The past year has been an incredible one in terms of sporting events. But while watching athletes break records or pushing their bodies to the limit is always thrilling, its those micro-moments that make sports so fun to watch. And what better way to see spontaneous and awkward athlete reactions, or split-second failures, other than via GIF files?

Business Insider has compiled their list of Best Sports GIF’s for 2012. For the complete list of 21, click here.

Some examples in the gallery below include Ryan Lochte high-fiving himself, basketball star Chris Bosh video-bombing Lebron James during an interview, as well as a NFL Network reporter getting hit in the face with a ball on live TV.

You’ll also see an Olympic dive gone horribly wrong, another basketball player (David Robinson) getting photobombed, and a tennis girl spotting an approaching ball too late.

Check it out:

[Source: Business Insider]