Record Breakers Who Made History In 2022
Image: Unsplash.com
Last year was another eventful year in the world of sports. From the big winter party in February to the huge football bonanza in November and December, 2022 featured several major events. Records were broken at the World Athletics Championships and the games in Beijing, while plenty of historic feats were achieved in individual sports like tennis and Formula One.
In this article we have picked out some of the best moments in sports 2022, focusing on 12 men, women and teams who set new world records.
Eliud Kipchoge: Marathon
Eliud Kipchoge, the greatest marathon runner in history, had another superb year. He ran the 2022 Berlin Marathon in just two hours, one minute and nine seconds, smashing the previous world record (which was also held by him) by a whole 30 seconds. It was a stunning race from the Kenyan, who has now run four of the six fastest marathons of all time.
The Berlin course seems to be Kipchoge’s favourite. His previous world record was set in the German capital, and he has now triumphed on that particular course four times, moving him level with the legendary Ethiopian runner Haile Gebrselassie.
Kipchoge turned 38 in November, which means he is now past the age at which long-distance runners usually peak.
However, it would be foolish to rule out any more records in 2023. “There’s still more in my legs, there’s still more, and I hope the future is still great,” he said after Berlin.
Yulimar Rojas: Triple Jump
Known as la reina del triple salto (‘the queen of the triple jump’) in her native Venezuelan, Yulimar Rojas lived up to her nickname in 2022. Competing at the World Indoors Championships in Belgrade, she jumped 15.74 metres to cement her status as the best female triple jumper on the planet.
Rojas was already the holder of the world record, having jumped 15.67m in Tokyo last year. Few expected that distance to be surpassed in the space of a few months, but that is what Rojas did with her remarkable accomplishment in the Serbian capital.
“I cannot be more thankful,” she said. “I knew it was the right time to achieve this and I took the chance. I did not want to miss this opportunity.
“Looking back to [World Indoor Championships] 2018, I am the same person but I have improved a lot technically and I also have the mental strength.”
Cristiano Ronaldo: Most International Goals
Cristiano Ronaldo’s tournament in November/December ended in tears: the Portugal international was seen crying in the tunnel after his country lost 1-0 to Morocco in the quarter-finals, ensuring elimination for his side.
Yet although Ronaldo will finish his career without having won the biggest trophy in football, he did at least set a new record by becoming the first player to score at five editions of the biggest football tournament in the world.
Even more impressively, Ronaldo became the all-time top scorer in the international game this year. His 110th goal for Portugal came in a victory over the Republic of Ireland in September and saw the striker move into first place, overtaking Iran’s Ali Daei.
He has since added another eight goals to his tally for Portugal, including one at last year’s tournament – a penalty against Ghana in the group stage. However, the 37-year-old could be set to retire from international football having represented his country 196 times.
Tobi Amusan: 100 Metre Hurdles
One of the best moments in sports 2022 belonged to Tobi Amusan. The Nigerian ran the fastest ever time in the women’s 100 metre hurdles this year, completing the course in just 12.12 seconds.
The new record was set at the World Championships in Oregon, where Amusan performed sensationally. In the heats she ran the fastest time of any African athlete, before setting the aforementioned world record in the semi-finals.
She actually ran the 100 metre hurdles in just 12.06 seconds in the final, but because it was 2.5 m/s wind assisted, it does not go down as an official world record. Even so, Amusan left the United States as the undisputed best female 100 metre hurdler in the world.
“It’s a dream come true. I knew I had it in me, but I could not believe it when I saw it on the screen after the semis. But it was just a matter of time,” she said afterwards.
England Women: Most Consecutive Rugby Union Wins
Just as they dominate the men’s game, New Zealand are the best women’s rugby union team on the planet. Of the nine editions of the Women’s World Cup that have been held since the competition was launched in 1991, the Black Ferns have triumphed on six occasions.
Yet it was England that set a new world record in 2022 by winning 30 matches on the bounce. They made history in early November, beating Canada 26-19 in the semi-finals of the World Cup to extend their winning streak to 30 games over a three-year period.
The run began in November 2019 and encompassed victories in three different Six Nations Championships, all of which England won.
It was a marvellous achievement, but England were not celebrating for long. A week after that triumph over the Canadians, they narrowly lost the World Cup final to New Zealand.
Jasprit Bumrah: Most Runs In A Test Match Over
Over the last 20 years, governing bodies have introduced various shortened forms of cricket. In 2003 England launched Twenty20, a 20-over version of the game, and the format has proved to be wildly popular. The Indian Premier League, which follows the T20 rules, is now one of cricket’s most watched competitions.
