10. Lakers’ Kobe Bryant admits adultery, is charged with rape and gets the most fan votes for the all-star game. Go figure.


9. Oakland Raiders win the AFC Championship, beating the Tennessee Titans 41-24, and the Raider Nation tears up the Bay Area.


8. Raiders lose to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Super Bowl XXXVII, and the Raider Nation tears up San Diego.


7. Anaheim Mighty Ducks captain Paul Kariya takes a vicious hit by New Jersey Devils captain Scott Stevens and has to be carried off the ice by teammates. But Kariya returns dramatically to score the Ducks’ fourth goal to help win Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals. Devils go on to win Game 7, and Kariya moves on to the Colorado Avalanche.


6. Boston Red Sox players Johnny Damon and Damian Jackson have a gnarly head-on collision as they chase a fly ball in shallow center. Damen is rushed away by ambulance, but the Chowds beat the A’s to advance to the American League Championship.


5. The Yankees send the Red Sox home as Aaron Boone homers climactically in the 11th. Has Ben Affleck and the rest of the Chowds wondering if they will ever get over the “curse of the Bambino.”


4. Chicago Cub Sammy Sosa gets caught with a corked bat, tarnishing home-run records, but doesn’t stop his double-finger kissing and chest-thumping.


3. Cubs beat the Atlanta Braves to advance to the National League Championship. Ivy, Budweiser and Waveland Avenue, baseball at its best.


2. Cub fan Steve Bartman interferes with a ball five outs away from the World Series, and the “billy goat” curse continues. Bartman goes into hiding, and Chicago reverts to the “lovable losers.”


1. Cyclist Lance Armstrong, overcoming cancer (12 tumors) and the Pyrenees, wins his fifth consecutive Tour de France, becoming only the second man in the 100-year history of the race to do so. This dude has sac.

Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.