A Video History of Awkward Sports Celebrations

By now most racing fans, casual or dedicated, have heard the story about how one of the family members from American Pharoah’s owner Zayat Stables, um, lost his lunch amid the excitement of winning the Kentucky Derby on May 2.
Blame it on that veggie burrito from the Churchill Downs parking lot.
But in the pantheon of failed or awkward victory celebrations, projectile vomit doesn’t even register as a blip on the radar. Shoot, we could do an entire post just on wide receiver touchdown celebrations in the National Football League.
In the spirit of American Pharoah’s quest for the Triple Crown, here is a list that shows a celebration can always be worse … 
Swing and a Miss: We all know sports franchise owners are almost never as coordinated as the players on the field, but this high five from Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie celebrating a touchdown in the 2008 playoffs against the Dallas Cowboys is a slap in the face of sports fans.

But This One Connected: As bad as Jeff Lurie’s miss above was, this soccer player made solid contact. Ouch!

Groovin' to the Oldies: No awkward celebration section of a blog is completed without this Mark Madsen celebration dance at the parade following the Los Angeles Lakers 2002 NBA championship. Still waiting on that “Dancing With the Stars” call, Mark?

Even worse, much worse than an awkward celebration is a premature one, and we get things started with horse racing, where even Hall of Famers can make mistake in the biggest race of the year.
Snatching Defeat From the Jaws of Victory: Bill Shoemaker famously finished second to Iron Liege in the 1957 Kentucky Derby aboard Gallant Man after he stood up in the stirrups too soon and misjudged the finish line.

Take Another Lap, My Friend: While we are on the topic of misjudging the finish line, let’s stay in horse racing. Jockey Jorge Carreno would no doubt like to have a do-over for the 2004 Hasta la Vista Handicap at Turf Paradise, run at the 1 7/8 miles.

Imitation is the Sincerest Form of Flattery: Julio A. Hernandez did his best Jorge Carreno impersonation in the second race at Penn National on Sept. 20, 2014. Whoops!

It Doesn’t Get Better Than This: I have to admit I’ve watched this at least a few dozen times. You'll have to redirect through YouTube to watch it, but it's worth the 40 seconds to check out this premature home run celebration by a South Korean baseball player. The second replay, where he points to the dugout, is my favorite part with the announcer’s disappointment and the reaction of the opposing team worthy honorable mentions. This always makes me smile.

DeSean Does It Best: We couldn’t have a segment on premature celebrations without the obligatory DeSean Jackson mention.

Doing DeSean Proud: Former University of Kentucky standout Danny Trevathon did DeSean proud on national television, costing his Denver Broncos six points.

Heartbreak on the Slope: I’ve always been a big X-Games fan, so I knew all about talented snowboarder Lindsey Jacobellis before the 2006 Olympic Games. She had a snowboard cross gold medal wrapped up, but a little flash of flair cost her dearly. I watched this event on TV and felt about as bad as you can feel for an Olympic athlete.

Let’s move on to terrible celebration execution. Sometimes celebrations with the best intentions go horribly wrong. Take a look:
That Backflip Might Need a Shape Up: Note to all athletes, if there is doubt about whether or not you can complete the backflip, it’s best to find an alternative celebration. Take note, Marion Barber.

I Don’t Share Your Enthusiasm: Clearly, Paul Pierce does not share the level of enthusiasm of teammate Nate Robinson after the former sank a game-winning bucket. Too bad for Nate, and he defintely paid the price.

Easy there, hard charger!: Hockey player Henrik Andersen showed off some nifty moves when depositing this game-winning goal, but who expected he’d also deposit himself (and a pane of glass) in the front row. 

Worst Spike Ever: A spike in football is supposed to be automatic, like an extra point or a free throw in basketball. Former NFL player and University of Florida standout Kerwin Bell clearly needed some practice after this spike after scoring for the Toronto Argonauts left him singing soprano.

The last group here is simply the “what were they thinking?” group, and I’m going to begin with a famous celebration that just never made sense to me.
Chastain’s Clincher: I was fortunate to meet Brandi Chastain as a sports editor in Maryland when she and her fellow World Cup-winning teammates launched the now-defunct women’s pro soccer league WUSA. Chastain is an amazing athlete and a terrific ambassador for women’s sports and soccer. I just never understood why someone would feel the need to rip off their shirt after a goal or victory. Dance, sure. Spike, I get it. High five, makes sense. Yank off your shirt, wait, what? I loved that 1999 Team USA Women’s World Cup squad, but Chastain’s celebration will always be confusing to me.

Frerotte’s Folly: Washington Redskins quarterback Gus Frerotte inexplicably decided to headbutt a (padded) concrete wall after scoring a touchdown in a 1997 game against the New York Giants. Frerotte was replaced by Jeff Hostetler while he went for concussion testing. Football is dangerous enough without taking on a concrete wall, Gus! Not his finest moment.

Try the Backstroke: Milan Hejduk was a fantastic hockey player for a long time and a Stanley Cup Champion, but this game-winning goal celebration is just bizarre.

Costly Three Points: Let’s finish with arguably the most recognizable and costly sports celebration failure of all time. Bill Gramatica celebrated a first-quarter, 43-yard field goal with an enthusiastic leap, but he did not nail the landing. There is no field goal worth a torn ACL, especially not in the first quarter!
Bill Gramatica Celebration Fail by 22ios
In hindsight, it’s pretty clear that the aforementioned post-Derby regurgitation merits only a minor footnote when considering the wonderful history of awkward victory celebrations. But who knows, we still have the Belmont Stakes as an opportunity to up the ante!