But Test cricket remains the purest and most prestigious version of the sport, even if its future is the subject of near-constant debate. It is slower and more tactical than T20, and tends to be less well suited to big-hitting batsmen.
That is why India’s Jasprit Bumrah’s accomplishment this year was so remarkable. He set a new world record for the most runs in a Test match over in July, hitting 29 off six balls from England bowler Stuart Broad.
Bumrah scored with two sixes and four fours, and the overall tally was boosted to 35 because of five wides and a no ball.
Rafael Nadal: Most Singles Titles
In the year that his old nemesis Roger Federer retired, Rafael Nadal made tennis history by becoming the men’s player with the most singles titles of all time.
Previously tied on 20 with Federer and Novak Djokovic, Nadal moved onto 21 by winning the Australian Open, a tournament which Djokovic was unable to participate in due to his vaccination status.
Four months later Nadal emerged triumphant at the French Open, beating Casper Ruud in straight sets in the final. That was his 22nd singles crown, and although Djokovic won Wimbledon in the summer, he remains one title behind the Spaniard.
It will be interesting to see if Nadal can hold off the Serbian in 2023, with both men expected to challenge in all four majors. However, Djokovic and Nadal are now in their mid-30s and their dominance cannot go on forever.
Nils van der Poel: 10,000 Metre Speed Skating
The 2022 Winter Games feel like a long time ago now, but Nils van der Poel will remember the Games in Beijing for the rest of his life. It was in China that the Swede set a new world record in the 10,000 metre speed skating, clocking in at an impressive time of 12:30.74.
That means the 26-year-old now holds the world record for both the 5,000 metre and 10,000 metre events. He claimed the former towards the end of 2021 and carried that form into the Winter Olympics, where he wowed audiences with a magnificent performance.
A month later Van der Poel announced that he was retiring this year, but he will hope that the world record remains his for some time yet.
The previous holder was Graeme Fish, but Van der Poel bettered the Canadian in 2021 and then improved on his previous time this year.
Armand Duplantis: Pole Vault
Armand Duplantis once again showed that he is the king of the pole vault in 2022. At the World Athletics Indoor Tour in March, he broke his own world record by jumping 6.19 metres.
Just a fortnight later, at the 2022 World Athletics Indoor Championships in Belgrade, he made a distance of 6.20 metres, claiming the gold medal while also breaking his own record again.
The achievements did not stop there. At the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Duplantis made it to 6.21 metres. The pole vaulter broke the world record – which already belonged to him – on no fewer than three occasions this year.
“I’m going to try to keep pushing the limits, pushing the barriers, and see how far I can go,” he told CATch Up in December. “I really believe that I still have more in the tank.”
Max Verstappen: Most Race Wins
Max Verstappen was responsible for another of the biggest sports records of 2022. The racing driver won the Formula One World Drivers’ Championship by finishing first in 15 different races – the most in a season by any driver in the competition’s history.
Charles Leclerc was quickest out of the blocks, winning two of the first three races, but it did not take long for Verstappen to hit top form.
The Red Bull driver triumphed in Emilia Romagna, Miami and Spain to take control of the season, before further victories in France, Italy, Japan, the United States and elsewhere.
As well as the most wins in a season, Verstappen also amassed the most points with 454. This was his second Drivers’ Championship in a row, and the 25-year-old – who will remain with Red Bull until at least 2028 after signing a new contract – will be hard to stop in 2023 too.
Suzanne Schulting: 1,000 Metre Short Track
Suzanne Schulting has done more than any of her compatriots to put Dutch skating on the map. In 2018 she won the Netherlands’ first ever gold medal in short track speed skating and she remains one of the best in the business four years on.
At the Beijing Olympics, Schulting won gold in the 1,000 metres. Before that, in the quarter-final of the same event, she set a new world record by completing the race in one minute and 26.5 seconds. It was quite the feat given that the previous record had held for a decade.
Schulting performed even better later in the year, albeit on a smaller stage. At an ISU Short Track Speed Skating World Cup event, she clocked in at just 1 minute and 25.96 seconds to break her own record.
USA Women: Most Points In Basketball World Cup Game
Team USA won their 11th Women’s Basketball World Cup this year. It was no surprise to see them emerge victorious in Australia.
After all, the USA have won 11 of the previous 19 editions of the tournament, including six of the last seven. Since the breakup of the Soviet Union, the USA have dominated the sport.
Yet the current side still found a way to make history in September when they became the first team to score 145 points in a single match. South Korea were their unfortunate victims, as the USA registered two more points than the Brazil side of 1990, the previous holders of the all-time record.
The USA proved too strong for the rest of the competition. They won all five group games, then beat Serbia, Canada and China on their way to the trophy.
