Athletes celebrate National Handshake Day

Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino and former Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger met for a historic handshake after Spurs defeat Arsenal 2-0 in April 2017. It was the last North London derby ever played between the two sides at White Hart Lane. Tottenham open their new stadium later this year. 

Shawn White of the United States and Australia's Scotty James competed in the men's snowboarding halfpipe final at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. White, arguably the most popular American Winter Olympian of his generation, won gold, while James earned the bronze medal. 

Golden State Warriors superstar Kevin Durant is getting used to shaking hands with NBA legend Bill Russell each June. Durant won Finals MVP for the second consecutive year, this time after the Warriors swept the Cleveland Cavaliers. 

Football fans never got to see the ultimate Manning Bowl that would have involved Peyton Manning and Eli Manning facing each other on the final Sunday of a season. Peyton, the older brother, bested Eli all three times their paths crossed. Both men have a pair of Super Bowl rings in their personal trophy cases. 

Cleveland Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor could be the next face of Major League Baseball. The 24-year-old gets the job done at the dish, he is a human highlight reel in the field and he genuinely appears to love the game. No wonder he's known as "Mr. Smile." 

Neutral fans with no rooting interest during a series may say the best part about the Stanley Cup Playoffs involves the handshake line that commences soon after one team wins a fourth game. It is an unparalleled tradition in the sports world. 

This image of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, two of the top young stars in world football today, shaking hands as teammates is one Paris Saint-Germain supporters may want to treasure. Both players could find themselves featuring for different clubs in August. 

It almost feels as if it was a different lifetime ago when James Harden and Russell Westbrook were teammates. Will they ever work together again, or are they destined to play against each other in the playoffs every spring? 

A handshake can be more than a salutation or an indication that an agreement has been made. When Jackie Robinson and Branch Rickey came together, they made history and destroyed a color barrier that never should have existed in the first place. 

Anybody who wonders if the agony of defeat is real should examine the face of Oklahoma Sooners quarterback Baker Mayfield as he shook hands with Georgia Bulldogs tight end Isaac Nauta after Georgia defeated Oklahoma in the 2018 Rose Bowl. The Cleveland Browns selected Mayfield with the first overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft, and the franchise is banking on Mayfield's talent and passion to guide the club out from the basement of the league standings. 

The match between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao in May 2015 was supposed to be the "Fight of the Century." Instead, it was an unspectacular and boring letdown won by Mayweather. Here, you can see the two pugilists sharing a handshake and a laugh, potentially over how much money they made on this night. 

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan probably didn't believe he'd be sharing this handshake with New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady when the Falcons held a 28-3 advantage in the third quarter of Super Bowl LI. Like Ryan, Brady knows what it is like to be on the opposite end of this postgame meeting. 

Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are the two most popular golfers, to date, of the 2000s, but their primes are behind them in the summer of 2018. That harsh reality isn't keeping fans from dreaming of seeing the two compete one-on-one in the final round of a major. 

Guard Kyrie Irving shocked the basketball world when he orchestrated a trade from the Cleveland Cavaliers in the summer of 2017. The Cavs sent Irving to the Boston Celtics, and those two sides met in the 2017-18 regular season opener at Quicken Loans Arena. Cleveland's LeBron James showed some love to his former teammate ahead of the opening tip. 

In March 2018, MLS and LA Galaxy "Dared to Zlatan" by bringing striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic to the North American top-flight league. Ibrahimovic didn't disappoint in his debut, but his first season on the west coast hasn't been without some hiccups. 

UFC fans yearn to see Conor McGregor and Dana White shake hands ahead of McGregor's return to the Octagon. Will The Notorious reclaim his throne before the end of 2018, or will Khabib Nurmagomedov be the one to silence McGregor for good? 

Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal have been teammates. They've been rivals. They've taken shots at each other via the press. They've discussed their issues face-to-face. This relationship has endured quite the roller-coaster ride. 

As great as Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown has been during his career, New York Giants playmaker Odell Beckham Jr. may become even better so long as he avoids lingering injury bugs. Both men could force moves from their current employers between this July and the 2019 NFL Draft. 

Far too many engage in debates about who is the greatest men's tennis player of his time between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Enjoy these two while you can. Federer turns 37 years old in August, and he can see the light at the end of the tunnel whether he wants to admit it or not. 

It's a sports handshake many believed they would never see. In June 2018, Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin skated toward NHL commissioner Gary Bettman to accept the Conn Smythe Trophy  ahead of receiving an even better piece of silverware: the Stanley Cup. 

LeBron James and Stephen Curry shaking hands before and after the NBA Finals has become as commonplace as springtime rain showers and the New England Patriots being accused of cheating. Perhaps we'll see James and Curry on the same team at some point before The King retires. Stranger things have happened in the NBA. 

Tiger Woods shaking hands with somebody such as Jordan Spieth on an 18th green makes for a passing-of-the-torch moment. Golf fans everywhere want to see it happen on a future Masters Sunday. 

Each World Cup brings players together who, otherwise, may not meet on the pitch. Goalkeepers Guillermo Ochoa and Manuel Neuer shook hands following a match between Mexico and Germany, a game Mexico won 1-0, in the group stages of the 2018 tournament. Perhaps they'll see each other again later in the competition or maybe after a Champions League fixture. 

We've gotten so used to seeing Serena Williams shake hands with an opponent after a win, we've grown to take these occurrences for granted. Williams turns 37 years old in September. Father Time will eventually notch a last victory over her; right? 

Much like with the previously mentioned Roger Federer and Serena Williams, age is an opponent even the great Tom Brady cannot outrun. It's possible that Brady, who turns 41 years old in August, may never again shake hands after playing in a Super Bowl. 

Say whatever you want about the spectacle created by Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Conor McGregor ahead of their boxing match in August 2017. The two entertaining athletes know how to produce a show, and both men laughed to the bank after the encounter. 

Every young baseball player dreams of one day participating in and winning a World Series. One thing many don't think about is the perks that come with starting in the Fall Classic, such as meeting and shaking hands with legendary figures such as Hank Aaron. 

Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin, on-the-ice rivals and two of the best players in NHL history, have met in post-series handshake lines multiple times. As of June 2018, the two have one big thing in common: both men are Stanley Cup champions. 

Any Mount Rushmore of the greatest footballers in history would be incomplete without both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. It's a sports blessing we get to see them compete against each other multiple times per season. 

Sometimes, an actual handshake isn't necessary for two rivals looking to show each other respect. If we're lucky, LeBron James and Kevin Durant haven't yet written the last chapter of their enthralling story.