Features

Eye-catching sporting names

Author: John Harris
Date: 15/03/2010
Football betting

Arsenal came up against the hilariously named Hulk in their Champions League last 16 clash with FC Porto in midweek.

Givanildo Vieira de Souza was given the catchy nickname due to his resemblance to the comic book hero playing actor Lou Ferrigno while growing up in Brazil.

But Hulk isn't alone when it comes to sports stars with unique names as this who's who certainly proves.

Coco Crisp

He may sound like a character from a travelling road show but Coco Crisp is actually a centre fielder for the Oakland Athletics Major League Baseball side.

His name hails from a fusion of Puerto Rican and African descent and he won the World Series while with the Boston Red Sox in 2007.

World B Free

Lloyd Bernard Free was an NBA star in the 1970s and 80s who changed his first name mid-career.

The Atlanta-born point guard is still involved in the game as director of player development at Philadelphia 76ers.

Scott Speed

Speed live up to his billing when he became the first American Formula One driver in more than a decade.

Unfortunately, the Californian failed to score a single world championship point for Scuderia Toro Rosso in two years on the grid and was axed at the end of the 2007 season.

Who will win this year's Formula One world championship? - Latest Formula One betting

Miroslav Satan

The 35-year-old Slovakian is a current star in the National Hockey League with Boston Bruins.

However, hockey fans are keeping their fingers crossed that he will one day be traded to rival team the New Jersey Devils.

He also has a son called Miroslav Satan Jr so hope lives on.

God Shammgod

God Shammgod's name has raised eyebrows on team-sheets since he rose through the ranks of college basketball in New York.

He spent one season in the spotlight of the NBA with the Washington Wizards in the late 1990s and is now earning a living with International Basketball League side the Portland Chinooks.

Proving that God is everywhere, he has also played in Poland and Saudi Arabia.

Kosuke Fukudome

In his native Japan it's just another name, but the sporting public in Chicago have certainly seen the funny side.

The outfielder and lead-off hitter's jersey is always one of the most popular replica shirts for sale in the Chicago Cubs shop.

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