List of Violent Spectator Incidents in Sports - 1996

1996

• March 9 – During the 1996 Cricket World Cup quarter-final at M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore, India between India and Pakistan, an Indian fan threw a plastic bottle at Aamir Sohail hitting him on the head.

• March 13 – During the 1996 Cricket World Cup semi-final at Eden Gardens, Kolkata, India between India and Sri Lanka, Indian fans began to throw fruit and plastic bottles onto the pitch in the 35th over to protest India's collapse from 1/98 to 8/120 chasing a target of 252. The players left the field for 20 minutes in an attempt to quiet the crowd, but the Indian fans rioted, throwing more fruit and bottles onto the pitch, and lighting fires in the stands. Match referee Clive Lloyd, seeing India's hopeless situation, awarded the match to Sri Lanka, the first ever default in a Test or One Day International.
• June 8 – During a night AFL match at Waverley Park in Melbourne between Essendon and St Kilda, a pitch invasion occurred when the lights went out during the third quarter. Initially, a serious car crash into power lines in the nearby area was reported to have caused the blackout, although it was later confirmed to be a major electrical fault. In the midst of the chaos, fans rioted and stormed the ground, some lighting bonfires in the centre square, and removing two of the behind posts. The incidents were filmed on Network Seven, and the remaining quarter and a half was played three nights later.
• July 11 – After Riddick Bowe had been given a 7th round victory by referee Wayne Kelly due the disqualification of Andrew Golota following a series of blows by Golota the referee ruled low or illegal at Madison Square Garden in New York City, fighting between corners of the two boxers began in the ring, and was soon joined by fans from the stands. At one point, Golota was struck in the head with a cellular phone. Several fans were injured or arrested, and Golota's manager, Lou Duva, was hospitalized for observation.
• July 31 – During the gold medal match in the women's table tennis between China's Deng Yaping and Taiwan's Chen Jing at the 1996 Summer Olympics, Chen Kun Chung unfurled a Taiwanese flag, in contravention of IOC rules (the Taiwan flag is the only national flag prohibited at the Olympics, per IOC regulations). While police attempted to remove Chen and confiscate the flag, a second fan, Lee Chien Hsing, punched an officer in the mouth and pulled the officer down over some seats before he and Chen were arrested. Chen was charged with disorderly conduct and fined $100 after pleading no contest, while Lee was charged with one count each of simple battery and felony obstruction of an officer.
• November 26 – In an NHL game between the Calgary Flames and the Edmonton Oilers at Northlands Coliseum, Flames forward Sasha Lakovic attempted to climb the glass behind the players bench to get back at a drunk Oilers fan who had spilled beer over assistant coach Guy Lapointe. Lakovic was restrained by his teammates, received a misconduct penalty and was suspended for two games, and the NHL fined the Oilers $20,000 for having inadequate security. The fan was ejected from the arena. The incident was broadcast on The CBC.