Having followed the Ivorians and their orange-clad fans across Germany for BBC Sport, I remember thinking, upon their exit, how vital it was that arguably Africa's best side at the finals returned in 2010.

BBC: A new and improved Ivory Coast?

No one was thinking of the sport as a whole, only of his place in the pecking order.

NEWYORKER: Booted

Alvarado fight, " he said, "and I was thinking, man this is a scary sport.

WSJ: Radio City Fight Night

We forget that it wasn't so long ago (in 2003 Williams held all four of the sport's biggest titles) that we were thinking 'who is going to come along and beat him?

BBC: John Parrott on O'Sullivan's 147

For a man whose professional life is now spent largely thinking about horse racing, Peterson came to the sport late, going to the track for the first time 14 years ago.

FORBES: Making Racing Safer For Horses, Starting With The Surface

"Even before the World Cup I was thinking we had not been progressing, " Okocha told BBC Sport.

BBC: Youngsters lure Okocha back