Shark Week: Honouring the sharks of sport

Greg "The Shark" Norman. (Chris Carlson/AP)

If you didn’t know, this week is “Shark Week” — an educational and entertaining television event and cultural celebration dedicated to our feared underlords.

In honour of the Discovery Channel’s popular week-long series — the longest-running cable TV event in history — we decided to take a look at the sharks in the world of sports.

San Jose Sharks

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Photo: Paul Sakuma/AP

Born in 1991, the San Jose Sharks brought the shadowy beast to the mainstream of North American sports.

Although “Blades” was the preferred team name at the time of expansion as voted by fans, we thank the George and Gordon Gund, San Jose’s first owners, for settling with the runner-up.

“Sharks are relentless, determined, swift, agile, bright and fearless. We plan to build an organization that has all those qualities,” Sharks marketing head Matt Levine said at the time.

While that wasn’t always the case, especially for the record-setting 71-loss team of 1992-93, the current incarnation certainly possess those qualities. Unlike their namesake, however, these Sharks seem to lack a killer instinct.

Greg Norman

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Photo: Chris Carlson/AP

When you think of sharks in sport, the first athlete who comes to mind is Greg Norman.

After bursting onto the PGA Tour scene in the early ’80s, “The Shark” earned a reputation for being an aggressive and daring player with a wicked drive. He parlayed that into two Open Championship titles (1986, 1993), 18 PGA Tour victories and a multi-national golf company.

Joey “Jaws” Chestnut

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Photo: Stephen Chernin/AP

Joey “Jaws” Chestnut might not be an athlete in the traditional sense, but the hot-dog-stuffing American has become a household name in the realm of competitive eating (hey, they have a league).

“Jaws” is an eight-time Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest champion and set a world record in 2013 after devouring 69 hot dogs, including the buns, in 10 minutes.

Jaws Beach, Hawaii

Jaws is not just a surf break, it’s widely considered to be one of the most dangerous and violent destinations for big wave enthusiasts across the globe.

Located in Peahi, Hawaii, Jaws plays host to various competitions involving the best big wave surfers in the world.

Mark “The Shark” Spitz

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Photo: File/AP

It’s only fitting that the most accomplished “Shark” left his mark in the water.

Mark “The Shark” Spitz held the honour of being the most decorated athlete in Olympic history after winning seven gold medals at Munich 1972, a record surpassed by fellow American swimmer Michael Phelps in 2008.

The two-time Olympian is one of five athletes in the history of the Games to win at least nine gold medals.

Jeff “The Shark” Samardzija

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Photo: Ben Margot/AP

Oakland Athletics pitcher Jeff Samardzija is the most popular “Shark” going at the moment.

The big right-hander was the main piece in a blockbuster deal that sent him from the Cubs to Oakland, fortifying an A’s rotation widely considered to be one of if not the best in baseball.

So how did he get his nickname? According to the man himself, he was given the nickname while pitching at Notre Dame — where he also starred as a star receiver on the football team — because a teammate said he looked like the shark from Finding Nemo. The more you know.

Thresher: Skate and Destroy

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Photo: Bret Hartman/AP

Threshers are a type of shark and Thrasher is a skateboard magazine … yeah it’s a bit of a stretch.

If that’s not enough of a connection, here’s some clips of Tony Hawk jumping the shark.

The Hammerheads

hammerheads

Photo: Don Ryan/AP

While the San Jose Sharks are the most popular team that pays homage to the aquatic apex predators, there are a number of minor-league teams who have adopted the goofiest shark as their moniker.

They include Wilmington Hammerheads FC, a USL Pro soccer squad, and the Jupiter Hammerheads, a single-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins.

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