ITV Sport is to a look back at a selection of its sporting highlights from 2013 in a special review programme this Christmas.
Narrated by Ned Boulting, ‘ITV’s Year of Sport’ will encapsulate all the top sporting moments brought to ITV viewers throughout the last 12 months, featuring many of the biggest and most watched events in international and domestic sport.
Some of the many highlights screened by the channel this year include Chelsea’s UEFA Europa League win, England’s qualification for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, Chris Froome’s Tour de France victory, French Open tennis at Roland Garros, and the Indian Premier League, the world’s most lucrative Twenty20 cricket competition.
The one-hour programme will premiere on Wednesday, December 18, at 9.00pm. It will be repeated at various throughout ITV4’s Christmas and New Year schedules, as well as be available to watch online via ITV Player.
Currently the UK’s free-to-air home of televised football, ITV has broadcast hundreds of hours of action throughout 2013 across ITV and ITV4, featuring a variety of different sports including cycling, cricket, tennis, rugby union, snooker, darts and motorsport.
The 2013 review show will reflect on the achievements, triumphs, as well as despair, over the past year in European and international football.
ITV cameras followed England’s qualification progress to the 2014 FIFA World Cup every step of the way during 2013.
Roy Hodgson’s side secured their place at next summer’s tournament in two highly tense qualifiers at Wembley against Montenegro and Poland respectively.
Wayne Rooney and Steven Gerrard scored the goals that sent England marching to Brazil after a breathless and at times nerve-jangling confrontation against the Poles.
With the FA celebrating its 150th anniversary in 2013, ITV also was able to bring fans a host of marquee friendly internationals, including fixtures against Brazil, Germany, Scotland and the Republic of Ireland.
At club level, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund went head-to-head in an all German UEFA Champions League final at Wembley, with Bayern’s Arjen Robben scoring the winner that would secure his team their first European honours for 12 years.
Despite becoming the first defending European champions to be knocked out of the group stage the following season, Chelsea, led by interim manager Rafael Benitez, bounced back to claim the Europa League title in dramatic fashion at the Amsterdam Arena against Benfica.
Other unforgettable football moments shown on ITV in 2013 include Wigan Athletic’s sensational last-gasp victory in the FA Cup final, plus Nigeria winning their third Africa Cup of Nations tournament at the beginning of the year in South Africa.
Away from football, ITV Sport has covered a wide variety of top national and international events throughout 2013.
ITV4 viewers were able to follow Britain’s Chris Froome on his journey to glory in the 100th edition of the Tour de France glory in July.
In claiming cycling’s greatest accolade by more than four minutes, he memorably linked arms with his Team Sky team-mates as he crossed the line under the dazzling floodlights Paris.
It was Britain’s second successive victory in the race following Froome’s Team Sky colleague Sir Bradley Wiggins becoming the first Briton to win it in 2012.
When Froome crossed the finish line in Paris, he ticked off the final kilometre of a remarkable journey from the mountains of Kenya to Tour de France glory on the Champs-Elysees.
Staying in France, ITV Sport paid its second visit to the clay tennis courts of Roland Garros earlier in the summer, where the supreme Rafael Nadal claimed his unprecedented eighth French Open title, while Serena Williams became the queen of clay for a second time.
With the absence of Andy Murray due to injury, the British challenge in Paris ended swiftly following first round defeats for Laura Robson and Heather Watson.
ITV4’s spring schedules were dominated by Indian Premier League T20 cricket, where Ricky Ponting led Mumbai Indians to their first tournament win against Chennai Super Kings in a close final by 23 runs.
But the 2013 tournament will be best remembered for Chris Gayle’s astonishing knock of 175 runs from just 65 balls for Mumbai Indians against Pune Warriors.
Having reached his century in 30 balls, Gayle set records for the fastest century reached in any format of cricket, the highest individual score in a T20 match, and the most sixes scored in a single innings in the IPL.
In English rugby union, Leicester won a tempestuous Aviva Premiership final to secure their 10th domestic title against a Northampton side who had captain Dylan Hartley sent off for using foul language against referee Wayne Barnes.
Elsewhere, ITV brought motor racing fans a wide-ranging mix of action throughout 2013, headlined by Andrew Jordan’s dramatic British Touring Car Championship title win in murky drizzle and fading light at Brands Hatch in October.
The World Rally Championship made its return to ITV4 this year with Sebastien Ogier winning his maiden title, marking a new era for the sport following the retirement this year of nine-time world champion Sebastien Loeb.
On two wheels, Alex Lowes pipped Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne’ in their British Superbike Championship showdown tussle at Brands Hatch, while the 2013 Isle of Man TT again thrilled motorcycling fans with plenty of spectacular action on the famous mountain course in June.
Big-time snooker also made its return to ITV this year with ITV4 screening in Haikou World Open in the spring, won by Northern Irishman Mark Allen, and the new Champion of Champions event in November, claimed by reigning five-time world champion Ronnie ‘The Rocket’ O’Sullivan in Coventry.
All these moments and much more will be reflected on during ‘ITV’s Year of Sport’, first showing on Wednesday, December 18, at 10pm on ITV4 and ITV4 HD.
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