There has been a veritable feast for the sports enthusiast over the past month or so with three of the most iconic sporting events on at the same time - the World Cup, Wimbledon, and the Tour. But what one sporting event do you think is the greatest???

I've made a list of what I consider to be the greatest sporting events to choose from in the poll. I considered factors like international participation, viewership, how much of a spectacle they are, and how much hype/coverage/interest they receive. You'll notice a few things:

First, I have not included the Olympic Games (or similar). I think it would be difficult to argue against the fact that the Olympics is the ultimate sporting event but my poll concerns events involving a single sport. Although that is an interesting point - is there a greater event than the Olympics? Discuss ;) .

Second, I have only included one sporting event per sport even though there may be more than one that would qualify. For example, other golf/tennis grand slams, the Ashes (cricket), Champions League grand final, etc. But I think what I have chosen represents the most iconic event in that sport.

Third, I only included international events and not events that involve only one country. I was specifically thinking of the Superbowl, which would certainly qualify in terms of the spectacle and the viewership, but I think since it only involves Americans and also that the sport is really only played by Americans (seriously) it probably doesn't qualify.

There were some sports I wanted to include but couldn't pinpoint a single event - e.g., Formula 1 grand prix, horse-racing, etc. I thought probably these would be roughies to be the greatest anyway.

Anyway, vote in the poll and explain your vote in the thread! And please tell me if I've made any egregious omissions ;)

Well, the football WC broke all records regarding numbers of people viewing on TV, regarding broadcastings on a global scale, and regarding fans attending at the tournament itself. No other sportingevent gets so much attention worldwide, not even the Olympics. These are facts btw, not my personal opinion.

The Olympic games are the biggest sham on the face of sports!!! With a past history of drugging, doping, other chemicals, sex change operations, no 'sport' has been shamed so much. And besides why would I want to watch someone running around in their under ware?

Depends on who's running, Arvon.. [img]graemlins/hehe.gif[/img]

My vote is for the Americas Cup. It's the only event that involves one player that can't be outmatched and outplayed easily... mother nature!

Rant #2 This is about as exciting as watching paint dry. They have to get some scoring! What's exciting about watching a bunch of people run up and down a grass field for two hours and have a score of 1-0. Increase the scoring, get rid of the goal keeper.

Rant #2 This is about as exciting as watching paint dry. They have to get some scoring! What's exciting about watching a bunch of people run up and down a grass field for two hours and have a score of 1-0. Increase the scoring, get rid of the goal keeper. </font>[/QUOTE]And this response is exactly why i don't discuss this game with Americans. I get more intelligent replies from the booger up my left nostril than from you lot, so don't even go there.

Rant #2 This is about as exciting as watching paint dry. They have to get some scoring! What's exciting about watching a bunch of people run up and down a grass field for two hours and have a score of 1-0. Increase the scoring, get rid of the goal keeper. </font>[/QUOTE]Millions, if not billions, of people would disagree with you ;) . I think this is a common complaint from people who don't watch football. However, I think if you are suitably invested in who wins, you find that the fact that there aren't many goals isn't actually all that crucial for how exciting it is. Seeing someone kick a ball into the net is only a small part of the game, and seeing a team successfully defend their goal from strenuous attack can be just as thrilling (except if they're Italy [img]graemlins/idontagreeatall.gif[/img] ;) ). Plus the anticipation of a goal can be the most gripping part. Of course there are boring games, but I think some of the most boring are the high scoring ones where one team anihilates another 15-0 or something.

How often someone scores points isn't necessarily what makes a sporting match interesting anyway. Look at basketball - teams get a basket every minute or so and I personally find basketball one of the most boring sports to watch. Or tennis - you're guaranteed someone will score every point - it's how they do it that's exciting, not that the scoreboard changes.

Rant #2 This is about as exciting as watching paint dry. They have to get some scoring! What's exciting about watching a bunch of people run up and down a grass field for two hours and have a score of 1-0. Increase the scoring, get rid of the goal keeper. </font>[/QUOTE]And this response is exactly why i don't discuss this game with Americans. I get more intelligent replies from the booger up my left nostril than from you lot, so don't even go there. </font>[/QUOTE]Exactly. scoring schmoring, what has this got to do with excitement? Cricket has highest scores probably can reach 300+ and is as exciting as watching grass grow... with your eyes closed.

On a side notice johnny, ironically the world cup in USA had the highest attendance. go figure.

I feel discriminated against. :(

I was going to vote, but couldn't find the button for the Stanley Cup Finals.

No forms or freestyle martial arts comps either, although I don't think there's a single event that would really stand out.