NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Sport

A brief history of great sporting cries

Cameron McMillan
By Cameron McMillan
Deputy Head of Sport·NZ Herald·
17 Nov, 2020 05:00 PM6 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Sport has produced many great crying moments and long may it continue.

Sport has produced many great crying moments and long may it continue.

A wild and ridiculous internet theory recently did the rounds that sportspeople need to 'harden up' and stop the crying.

It's not a new theory and will forever remain absurd.

Tom Hanks' character Jimmy Dugan famously said 'There's no crying in baseball' in the 1992 classic A League of Their Own. The movie was set in 1943 which is probably where we should leave opposing views around sportspeople, and in particular men, openly crying.

Whether it's happy or sad crying, sport is full of emotions and has provided many great moments where tears have been shed.

Here's the best of the bawlers.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

7) Bubba Watson

The left-hander was dubbed 'Blubba Watson' after breaking into tears following his winning putt at the 2012 US Masters. He won again two years later and he cried again.

According to the Telegraph, he cried so much when he earned his tour card that he could not conduct an interview. He broke down at his own wedding to the point where he was incapable of whimpering "I do".

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"I'm going to cry, because why me?" he asked. "Why Bubba Watson from Bagdad, Florida? Why is he winning? I'll probably cry again sometime, just thinking about it."

Bubba Watson has a good cry after winning the 2014 Masters. Photo / AP
Bubba Watson has a good cry after winning the 2014 Masters. Photo / AP

6) Paul Gascoigne and David Beckham

Discover more

Sport|rugby

Troubled former All Blacks star's message to Keith Quinn

17 Nov 05:00 AM
Sport

'Point taken': Keith Quinn backtracks after telling 'blokes' to 'harden up'

16 Nov 04:20 PM
Sport

'This ain't it, chief': Keith Quinn slammed for telling 'blokes' to 'harden up'

16 Nov 07:25 AM

Beckham - the modern man. He made wearing a sarong cool. And being a pivotal part of the England football team, well that brings of a rollercoaster ride of emotions.

Gazza led the way after breaking down in tears following England's exit from the 1990 World Cup.

via GIPHY

Beckham continued the tradition in subsequent failures in 1998, 2002 and 2006. He was visibly upset after being subbed off in the 2006 quarter-final defeat to Portugal with an injury as it dawned on him that his dream of winning the World Cup was slipping away.

He later broke down after leaving the field in his final game in 2013 for PSG.

David Beckham of PSG gets emotional and cries when he leaves the field, cheered by his teammates and the public. Photo / Getty
David Beckham of PSG gets emotional and cries when he leaves the field, cheered by his teammates and the public. Photo / Getty

5) Steve Smith

After being dubbed as cricket's villains, and rightly so as they tried to cheat, Steve Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft returned to Australia from South Africa to face the music following the sandpaper/ball-tampering scandal in 2018.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Smith as the captain, fronted the media and broke down when apologising.

Smith cried when asked what he'd say to children who looked up to him, advising them to think of their parents when thinking of making a questionable decision: "To see the way my old man ... and my mum ... it hurts," he said through tears.

"I just want to say I'm sorry for the pain that I guess I've brought to Australia and the fans and the public. It's devastating and I'm truly sorry."

He actually was a human, with actual emotions. And you actually felt sorry for him. A little bit.

Steve Smith in tears. Photo / Getty Images
Steve Smith in tears. Photo / Getty Images

4) Roger Federer

Whether he's won or lost a grand slam final, Federer loves to well up.

Critics have said it takes away from the opponent if he's on the losing side but emotions can go out the window after finishing a two week tournament with an exhausting five-hour thriller.

A losing Roger Federer wipes a tear. Photosport
A losing Roger Federer wipes a tear. Photosport

3) Lou Gehrig

In 1939 the New York Yankees legend said goodbye to baseball at age 36. Gehrig wiped away a tear before delivering his final words in public to the 61,000 fans at Yankees Stadium.

