A fly on Pence’s head? That’s nothing
There have been a few instances where pests stole the spotlight during sports events
When a fly landed on U.S. Vice-President Mike Pence’s head during the vicepresidential debate Wednesday night, the internet had a field day, as did Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden’s campaign, which sold out of “Truth Over Flies” fly swatters Thursday.
But this certainly isn’t the only instance when a flying pest has caused a distraction. In the world of sports, it’s actually somewhat commonplace.
From Manu Ginobili to a swarm of bees to a parrot on the field (!?!), here we take a look at the many, often ridiculous, instances that flying pests stole the spotlight during sports events:
Chicken on the Ice
Part animal interference, part fan ridiculousness, this feathered fowl was thrown onto the ice during a 1988 NHL game between the Los Angeles Kings and Montreal Canadiens.
The man who threw the bird apparently “wasn’t happy with how the Kings were playing,” and was promptly arrested, luckily.
“Bug Game” ALDS 2007
Yankees pitcher Joba Chamberlain will want to forget how this night went. Late in the eighth inning in Game 2 of the 2007 ALDS between the Yankees and Indians, bugs — specifically midge flies — swarmed the pitcher’s head and face.
It’s clear that the pesky pests affected his night — and ultimately the series — as Cleveland won 2-1 in extra innings that night, eventually winning the series 3-1.
Manu swats bat
On Halloween 2009, the San Antonio Spurs’ Argentine superstar Manu Ginobili did the unthinkable and swatted a bat right out of the air and handled it bare-handed. Maybe it wasn’t the best idea as he had to get a rabies shot afterward.
Bats invading the arena have become something of a fixture at AT&T Center, with the Spurs mascot The Coyote donning a Batman costume and chasing down bats with a net.
Beware the bees
Something about bees invading baseball games just feels so redundant now. This double entry shows how the buzzy bugs swarmed the remote-controlled home plate camera during a Angels- Orioles game in 2013.
Then, a year later bees invaded a game between the Red Sox and Yankees. However, the fact that New York’s Mark Teixeira taunted the bees with two full bottles of honey makes this invasion worth the delay the bees caused.
Djokovic’s lucky wings
A 2015 Wimbledon match between Novak Djokovic and Philipp Kohlschreiber saw a tiny sparrow land the best seat in the house to witness the Serbian advance that day. Djokovic joked that the bird “came all the way from Belgrade to help me.” It worked.
Soccer macaw-mania
Ablue-and-yellow macaw landed on the head of Brazilian defender Bruna Benites during a national team practice match in September.
Benites used the opportunity to post on her Instagram about Brazil’s Pantanal wetland, which has been engulfed in wildfire for weeks, and how it’s destroying the animal’s habitat.
“Let’s take care of our biggest heritage which is nature,” Benites wrote.
New York’s “Rally Owl”
A little owl brought its dinner to the match between Inter Miami and the New York Red Bulls, though it didn’t seem to impact the game or cause any delays.
New York, however, adopted it as its “Rally Owl” on Twitter as the Red Bulls won 4-1. They, of course, found the perfect use of the owl moment.