In the world of sport, regardless of the specific sport in question, there is a sense that everything is fair for everyone competing. Whilst it might be an open secret that that isn’t really the case in some sports, in the majority of cases, in the eyes of the public at least, no one should have an unfair example.
Sometimes, of course, sports stars do something that doesn’t give them an unfair advantage, such as performance enhancing drugs, but still sees them banned from the sport that made them famous. They don’t always recover from it, but sometimes they do and manage to get back to the top of their game afterwards.
Michael Vick
To many, there are few things as reprehensible as doing harm to animals. Michael Vick was a quarterback in the National Football League when, in 2007, he was indicted for running a dog-fighting ring. He was suspended from the NFL and eventually got given a prison sentence.
Having served 21 months and also losing his major sponsors like Nike, Vick went back to the NFL after being signed by the Philadelphia Eagles, playing for the side for five years. Whilst that obviously doesn’t reflect well on the side that signed him, the fact that he won Comeback Player of the Year and also played for the New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers before retiring doesn’t look good for the sport as a whole.
Top-10 dual threat quarterbacks in #NFL history:
1) Mike Vick
2) Josh Allen
3) Steve Young
4) Cam Newton
5) Lamar Jackson
6) Randall Cunningham
7) Fran Tarkenton
8) Russell Wilson
9) Donovan McNabb
10) Kordell Stewart pic.twitter.com/IXvr5cUbpe— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) July 11, 2024
Muhammad Ali
If you want an example of a sports star being given a ban that reflects significantly worse on the organisation that banned him than on the person themselves then you need look no further than Muhammad Ali. Having been conscripted for service in the Vietnam War, Ali refused on religious grounds, describing himself as a conscientious objector.
Arrested for refusing to serve, he had his licence suspended by the New York State Athletic Commission and the World Boxing Association stripped him of his title, with others following suit. He did not fight between 1967 and 1970, but when he returned he once again became the heavyweight champion of the world.
Justin Gatlin
The remarkable thing about Justin Gatlin isn’t that he was banned from his sport yet made a comeback, it’s that he did so twice. In 2001, Gatlin won both the NCAA outdoor titles in both the 100 metres and 200 metres. Not long after, he was given a two year ban after testing positive for amphetamines.
On appeal it was reduced to one year internationally, but he was still allowed to run in NCAA events. After turning professional he became Olympic champion and world champion, then in 2006 was given another doping ban. After making his comeback, he once again enjoyed success in the Olympics and on the world stage.
@trackbuzz Justin Gatlin was the villain of sprinting world Follow me for more track content ✅ #trackandfield #justingatlin #usainbolt #sprinting #villain #fyp ♬ původní zvuk – TrackBuzz
Ian Botham
You might not think of cricket as being a sport filled with moments of controversy, but Ian Botham certainly put that theory to the test. A first-class cricketer for Somerset and England, in 1980 he completed the ‘Test Double’ of scoring 100 runs and taking ten wickets in the same match.
In 1986, having been accused by the tabloids of shooting up heroin and having a ‘coke-fuelled shagathon’ with Miss Barbados, he was given a three-month ban from cricket after he confessed to having smoked weed. After making himself comeback he was back playing cricket for Worcestershire and England, going on to play for Durham before his retirement.
Why did they say that for Ian Botham?
In 1986, Ian Botham admitted to smoking marijuana. The news caused much furore in the English media with some sections calling for a lifetime ban on the all-rounder. The Cricket Board of that time suspended him for 63 days. Botham then… https://t.co/Mi9K1yBWFH pic.twitter.com/RjoBA7rGVi
— Omkar Mankame (@Oam_16) March 8, 2024
Shane Warne
Botham wasn’t the only cricketer who faced a ban over the years. Down Under, Australian bowler Shane Warne was given a ban after testing positive for a banned diuretic. Although he was allowed to play in charity matches, he was banned from organised cricket for a year after establishing himself as one of the best bowlers in the world.
He returned to competitive cricket in the February of 2004, returning to the top of his game and eventually going on to become the first person to take 700 Test wickets after bowling Andrew Strauss during the Ashes series played at the Sydney Cricket Ground in the December of 2006.
Luis Suárez
There are numerous football players that have been given bans in the past, though perhaps none as egregious as Luis Suárez. Whilst playing for Ajax, Suárez inexplicably decided to bite an opponent, leading to a Dutch newspaper referring to him as the ‘Cannibal of Ajax‘ and the forward given a suspension.
After moving to Liverpool, Suárez faced a ban after being accused of racially abusing a Manchester United player, then got given a 10-game ban for biting a Chelsea defender. In spite of being banned twice for the same offence, he agreed a move to Barcelona but was unable to play after biting someone else. He still won countless silverware during his career.
@classicfootballshirts_ Suarez biting an opponent for the third time… 🇮🇹 🇺🇾 #fyp #foryou #classic #worldcup ♬ original sound – Classic Football Shirts
Eric Cantona
Is there a more infamous image in football than that of Eric Cantona jumping into the crowd in order to deliver a ‘kung-fu’ kick to one of Crystal Palace’s supporters? The kick was accompanied by some punches and saw the Frenchman given an eight-month ban from football and almost end up in prison.
That was in the January of 1995, but when Cantona returned to football in the October he was soon back to winning silverware with Manchester United. Although it took him a while to re-find his groove, he won the FA Cup in the 1995-1996 season and the Premier League in the following campaign to return to the top.
Eric Cantona discusses the famous Kung Fu Kick, breaking it down in a way that Gary, Alan, and the others can easily understand. pic.twitter.com/oajn5yZHBD
— Stretford Post (@StretfordPost) July 5, 2024
Women’s Football
There are some feel-good stories about comebacks after a ban. During football’s more formative years, the women’s version of the sport was just as popular as the men’s. In fact, there was one match that saw 53,000 people turn up to watch, making it more popular than some men’s teams.
In spite of this, the Football Association made a decision in the December of 1921 to effectively ban women from playing football, outlawing it taking place on pitches owned by the FA. The ban remained in place until 1970. Nowadays, of course, the women’s game is thriving and the Lionesses won the European Championship in 2022.