Sporting Witness

In 2001, a group of Tibetan exiles and a Danish ex-footballer teamed up to create the Tibetan national football team, in the face of many obstacles, including threats from China. Robert Nicholson talked to Michael Nybrandt and team captain Sonam Wangyal about their first ever game against Greenland. A Whistledown Production, first broadcast in 2017.

PHOTO: The Tibetan team lining up for their match against Greenland (Getty Images)

In 1961, England’s top players threatened strike action in order to force the Football League to scrap its limit on wages of 20 pounds a week. Their victory was a turning point for the sport as it ushered in the modern era of football mega-salaries. In 2011, Lucy Williamson spoke to the late Jimmy Armfield, a former star defender for Blackpool and England captain.

PHOTO: The late Jimmy Armfield in the early 1960s (Getty Images)

In November 2009, Zenyatta became the first – and only – mare to win the Breeders Cup Classic, one of the most prestigious horse races in America. Undefeated in all but one of her races, Zenyatta became wildly popular with the public; she was as well-known for her dance moves in the paddock as she was for coming from behind to snatch victory at the last moment. Zenyatta’s jockey, Mike Smith, talks to Jonathan Holloway. The programme is a Made-In-Manchester Production.

PHOTO: Zenyatta and Mike Smith in action in 2010 (Getty Images)

In December 1999, the American Tori Murden McClure became the first woman to row across the Atlantic Ocean single-handed. It was the culmination of a dream that had brought her close to death many times as she capsized again and again during a hurricane on a previous attempt. She was inspired to keep trying by working with the great boxer Muhammad Ali. Tori Murden McClure talks to Claire Bowes.

Photo: Tori Murden McClure in the 'American Pearl' 1999 (courtesy of Sector Sport Watches and Tori Murden McClure)

In 2011, the Lebanese national football team reached the final phase of World Cup qualification for the first time, sparking wild celebrations among the fans. But within months, the game in Lebanon was engulfed in a huge match-fixing scandal focusing on a suspicious-looking goal in a match against Qatar, as well as domestic fixtures. In 2013, 24 Lebanese players were found guilty in an investigation ordered by FIFA and the national side’s World Cup campaign fizzled out. Alex Eccleston reports. The programme is a Whistledown Production.

PHOTO: The Lebanese team ahead of a World Cup qualifier in 2012 (Getty Images)

At the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, South African-born Zola Budd collided with the home favourite, Mary Decker, in the final of the women’s 3,000 metres. Decker was left weeping on the ground, while Budd was booed by the crowd and had to leave the US with a police escort after receiving death threats. Simon Watts introduces the memories of Zola Budd as recorded in the BBC archives.

PHOTO: Zola Budd, left, with Mary Decker in the 1984 Olympic final (Getty Images)

In the 1980s, a Hawaiian-born wrestler took the traditional world of Japanese sumo by storm. Known as the Dumptruck because of his huge size, he won legions of fans and paved the way for the internationalisation of the sport. The Dumptruck shares his love of Sumo - and Hawaiian hula music - with Will Yates. The programme is a Whistledown Production, first broadcast in 2014.

Photo: The Dumptruck in his prime. (Credit: Getty Images).

In 1988, the American athlete, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, put in one of the greatest performances in the history of women’s athletics at the Seoul Olympics. She set a world record that still stands in the Heptathlon and won a second gold medal in the individual High Jump event. Jackie Joyner Kersee talks to Ashley Byrne.

PHOTO: Jackie Joyner-Kersee at the 1988 Olympics (Getty Images)

In 2006, Scott Jurek, one of the world's best ultramarathon runners, travelled to the remote canyons of Northern Mexico to race the best athletes from an ancient Mexican tribe. The Tarahumara have a tradition of running huge distances and they gave Jurek one of his toughest races, inspiring the best-selling book, Born To Run. Scott Jurek talked to Simon Watts in 2014.

(Photo: Scott Jurek with Tarahumara runner, Arnulfo Quimare. Credit: Luis Escobar)

In the year 2000, the Japanese track cycling sport of Keirin made its Olympic debut at the Sydney Games. Wildly popular in Japan, Keirin races begin with the cyclists following a motorized pacer, who gradually cranks up the speed until the riders are released into a final frenetic sprint. Ashley Byrne talks to former Japanese cyclist, Shinichi Ota, about trying to win the first gold medal in the sport his country invented. The programme is a Made-In-Manchester Production.

PHOTO: A Keirin race at the 2016 Olympics (Getty Images)