30 most iconic sports photos from Getty Images this week

The sports world makes for a beautiful palette but individual images can get lost in the constant shuffle. Here are the most iconic sports photos from Getty Images this week.

Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors celebrates after making a 3-point basket to break Ray Allen’s record for the most all-time against the New York Knicks during their game at Madison Square Garden on December 14, 2021, in New York City.

Before this game, Steph Curry had to make two 3-pointers to break Ray Allen’s record. I was luckily placed on the end of the court where the Golden State Warriors were attacking first. This gave me a chance to photograph the shot attempt and his post-shot reaction coming at me. As soon as the game started, I stayed on Curry. Nothing else mattered. He tied the record a minute into the game. I missed the shot as I was blocked by a player in front of me. I was not deterred as I knew the next 3-point shot he made was the one that mattered most. I continued to stay on him and in the third minute of the game, he took another shot. I was on him until my field of view went black.

The referee had stepped right in front of me, along with four players on the court blocking my view in the paint, and the immediate defender was in Curry’s face with the defender’s back facing me and blocking me. This was the worst-case scenario. I was totally blocked in many ways and of course, missed the shot and lost sight of Curry. I leaned to my left from where I was sitting, and my field of view opened as he was watching the shot in the air with the defender also in the frame. The crowd roared and I knew it went in. Curry celebrated a lot by pounding his chest and screaming. I saw this moment in snippets through my lens as there were what seemed like a million players, coaches, security, and referees storming the court all at once.

When I would see Curry, I shot and continued to do so until he was mobbed by his team. I had no idea if I had anything until I loaded the card into my computer. I did manage to get a few frames of the reaction before the shot went in and afterward including this frame. It was a historic NBA moment that I was very grateful to have been there to witness and capture for the world.

— Al Bello

Annika Morgan of Team Germany goes over a jump during a practice run before the start of the women’s snowboard slopestyle final on Day 4 of the Dew Tour at Copper Mountain on December 18, 2021, in Copper Mountain, Colorado.

It is always tough waking up when it’s still dark out and heading out to the mountain before you know if there is going to be any nice light on the course yet. But then you realize it’s worth it when you get to the slopestyle course and there is a touch of early morning sun lighting up the fog sitting in the valley as Annika Morgan of Germany takes a practice run before the start of the women’s finals at the Dew Tour in Colorado. The fog burned off about 10-15 minutes after I got to this spot. I was able to capture a few different women going over this jump, but some were too high or too low, and others didn’t have the right form – this one of Morgan worked out just right.

— Ezra Shaw

Marc Andre ter Stegen, keeper of FC Barcelona reacts as Leroy Sané of Muenchen scores the second goal during the UEFA Champions League group E match between FC Bayern München and FC Barcelona at Football Arena Munich on December 8, 2021, in Munich, Germany.

It is always more than surprising what fantastic pictures are produced by the remote cameras, which are automatically triggered behind the goal. However, it’s rare when one works out because players are often blocked by each other or the action is unusable because maybe it’s too small or out of focus. In this top match between FC Bayern Munich and FC Barcelona, it turned out differently. First of all, Leroy Sané’s huge, imposing shot on goal and then second the surprising reaction from goalkeeper Marc Andre ter Stegen. I think for all three of us this was probably a surprise moment – for Sané with this beautiful goal, for the goalkeeper that the ball came so fast towards him, and for me as a photographer that it all fit exactly together in one moment.

— Alexander Hassenstein

Adriana Jiménez of Mexico competes in the Women’s High Dive during day four of the FINA World Swimming Championships (25m) Abu Dhabi at Etihad Arena on December 19, 2021, in Abu Dhabi.

The High Dive is always an exciting event to cover, however, this one was pretty tough due to the limited angles I could shoot from. The light this morning was also not in my favor as a photographer. I decided to go on the media boat and see if I could find an angle to frame the diver with the Etihad Arena in the background. I got lucky with Adriana Jiménez of Mexico coming into the frame at the right time and place. It looks like she’s soaring through the air.

— Francois Nel

Christine De Bruin of Canada competes in the Women’s Monobob or Bobsleigh during Day Two of the BMW IBSF World Cup Bob & Skeleton 2021/22 at Veltins Eis-Arena on December 11, 2021, in Winterberg, Germany. (Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)

This was my first weekend covering a Monobob or Bobsleigh event and it’s a sport with many possibilities for nice images. This image was one I knew I wanted to get but getting the light, timing and best athletes all in one image was the challenge. Here, I was lucky to find a spot that no other photographer was at, at the time. The sun was almost gone and the light in the track and ambient light were close enough in exposure to work in the image I was trying to get. The trees with snow made a nice panning color and shape and getting a slow enough camera shutter would work if I had a steady enough hand. The Maple Leaf of Canada in red stands out so you don’t have to look too hard for the athlete’s country and the motion in the pan gives the viewer a small sample of the speed Christine De Bruin was going at, at the time.

— Dean Mouhtaropoulos

Darrel Williams of the Kansas City Chiefs dives across the goal line for a touchdown during the first quarter against the Las Vegas Raiders at Arrowhead Stadium on December 12, 2021, in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Connor Finucane of the Army Black Knights prepares to take the field before the start of a game against the Navy Midshipmen at MetLife Stadium on December 11, 2021, in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Dustin Satloff/Getty Images)

Courtland Sutton of the Denver Broncos kneels and takes a moment in front of the #88 tribute logo to the late former Denver Broncos player Demaryius Thomas after the game against the Detroit Lions at Empower Field At Mile High on December 12, 2021, in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)

Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns celebrates after running the ball in for a touchdown after a fumble recovery in the second quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at FirstEnergy Stadium on December 12, 2021, in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)

Dillon Brooks of the Memphis Grizzlies reacts after his 3-point basket against the Portland Trail Blazers during the fourth quarter at Moda Center on December 15, 2021, in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

Austin Reaves of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts after shooting the game-winning shot against Tim Hardaway Jr. of the Dallas Mavericks in overtime at American Airlines Center on December 15, 2021, in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)

E.J. Liddell of the Ohio State Buckeyes celebrates a basket during the first half of a game against the Wisconsin Badgers at Value City Arena on December 11, 2021, in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)

Laurent Brossoit of the Vegas Golden Knights tends net against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on December 17, 2021, in New York City. The Golden Knights defeated the Rangers 3-2 in the shootout. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

Keith Yandle of the Philadelphia Flyers celebrates with teammate Kevin Hayes after they defeated the New Jersey Devils at Wells Fargo Center on December 14, 2021, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images)

Will Borgen, Marcus Johansson, Alexander True, and Chris Driedger of the Seattle Kraken warm-up prior to a game against the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center on December 15, 2021, in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)

Sebastian Aho of the Carolina Hurricanes scores the game-winning goal against Jacob Markstrom of the Calgary Flames during the overtime period of an NHL game at Scotiabank Saddledome on December 9, 2021, in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Derek Leung/Getty Images)

Amir Sayoud of Algeria celebrates with teammates after scoring their team’s first goal during the FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021 Final match between Tunisia and Algeria at Al Bayt Stadium on December 18, 2021, in Al Khor, Qatar. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

Leonardo Ponzio of River Plate celebrates with teammates after winning the Trofeo de Campeones 2021 between River Plate and Colon at Estadio Unico Madre de Ciudades on December 18, 2021, in Santiago del Estero, Argentina. (Photo by Hernan Cortez/Getty Images)

The Florida State Seminoles celebrate their victory over the BYU Cougars during the Division I Women’s Soccer Championship held at Stevens Stadium on December 6, 2021, in Santa Clara, California. Florida State defeated BYU 1-0 (4-3) in penalty kicks. (Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)

Xueton Cai of Team China competes in the Women’s Snowboard Halfpipe Final during the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix at Copper Mountain Resort on December 11, 2021, in Copper Mountain, Colorado. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)

Derek Livingston of Team Canada competes in the men’s snowboard superpipe qualifier during day 2 of the Dew Tour at Copper Mountain on December 16, 2021, in Copper Mountain, Colorado. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Athletes compete during the Relay Men Competition at the IBU World Cup Biathlon Hochfilzen at Biathlon Stadion on December 12, 2021, in Hochfilzen, Austria. (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)

Yuto Totsuka of Team Japan crashes during the Men’s Snowboard Halfpipe Final during the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix at Copper Mountain Resort on December 11, 2021, in Copper Mountain, Colorado. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)

Carlos Sainz of Spain driving the (55) Scuderia Ferrari SF21 during Formula 1 testing at Yas Marina Circuit on December 15, 2021, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)

Ballyboker Bridge stares at the first fence before the start of The Glenfarclas Crystal Cup Cross Country Handicap Chase at Cheltenham Racecourse on December 10, 2021, in Cheltenham, England. (Photo by Alan Crowhurst/Getty Images)

Swimmers warm up during day four of the FINA World Swimming Championships (25m) Abu Dhabi at Etihad Arena on December 19, 2021, in Abu Dhabi. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)

Charles Oliveira (top) of Brazil grapples with Dustin Poirier in their lightweight title fight during the UFC 269 event at T-Mobile Arena on December 11, 2021, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)

Vasiliy Lomachenko (black trunks) trades punches with Richard Commey (blue trunks) during their WBO Intercontinental Lightweight Title fight at Madison Square Garden on December 11, 2021, in New York, New York. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)

Big wave surfer Lucas Chianca Chumbo of Brazil rides a wave during the TUDOR Nazare Tow Surfing Challenge at Praia do Norte on December 13, 2021, in Nazare, Portugal. (Photo by Octavio Passos/Getty Images)

Graeme McDowell of Northern Ireland plays his shot from the 18th tee during the second round of the QBE Shootout at Tiburon Golf Club on December 11, 2021, in Naples, Florida. (Photo by Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images)