2020 in review - the sports year in pictures

The coronavirus pandemic played havoc with the sporting calendar in 2020, with the Tokyo Olympics arguably being the biggest victim. The biggest sporting extravaganza in the world was postponed by a year and will now be held in Japan in July-August 2021.

Many other sporing events fell victim to the COVID-19 outbreak, with tennis' Wimbledon, golf's British Open and football's European Championships all halted. The Open and Wimbledon were cancelled outright, and the Euros will now take place in the summer of 2021.

Football across Europe ground to a half for months - the league seasons in France and Scotland were never completed. Thankfully, the other major leagues, including the Bundesliga in Germany, Spain's La Liga, Italy's Serie A and England's Premier League were all belatedly completed. The big winners were Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool as they secured a first-ever Premier League title.

Clubs across Europe came up with innovative ideas to create an atmosphere when the action resumed, with piped-in crowd noise and cardboard cut-out fans to make up for the lack of supporters as matches were played behind closed doors.

The NBA was rocked by the sad news of LA Lakers legend Kobe Bryant's death in January. The All-Star was killed along with his daughter and seven others in a helicopter crash on January 26.

Football had to come to terms with the passing of Diego Maradona. The Argentine star of Mexico 86 passed away in November after a cardiac arrest.

Cricket took unprecedented steps to ensure international matches took place, with England setting up 'bio-bubble' environments for their series against West Indies and Pakistan.

The Indian Premier League was a big success story, as it was moved from India to the UAE and belatedly played over a two-month period in the autumn. Mumbai Indians defeated Delhi Capitals in the final to claim the crown.

Lewis Hamilton was among the sports stars to make outspoken statements and make a strong stand against racism.

The Black Lives Matter movement grew throughout the year, with many teams across the broad spectrum of sports taking a knee to show their support for ending racism.

Rafael Nadal did what he does best by claiming an incredible 13th French Open title at Roland Garros in Paris. He thumped Novak Djokovic in the final for his 20th Grand Slam title.

Lewis Hamilton capped a fine year with his seventh Formula One Drivers' Championship title. The Mercedes man shattered records to cement his place as one of the greatest drivers of all time.

And Liverpool created their little piece of history by romping to the 2019-20 Premier League title.

Bayern Munich went one better with a treble-winning campaign. They won the Bundesliga title, the German Cup and Champions League - defeating Paris St-Germain in the final in Portugal, after thumping Barcelona 8-2 in the semis.

LeBron James and the LA Lakers won the NBA Championship in Orlando, defeating Miami Heat in the best-of-seven final showdown, for their first crown in 10 years and their 17th overall.

Lee Westwood won golf's Race to Dubai title, thanks to his triumph in Abu Dhabi and second-place finish at the European Tour's season-ending DP World Tour Championship.