With former All Black Andrew Hore preparing to come out of retirement to play in the Mitre-10 Cup final, we took a look at some of the other great sporting retirements that turned out to be temporary.
(Pictures - Getty Images and Photosport)
Out of Retirement: Weird and wonderful sporting comebacks
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1/12 In 2008 Shane Warne retired from first class cricket, only to realise a few months later how much cash could be made on the T20 circuit. He kept going until 2013. -
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2/12 Jeff Wilson retired from top level rugby in 2002, to resume a cricket career that resulted in a Black Caps call up, almost 12 years after he had last played cricket for New Zealand. -
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3/12 Andrew Hore retired from the All Blacks in 2013, but is currently preparing to pull on the boots again to play the 2016 Mitre-10 Cup final for Otago.
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4/12 Sydney 2000 Olympics Gold medalist Rob Waddell left rowing to pursue a career in sailing, but decided to get back into it for the 2008 Olympics. Mahe Drysdale just edged him for the solitary single sculls spot, but he rowed with Nathan Cohen in the double sculls.
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5/12 Temepara Bailey (formerly George and Clark) answered an SOS from the Northern Mystics in 2014, after stepping away from the game in 2012.
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6/12 Ivan Vicelich thought he was done with international football in 2008, but the All Whites needed a solid defender for the 2009 Confederations Cup and he came back, going on to play at the 2010 World Cup too.
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7/12 "I'm done. I'm finished. I'm retired. I'm done. No more." That's what Michael Phelps said after the 2012 Olympics. Four years later he picked up five more gold medals at the Rio Olympics.
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8/12 Lance Armstrong put away the bike after 'winning' yet another Tour de France in 2005, but came back in 2009 to compete and raise awareness for cancer research. He came 3rd, but has since been stripped of his titles for being a drug cheat.
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9/12 Like most big-time boxers, Floyd Mayweather Jr has retired only to come back. His lasted 21 months, and Mayweather was still fighting 6 years later.
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10/12 Stacey Jones left the Warriors after 238 games in 2005, joining the Catalan Dragons, before retiring from the game. He came back in 2009, and still had the goods to deserve the title of The Little General.
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11/12 The GOAT, Michael Jordan has retired from pro basketball three times. After the first, he later went to play baseball. After the second, he came back as a player/owner for the Washington Wizards, but after the third retirement, he was fired from his managerial role there.
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12/12 A rare example of a retired athlete who comes back just as good, Kim Clijsters had five major titles by the time she retired in 2007. A comeback in 2009 saw her bag three more Majors, including consecutive US Open titles.
