The Scariest Sports Moments Ever

Clint Malarchuk gets throat slit by skate

May 12, 2009

When real-life tragedy strikes during sports entertainment, it's unexpected and terrifying. These scary events are further sensationalized by the public broadcast nature of sport.

8Earthquake Series
The Loma Prieta earthquake hit The Bay Area during Game 2 of the 1989 World Series. The Series that year had been billed the Battle of the Bay because it involved the Oakland Athletics and the San Francisco Giants. Measuring at 6.9 on the moment magnitude scale, it was the first major earthquake to be broadcast on live TV. As a result of California residents being largely off the highways and engrossed in the game, the World Series between the two area teams is thought to have spared thousands of lives.

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Moments after the Great Quake of 89, Battle of the Bay


7Fatal Dale Earnhardt Crash
Although the crash did not look serious, Earnhardt was killed by head injuries sustained.

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Dale Earnhardt 2001 Daytona Crash *WARNING FATAL CLIP*


6Malice at the Palace
The incredible brawl that broke out between players and fans during a Pacers vs. Pistons basketball game in Detroit. In the clip below, a laughing Ron Artest seems to blame the incident on Detroit being a gansta' arena. Click here to watch the brawl.

Ron Artest speaks on the infamous BRAWL


5Centennial Olympic Park bombing
At the 1996 Olympic Games, hosted by Atlanta, Olympic Park was bombed. Two people died and eleven were injured. Richard Jewell, who initially discovered the bomb and led Olympic fans to safety, was falsely implicated for the crime. In 1997, domestic terrorist Eric Robert Rudolph was indicated the the Olympic and other bombings.

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Olympic Park Bombing


4Nancy Kerrigan Attack
Jeff Gillooly, the ex-husband of the now infamous Tonya Harding, hired a man to club the legs of competitor Nacy Kerrigan following a practice. This clip was apparently part of a skating competition broadcast. It's interesting because after the Kerrigan story, it goes into a promo for coverage that features none other than Tonya Harding—not known to be a perpetrator at that time.

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NANCY KERRIGAN ATTACK DETROIT 1994


3Monica Seles Stabbing
Monica Seles was stabbed in the back by a deranged fan during a quarterfinal match changeover. The fan wanted to be sure Seles would not defeat Steffi Graf. Seles would later recover to win another Grand Slam singles title.

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Monica Seles Interview


2Munich Massacre
Terrorist group, Black September, took the Israeli athletes hostage in the Olympic Village. At end of the crisis, eleven Israeli athletes and coaches, and also one police officer, had been murdered.

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The 1972 Munich Olympics


1Clint Malarchuk Throat Slice
In a scene that could have come straight from a horror movie, Buffalo goalie, Clint Malarchuk, is sliced across the jugular by a skate blade. Fearing he would die, Malarchuk asked for his mother and a priest to be called. Two fans in the arena suffered heart attacks and many of the other hockey players were physically sickened. Malarchuck survived, and as a result, the NHL now requires goalies to wear neck protectors. Warning: The video is very disturbing.

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Clint Malarchuk gets throat slit by skate

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