(Reuters) – ON THIS DAY — MAY 28
May 28, 1999
FORMULA ONE – Ferrari driver Eddie Irvine cools off during the free practice session of the Spanish Grand Prix at Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya.
The Briton qualified second but dropped down the grid in the race, finishing in fourth place, over 30 seconds behind winner Mika Hakkinen.
Irvine enjoyed the most successful season of his career that year, winning four races, but he ended second in the drivers’ championship, two points behind Hakkinen, who took home his second consecutive title.
May 28, 2000
ICE HOCKEY – A woman wipes a tear as she visits a statue of Montreal Canadiens’ great Maurice Richard in Montreal, a day after he succumbed to abdominal cancer aged 78.
Nicknamed ‘Rocket’, Richard spent 18 seasons with the National Hockey League (NHL) side with whom he won the Stanley Cup eight times between 1943 and 1960.
Richard was the first player to reach 500 career goals and was also the first in NHL history to score 50 goals in a season, achieving the feat in 50 games during the 1944-45 season.
May 28, 2000
CYCLING – Cyclists speed past Zojoji temple in Tokyo during the final stage of the six-stage Tour of Japan.
Switzerland’s Mauro Gianetti won the individual time classification title while Austria’s Rene Haselbacher topped the individual points standings.
The Tour of Japan, which emerged as the successor of the Kokusai Cycle Road Race, was first held in 1996.
May 28, 2003
SOCCER – Juventus skipper Alessandro Del Piero attempts an overhead kick during the Champions League final against AC Milan at Old Trafford.
The all-Italian final ended 0-0 after extra time before Milan won 3-2 in the controversial penalty shootout where their goalkeeper Dida was seen coming off his line before Juve’s players took their shots.
Juventus, who have been crowned champions twice, are also the unluckiest team in Europe’s elite club competition — finishing runners-up a record seven times.
May 28, 2004
GOLF – South Africa’s Ernie Els plays a bunker shot on the 13th hole during the second round of the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, England.
Els, who owns a house adjoining the 16th fairway of the West Course at Wentworth, carded an impressive eight-under-par 64 in the opening round to take the lead but struggled for consistency over the weekend.
He had to settle for a fifth-place finish with a score of 15-under overall, four shots behind tournament winner Scott Drummond of Scotland.
May 28, 2005
BOXING – Mexican boxing great Julio Cesar Chavez delivers a strong right hand to United States’ Ivan Robinson en route to a unanimous decision victory in what was billed as Chavez’s farewell fight in Los Angeles.
Chavez, then 42, outpointed his younger opponent to pick up the win and improve his record to 107 wins, five losses and two draws.
Chavez, who was considered one of the best pound-for-pound fighters during his prime and held championships in three different weight classes, retired later that year after a loss to American boxer Grover Wiley.
May 28, 2005
EQUESTRIAN – Spain’s Cristino Torres, riding Danseur de Caverie, clears an obstacle during the International Horse Show jumping event in Madrid.
Torres was part of the Spanish team that competed in the World Equestrian Games in 2002. He won several national and international competitions and passed away in 2018 after a long battle with illness.
May 28, 2009
TENNIS – Jo-Wilfried Tsonga celebrates after his 7-5 2-6 6-1 7-6(8) win over Argentine Juan Monaco in the second round of the French Open in Paris.
Tsonga defeated Belgium’s Christophe Rochus in the next round in straight sets but was knocked out in the fourth round, losing in four sets to Argentine Juan Martin del Potro.
The Frenchman, a finalist at the Australian Open in 2008, made it to the semi-finals of his home Grand Slam on two occasions – 2013 and 2015.
May 28, 2011
SOCCER – Barcelona forward Lionel Messi celebrates after scoring against Manchester United in their 3-1 victory in the Champions League final at Wembley Stadium.
Goals by Pedro, Messi and David Villa did not fully reflect the Spanish side’s dominance over United, who they also beat in the 2009 final.
Messi was the Champions League’s top scorer for the third straight season with 12 goals as Barca lifted their third European Cup in six years.
May 28, 2016
SOCCER – Real Madrid players give coach Zinedine Zidane the bumps as they celebrate winning the Champions League at San Siro stadium in Milan.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored the winning penalty as Real defeated local rivals Atletico Madrid 5-3 in a shootout after a 1-1 draw at the end of extra time.
Zidane, who scored the winner for Real in the 2002 final, became the seventh man to win the European Cup as both player and manager, joining Miguel Munoz, Giovanni Trapattoni, Johan Cruyff, Carlo Ancelotti, Frank Rijkaard and Pep Guardiola.
(Compiled by Arvind Sriram, Rohith Nair, Manasi Pathak and Hardik Vyas in Bengaluru; Editing by Ken Ferris)
