Top 10 Gutsiest Performances in Sports

10. Byron Leftwich (2002)

During his senior year at Marshall, Leftwich broke his left shin in the first quarter of a game against Akron. He re-entered the game in the fourth to try and win the game for his team. (I couldn’t imagine being the backup QB and seeing my coach choose the guy who can’t walk in crunch time, but alas.) After a long completion, two offensive lineman fully carried Leftwich downfield for the next snap. Marshall mounted a 17-point comeback but still fell short—luckily the clip of Leftwich being carried has been used in every teamwork and sportsmanship seminar video ever since.

9. Keri Strug (1996)

There’s nothing more American than overcoming adversity to beat the Russians. In the 1996 Olympics, the US Women's gymnastics team entered the final rotation with a narrow lead over the dominant Soviets. On Strug’s first vault attempt, she under-rotated and tore two ligaments in her ankle as she landed. While Strug was being treated, the vault competition came down to the wire. I wasn’t there, but according to internet lore, Strug’s coach told Kerri: “We need you to go one more time. We need you one more time for the gold. You can do it.” Strug limped to the runway and did it. Her score of 9.712 was enough for the US to clinch gold. She was carried to the podium. There needs to be a movie about this American hero.

8. Paul Pierce (2008)

Most people have seen the images of Paul Pierce leaving Game 1 of the 2008 Finals in a wheelchair. But why he left the game so dramatically has opened the door to a lot of rumors. One special theory in particular is that Pierce shit his pants and took a wheelchair trip back into the locker room to handle that issue. While I wish this conspiracy was true, Pierce denies it, so I have to as well. The real reason Pierce was in pain was the sprained MCL he suffered after colliding into Kendrick Perkins. Knee injuries are horrifying, no matter the degree, but even more so if you attempt to play with them afterwards. The Celtics won Game 1 and went on to win it all with Pierce at the helm. Maybe there were some performative theatrics involved, but it remains an iconic moment of the Celtics’ run regardless.

7. Zdeno Chara (2019)

We could probably give hockey its own list for this subject. But it was only five years ago that Bruins defenseman Chara played in the final three Stanley Cup Final games against St. Louis with his face held together by “two plates, some wires, and some screws.” Having your face dismantled feels like it might be a rite of passage in hockey, but doctors had to put Chara’s face “back together” in the first period of Game 4 when a puck deflected towards the Bruins captain and broke his jaw. Hard to slack off when your captain takes the ice with a broken face. Unfortunately, the Bruins lost the series to the Blues, but Chara’s toughness was on full display on hockey’s biggest stage.

6. Derek Redmond (1992)

There might not be a better display of fatherly love than shown by Jim Redmond in the 1992 Summer Olympics. While competing in the 400-meter race, Jim’s son Derek tore his hamstring on the back 250. Derek fell to the ground, and just before medical staff could tend to him, he stood up and started hobbling around the track. As he was rounding the final curve, Derek’s father Jim (who was rocking peak ’90s Nike fashion) fought past security and emerged onto the track to help his son finish, a scene that will make you cry everytime you watch. The two finished the last 100 together in one of the most powerful scenes in sports history.

5. Kobe Bryant (2013)

Kobe has an extensive list of iconic moments but I don’t think there’s anything harder than when he sank two free throws after tearing his Achilles. The Lakers were in a gritty fourth-quarter battle with the Warriors in 2013 when Kobe tried to drive the left side of the lane and got fouled. It was clear that something was wrong—walking was a struggle. Despite suffering a devastating season-ending injury, Kobe slowly limped back to the free throw line and sank both to tie the game. The Staples Center crowd gave him an ovation as he walked to the locker room. Oh yeah, and the Lakers won by two. 24 was so stoic at all times, there was truly no one else like him.

4. Tiger Woods (2008)

I am not a golf guy by any means but sharing a birthday with Tiger Woods has inevitably kept me connected with him through the good and the bad. At the US Open in 2008, Tiger got off to a horrible start at Torrey Pines. Little did anyone know, against his doctor's orders, Tiger had entered the Open with a torn ACL and a double stress fracture in his tibia. Woods birdied the 18th to send the match to sudden death, where he went on to win his third US Open. Two days following the championship, Woods revealed the severity of his injuries and that he would retire for the rest of the 2008 season. Casual.

3. Patrick Mahomes (2023)

I think this moment would be talked about more if Mahomes didn’t win an MVP and two more Super Bowls since this moment. Mahomes was taken out in the divisional game against Jacksonville after a nasty ankle-crunching collision. Andy Reid insisted Mahomes go get his ankle X-rayed, to which Mahomes famously screamed “F*CK!” at the top of his lungs. Who knows what they stuck into his ankle, but Mahomes limped out the rest of the game as the Chiefs advanced to play the hated Bengals in the AFC Championship. It was the same Bengals team that ripped the Chiefs’ hearts out the year before, and Mahomes needed to avenge that loss…if the trainers let him.

Twitter was in a frenzy that week. Is Mahomes in a boot? Does his gait look normal? It didn’t matter. Mahomes was playing. In fitting fashion, on the closing drive, Mahomes used his leg(s) and scrambled for a first down, took a late hit into the Bengals sideline, and set up a game-winning field goal. Kansas City won the Super Bowl two weeks later and Mahomes still hasn’t lost a playoff game since.

2. Curt Schilling (2004)

No MLB team had ever come back from a 3-0 deficit in a best-of-seven series. The Red Sox were on the brink of letting the hated Yankees end their 2004 season with a sweep. The Sox managed to take the series to Game 6, where Curt Schilling took the mound after injuring his ankle during the ALDS. Doctors sutured the ankle, only for it to begin bleeding before first pitch.

We use the honor system when people tell us they’re in pain, but when we see blood, it’s as real as it gets. Schilling gave up only one run in seven innings and images of the bloody sock took the world by storm. The sock is probably in a Fenway museum for all I know. Cementing the legacy of this moment was the fact that the Red Sox went on to bring a title back to Boston for the first time since 1918 after sweeping the Cardinals.

1. Michael Jordan (1997)

You might think this is No. 1 for me because there is a shoe named after it—but no. This one is memorable because of the story behind it. The 38-point, game-winning performance we know as the “Flu Game” is an iconic moment in Michael Jordan's career. Allegedly Jordan became sick the night before Game 5 of the 1997 Finals. It shouldn’t surprise anyone that Jordan found it within himself to take over a game despite his alleged illness. However, there is a lot of speculation that Michael Jordan was actually hungover, and the “flu” was the cover-up. If true, I find this athletic feat to be even more impressive. Lebron could never.

Regardless of the origin of his illness, Jordan hit a game-winning three-pointer right in John Stockton's face, and trudged dramatically off the court in what might be one of the most visually memorable moments in MJ’s unparalleled career. I would imagine after Ibuprofen, Gatorade, and a good night’s sleep, Jordan felt better for Game 6, where he carried the Bulls over the Jazz and won Finals MVP.