After playing 17 seasons, including six titles with the Yankees, Gehrig was forced to retire due to being diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, which later became known as Lou Gehrig's Disease.

Gehrig, dubbed the 'Iron Horse' of baseball, didn't 'harden-up'.

"For the past two weeks you have been reading about a bad break. Yet today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth," with th words echoing around the stadium.

He praised his teammates, fans, opponents and his wife and daughter before finishing: "So I close in saying that I might have been given a bad break, but I've got an awful lot to live for. Thank you."

He would die two years later.

It makes you cry just thinking about how poignant a moment it was.

2) The All Blacks

According to veteran hooker Anton Oliver, there was plenty of tears following the All Blacks' shock exit from the 2007 World Cup.

"There are different, varying bits of emotion in the team, people are taking it differently," he told media following the 20-18 loss to France in Cardiff.

"Some people have already let it out, others are taking their time to grieve. It is going to be a long, exhausting process.

"There has been a lot of people crying. Crying is not something that you see very often, so it is quite powerful when you see it."

Rare insight and honest from an All Black.

Chris Jack consoles Byron Kelleher following the 2007 World Cup quarter-final defeat. Photosport
Chris Jack consoles Byron Kelleher following the 2007 World Cup quarter-final defeat. Photosport

1) Andre Agassi

Another farewell speech and one of the most emotional in sport.

The tennis great and eight-time grand slam winner attempted one final run at the 2006 US Open in front of a home crowd. Despite severe back pain he pulled off a remarkable five set win over the eighth seed Marcos Baghdatis in the second round before his career came to an end with defeat to German qualifier Benjamin Becker.

As soon as the match ended, along with a career that started 20 years earlier, the emotions took over Agassi as he talked to the crowd.

"Um, thanks," he said, struggling to wipe away tears. "The scoreboard said I lost today but what the scoreboard doesn't say is what it is I have found. Over the last 21 years I have found loyalty, you have pulled for me on the court and also in life. I have found inspiration. You have willed me to succeed sometimes even in my lowest moments. And I have found generosity. You have given me your shoulders to stand on to reach for my dreams. Dreams I could never have reached without you. Over the last 21 years I have found you and I will take you and the memory of you with me for the rest of my life. Thank you."

Beautifully emotional stuff.

USA's Andre Agassi reacts after losing to Germany's Benjamin Becker in the third round of the 2006 US Open. PA Images via Getty Images
USA's Andre Agassi reacts after losing to Germany's Benjamin Becker in the third round of the 2006 US Open. PA Images via Getty Images
Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Latest from Sport

Premium
Opinion

Opinion: Are the Crusaders the world's most successful pro sports franchise of all time?

19 Jun 07:00 AM
New Zealand

Watch: 'Hand of God' controversy in schoolboy rugby scrum

19 Jun 04:29 AM
Boxing

'No truth in it': Gallen hits back at SBW claims

19 Jun 04:00 AM

Jono and Ben brew up a tea-fuelled adventure in Sri Lanka

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Sport

Premium
Opinion: Are the Crusaders the world's most successful pro sports franchise of all time?

Opinion: Are the Crusaders the world's most successful pro sports franchise of all time?

19 Jun 07:00 AM

Mike Thorpe argues the numbers suggest that they are.

Watch: 'Hand of God' controversy in schoolboy rugby scrum

Watch: 'Hand of God' controversy in schoolboy rugby scrum

19 Jun 04:29 AM
'No truth in it': Gallen hits back at SBW claims

'No truth in it': Gallen hits back at SBW claims

19 Jun 04:00 AM
Rising star Sophia Lafaiali'i shines in Mystics' pivotal victory

Rising star Sophia Lafaiali'i shines in Mystics' pivotal victory

19 Jun 03:01 AM
Help for those helping hardest-hit
sponsored

Help for those helping hardest-hit

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP