Sport's sneakiest cheats: Bending the rules

Needles have often been at the center of sporting scandal. But in the recent case of the Norwegian ski jump team, it was sewing, not injecting that caused the fuss. Coach Magnus Brevig (pictured) and equipment manager Adrian Livelten were suspended by their own federation, suspected of modifying ski suits by sewing in an extra seam in an attempt to create more lift in the air.

A more cut and dried case of cheating occurred in the 1980 Boston Marathon. Rosie Ruiz was the surprise winner of the women’s race in a record time. But she had barely broken a sweat. No one else saw her during the race because she’d emerged from the crowd just half a mile from the finish line. It later transpired she’d qualified for Boston by catching the subway for part of the New York marathon.

Spain’s victory over Russia in the 2000 Paralympic Basketball ID final in Sydney ended with neither side winning gold. The ID in the sport stood for intellectual disability and it turned out 10 of Spain’s 12-man squad did not meet the classification. Spain were quickly stripped of gold. Later, Russia were unable to prove that their own players qualified, so no gold was awarded.

With his team trailing in a game they needed to win to reach the 1990 World Cup, Chile goalkeeper Roberto Rojas hit the turf clutching his head while a flare, thrown by Brazil fans, smouldered nearby. Chile claimed unsafe conditions but video evidence showed Rojas cut his own head with a razor blade hidden in his gloves. Brazil got the points and Chile were also banned from the 1994 tournament.

Sergio Motsoeneng was a promising-enough runner but came from nowhere to record a top-10 finish and some prize money in the prestigious Comrades Marathon in South African in 1999. After a few eyebrows were raised, it was discovered that his twin brother, Fika, had run half the race in his place after they transferred race numbers in a toilet.

British fencer Jim Fox (above) was convinced he'd beaten Soviet opponent Boris Onishchenko in the team Modern Pentathlon event at the 1976 Olympics. The score did not reflect that. An investigation found Onishchenko had modified his weapon so that he could record points on the electronic scoreboard without landing a blow on his opponent. The USSR were kicked out of the event, which Britain won.

The act of 'stealing signs' is part of the game in baseball. But using technology to do so is most definitely not. The Houston Astros used a camera in center field to film the signs the catcher gave the pitcher and then relayed information using audio clues, such as banging a trash can, which allowed the batter an advantage. The Astros kept the title but faced other sanctions.

Perhaps the most famous example in this list, it's also one of the most spontaneous. Diego Maradona, probably the best footballer at the world at the time, opened the scoring against England in the 1986 World Cup quarterfinal with his hand before scoring a brilliant goal to seal a 2-1 win. The punch enraged England but Maradona saw it as "crafty" rather than cheating. Argentina won the tournament.

One of UFC's biggest stars, Jon Jones, once employed tactics familiar to children across the world in order to avoid a drug test – he hid under the octagon ring and waited until the danger had passed. "I had just smoked a blunt and was afraid I would fail my test for weed," he later confessed. Despite other failed drugs tests and convictions, he is currently heavyweight champion.