dunked after his team’s 38-35 Super Bowl win against the Philadelphia Eagles, in Glendale, Ariz., Feb. 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
There are the Kansas City Chiefs, dunking head coach Andy Reid with a jug-full of frigid drink after their stirring Super Bowl triumph over the Philadelphia Eagles, fulfilling what has become a rite of passage in all gridiron celebrations.
And the Vegas Golden Knights, gathered in a giant group hug behind the net after capturing the NHL’s Stanley Cup championship, the glittering ice beneath their skates littered with discarded gloves.
Vegas Golden Knights teammates celebrate after defeating the Florida Panthers 9-3 in Game 5 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Finals, in Las Vegas, June 13, 2023. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Then there’s Femke Bol, a track athlete from the Netherlands, tumbling toward the track with a gasp of disbelief across her face, the baton slipping from her grasp as she falls near the finish line of a relay race at the world championships.
Alexis Holmes, of the United States, anchors her team to the gold medal as Femke Bol, of the Netherlands, falls near the finish, in the final of the 4x400-meters mixed relay during the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, Aug. 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
And Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy, smashing a golf club across his leg like a child trying to snap a tree limb in half, the frustration evident after an errant shot from the thick rough at the U.S. Open.
But let’s not forget Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic, her braided ponytail soaring above her head as she whacks a serve at the Wimbledon tennis championships.
Czech Republic's Petra Kvitova serves to Serbia's Natalija Stevanovic in a women's singles match on day six of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, July 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
And Cleveland Guardians catcher Bo Naylor, captured in another close-up at the very instant that a foul ball smashed off his mask during an otherwise ho-hum game in the midst of summer at Chicago’s Wrigley Field.
Sure, we’re all intrigued by the most notable among us, whether it’s singer Taylor Swift cheering from a football luxury suite or Britain’s King Charles III letting out a gasp from the royal box at the Royal Ascot horse racing meet.
Britain's King Charles III, Camilla, the Queen Consort and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, watch a race on day two of the Royal Ascot horse racing meeting, in Ascot, England, June 21, 2023. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
But countless moments give us the full picture.
Thanks to the photographers of The Associated Press, so many of them will remain a timeless part of our memories.
Lead caption: Spain's Salma Paralluelo lies on the ground with her gold medal at the end of the Women's World Cup soccer final against England, at Stadium Australia in Sydney, Aug. 20, 2023. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Text from AP News story, AP sports photos of the year capture unforgettable snippets in time from the games we love, by Paul Newberry