Jamaica's Usain Bolt cruising to the finish line in the Olympic Games 200m semifinals in 2012. Photo / Mark Mitchell
For some it is the unnecessary mocking of an opponent that disrespects sports unwritten code of ethics. For others it is the ultimate in sporting entertainment, as a world-class sports star destroys a rival psychologically, as well as physically, to the delight of those who get to witness it.
When George Kruis sent a backheeled conversion between the posts during England's humiliating exhibition defeat to the Barbarians at Twickenham on Sunday, it was the rugby equivalent of pouring a big jar of salt into a nasty wound.
But it was also highly entertaining, which reinforced the fact that the best and most memorable showboating does not merely goad an opponent or dismisses their threat, it also needs to be funny and entertaining too. They also need to send a message - I am better than you and I know it.
Here are five other successful showboating examples...
In a discipline normally settled by hundredths of a second and regular photo finishes, Usain Bolt had the devastating ability to win races in such dominating fashion that he had the time and composure to look across at the camera on the finish line, or even back at gurning, straining opponents who were straining every sinew to try and claim a silver or bronze medal behind him.
It revealed a supreme athlete at the peak of his powers who knew he was going to win the race before the gun was fired. It also showed a showman and an entertainer, which helped transform Bolt into one of the world's most iconic sports stars. For a decade or so, Usain Bolt was not only the face of athletics, he was one of the most famous people on the planet because he did not just win, he won with ease and in what became his trademark style.
The commentary that accompanied Kevin Pietersen's switch hit against New Zealand back in 2008 tells you everything. "That is one of the most incredible shots that has ever been played on a cricket pitch..." It was followed by slightly nervous laughter because, it's really just not cricket to take your usual right-handed stance and, as the bowler runs in, jump in the air, switch to a left-handed stance and slog his delivery into the stand for six with a 'switch hit'.
Pietersen had executed the shot off spinner Muttiah Muralitharan two years earlier but against the medium pace of Scott Styris, he twice cleared the ropes while batting 'left-handed'.
Geoffrey Boycott found it hilarious. When he did it a second time, Boycott could barely contain himself. "That's wonderful entertainment for the crowd." said the normally dour Yorkshireman. The fact that Pietersen effectively invented a new shot, which has been mimicked in limited overs cricket all over the world ever since, makes it one of the most remarkable pieces of showboating ever.
It is no surprise in a sport where the aim is to break your opponent down, mentally and physically, that showboating is all part of a boxer's armoury. Taunting a foe is an excellent way to trick them into making a mistake. For someone like Chris Eubank, it was all part of the act; a crucial part of the show as he paraded around the ring and created a persona that was a mix of English gentleman and vicious fighter.
However, there has not been a better showboater in the ring than the American Roy Jones, who would regularly drop his hands and stick his chin out, before slipping and ducking the punches that came his way.
His most devastating piece of showboating though came against the hapless Glen Kelly in 2002, when Jones backed up against the ropes, put both hands behind his back, goaded the fighter into swinging at him, punches he avoided with ease. With Kelly off balance, Jones saw his chances, unleashing a brutal right hand hook on to his temple, which sent his unbeaten fellow American face down on to the canvas for the knockout win.
There is nothing more you can do in darts than throw three darts into the triple 20 slot on the board to score a maximum 180.There is no bigger stage in darts than the World Championships, so when Adrian Lewis was playing in a quarter-final and saw his first two darts hit the treble 20, he really should have been fully focused on making sure the third one did too.But back in 2006, he did not even bother to look as the third dart left his fingers and flew perfectly in between his first two darts to give him the maximum. The crowd loved it, the arrogance and confidence of the trick bringing them to their feet in disbelief.
There is plenty of showboating in football, just take a look at a Cristiano Ronaldo's highlights reel and the number of stepovers deployed to bamboozle a defender or Newcastle United's Allan Saint-Maximin literally dancing around a ball before making a pass to a team-mate but nothing, absolutely nothing is more mocking or dismissive of an opposition team than stopping the ball on the line of an open goal and heading it in.
The most memorable display came from the German striker Karl Heinz Rummenigge in a European Cup game against Club Brugge in 1981, when he dribbled towards the empty net, stopped, rolled the ball around with his studs before flicking it into the air and nodding it over the line with his head.
To put this into context, when the striker Herman Kore did something similar in a French cup game a few years ago, it caused a mass brawl on the pitch as the opposition team were so enraged by his behaviour.
The Daily Telegraph