We have all read about how legendary coaches and managers have helped athletes and teams reach the peak of their sport through a combination of inspiration, dedication and fear.

But there is a group of unsung heroes who deserve as much recognition as the athletes and their coaching teams – the mothers.

This group of amazing women began nurturing talent way before coaches, fitness trainers and sponsors stepped in. They did whatever needed to be done to help their children achieve their dreams and without them, sports fans worldwide will never have idols to look up to.

To recognise their efforts, Procter and Gamble (P&G) launched a “Thank You Mom” campaign as part of their global partnership with the International Olympic Committee.

As part of the campaign, P&G created a series of tribute videos to honour and celebrate the sweat and tears mothers had put in to nurture some of the greatest sporting champions the world has ever seen.

Badminton world No 1 Lin Dan’s career might have been very different had it not been for his mother.

She saw his talent early and was his pillar of support as he developed his skills. She helped pick him up after he got knocked out the first round in the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens and inspired him to victory four years later in the Beijing Olympics.

And seeing your daughter take blow after blow in the boxing ring cannot be an easy experience for any mother.

But Mangte Kom, mother of five-time world champion Mary Kom, continues to support her child’s career in one of the world’s most violent sports, muttering a quiet prayer every time Mary enters the ring for another battlem and shedding a steady stream of tears whenever her daughter is declared the winner.

“At P&G, our collaboration with the Olympic Games is about bringing together our purpose of touching and improving people’s lives and the IOC’s purpose of building a better world through sport,” said Ms Ellie Xie, Country CEO P&G Singapore & Malaysia.

“As a company, we serve as the ‘Proud Sponsor of Moms’, because behind every amazing athlete – elite or beginner – is an even more amazing mom.”

If you think your mother is as amazing as those featured above, you can submit your story and view other videos from the “Thank you Mom” campaign on P&G’s YouTube page here.

The defender’s unfortunate error was the second of three goals that saw his side Goverla slip to a 3-2 defeat at the hands of Chernomorets on the opening day of the Ukrainian Premier League season.

This year saw 270 students receive the SOF-Peter Lim Scholarship, founded by entrepreneur Peter Lim, which received 772 applications from 140 schools this year.

A total of S$746,000 was disbursed – an increase of 78 per cent from the S$409,101 given out last year.

During his second day here, the Special One visited the Singapore Sports School, where he gave young players valuable advice on how become a better footballer.

But who should they hire to replace him? Here’s a shortlist of potential candidates who could possibly bring success back to Anfield.

Rafa Benitez

In his six-year spell with the Reds, Rafa Benitez led Liverpool to an unprecedented Champions League triumph over AC Milan in 2005 after orchestrating one of the greatest comebacks of all time.

An FA Cup trophy came in the next season, and he followed it up by guiding the Reds to another Champions League final the following season.

He also led a strong chase of the Premier League title in 2009, fighting against the tide and Alex Ferguson’s mind games, only to fall short to arch rivals Manchester United.

And with new owners at the helm and a healthy budget to spend on fresh faces, he could be the man to end Liverpool’s 22-year wait for a league title.

Jamie Carragher

If Liverpool’s owners want a young manager with a passion for football, current Liverpool vice-captain Jamie Carragher is their man.

The centre-back bleeds Liverpool and no one at the club – not even Steven Gerrard – can match his loyalty to the Reds.

And after losing his place in the starting 11 to Martin Skrtel and Daniel Agger, hiring him as a player-manager might be a stroke of genius, even if he doesn’t have the proper coaching license to manage a Premier League club.

Fabio Capello

The former England boss is another candidate who is on the unemployment line.

But with a handsome departing paycheck from the FA at the time of his resignation, Capello need not necessarily think of sticking his head into another high-pressure job.

But if Liverpool’s owners want an experienced coach, they needn’t look further than ex-England boss Fabio Capello, who has won the domestic league with AC Milan, Real Madrid, Juventus and Roma.

Andre Villas-Boas

Life in the Premier League can be tough, as Andre Villas-Boas found out when his Chelsea team failed to produce the results which were to the owner’s liking.

But the Liverpool hierarchy would have the perfect youngster who, if successful, could lead the Reds for a very long time.

Unlike Roman Abramovich, Liverpool’s owners are more than happy to stay away from team affairs and that could work in the favour of the man once touted as the next Jose Mourinho.

Louis van Gaal

Louis van Gaal is another one of the managers in the unemployed queue, but this one boasts an impressive CV that includes domestic-league title triumphs and lifting the Champions League.

Van Gaal’s left Bayern Munich last year after guding them to victory in the Bundesliga and the final of the 2010 Champions League, but he is best known for his time with Dutch club Ajax Amsterdam.

He led them to three successive Eredivisie titles in the 90s and one Champions League crown in 1995.

In Louis van Gaal, FSG have got another suitable candidate to replace King Kenny, and one who could mould the Reds into serious title contenders.

The Lions will be playing in front of their home fans for the first time in almost a month, and the support from the stands might just swing the tie in favour of the LionsXII.

The match got off to a slow start but both sides began to find their groove mid way through the half after raising the tempo. Shaiful Esah put the LionsXII ahead in the 32nd minute when his freekick eluded everyone in the penalty area to find its way past Felda’s goalkeeper Hamsani.

Felda were quick to regroup and tested Hyrulnizam several times. Their best chance of the match came in the 44th minute, but the LionsXII goalkeeper made an incredible save to stop a powerful goal-bound volley just over a metre away.

The LionsXII started the second half eager to attack and they came close to scoring in the 52nd minute through Khairul Amri, who made his first start since a long injury lay-off, when he struck a powerful shot from outside the penalty area. Felda’s Hamsani fumbled the save but was fortunate to get away with it.

Goal-scoring opportunities see-sawed between the two sides before the LionsXII extended their lead in the 77th minute. Skipper Shahril Ishak cut the ball back to the edge of the penalty area and the advancing Shahdan Sulaiman curled the ball into the top corner.

Felda refused to be beaten and kept pressing. The Malaysian side were incisive in their passes, but a lack of ideas in the final third proved to be their downfall. The LionsXII extended their lead over second placed Kelantan to five points with the win, but the Malaysian side now have four games in hand.