As the first decade of the new millennium comes to a close it is tempting to focus on sporting highlights over the last 10 years.
But I won't.
Instead I'll present the most surprising sporting moments for 2010.
Top of the list was the fact that the All Whites were the only team to be unbeaten at the Fifa World Cup.
They're also the only team nominated in the Halberg sports team of the year category who haven't actually won a game recently.
But their gutsy performance in South Africa deserves to be acknowledged.
Everyone thought that they were lucky coming away from the game against Slovakia in the 93rd minute with a point, but their tenacious battle against Italy which ended in a well-deserved draw will go down in history as one of the biggest upsets of the decade.
In a country where rugby union and league names dominate the headlines, soccer stars in the All Whites had their moment in the sun.
Names like Winston Reid, Ricki Herbert, Shane Smeltz, and Ryan Nelsen will be remembered by proud Kiwis for a few years yet.
Another name which has become synonymous with the sport she plays is that of 45-year-old legend Anna Richards.
Not many people in the know were surprised that the Black Ferns won their fourth Rugby World Cup title, but what was surprising was that Richards sneaked into the team via the back door, due to an injury to Amiria Rule and then went on to play a major role as starting first five in the final.
What blew me away even more was that the team's efforts were finally recognised at the annual rugby awards ahead of other great teams like the All Blacks and the New Zealand Sevens team.
Some have suggested that this was a political move by the NZRU leading up to the RWC 2011 and Olympics.
It probably was, but it is still great to see that after years of consistent performances, the team were publicly recognised.
Someone who is yet to prove he can perform at a consistently high standard is Sonny Bill Williams, and his quick ascent into a black jersey shocked some, pleased a few, and excited many.
Here is a man who proves that pure athleticism can overshadow years of learning the ropes in a sport.
As a result, I feel a little for Ma'a Nonu, but it is difficult to warm to him at the best of times. Let the two egos battle it out for their place in the World Cup squad.
Maybe an even bigger surprise would be seeing Nonu and Williams match up in the boxing ring.
Winner walks away with a World Cup black jersey.
Now I'd pay to see that.
Other athletes to perform well in black were the Kiwis, who for the second time in two years beat Australia against all odds to win a major title.
Watching the underdog rise to the challenge is always something I've enjoyed in sport, and seeing Nikki Hamblin's gutsy and unexpected silver medal performances in the 1500m and 800m events at the Delhi Games was inspirational.
There are many other outstanding and out-of-the-blue performances by athletes and teams this year - too many to mention in such a short article.
All this talk of great sporting moments has motivated me to don my running shoes and work off some of the excess Christmas wrapping I've acquired around my hips.
Now if I can keep that routine up for 2011, I'll be very surprised.
