Streaking News 2002 - 2006
(for more recent streaking news, please see the main page)
Streaker
at the Winter Olympics closing ceremony
"A naked woman was nabbed by security guards and ushered,
slowly and deliberately, out of the stadium after streaking
across the infield as the festivities began."
27 February 2006
From this article:
Hats
off to Turin
Mark
Roberts was the Winter Olympics streaker
The 2006 Winter Olympics at Turin had the honour of hosting
the first curling streaker - and it turned out to be none
other than serial streaker Mark Roberts. Roberts ran onto
the ice wearing nothing but a rubber chicken. As in past streaks
he was advertising an online casino.
25 February 2006
Further info:
Curling
history: 1st US Medal, 1st streaker
Students
naked in Newport
Around 40 male students from Harper Adams University ran naked
through the streets of Newport as part of a rugby initiation.
Disciplinary action is being considered.
More info and a video at BBC.
14 February 2006
Further info:
Mystery
of cheeky streakers is solved
Naked
man streaks through parking lot
A 47 year old Central Florida man stripped and ran madly around
a parking lot, shocking shoppers until police arrived. He
had taken an overdose of Ritalin.
Local6,
24 January 2006
Streakers
strike at library during exams
Emory police report that a group of college-aged men were
running around the Woodruff library at 3am. One man was arrested.
Emory
Wheel, 27 January 2006
Students
keep U. of C. tradition's streak alive
70 people streaked across the Uni's main quad as part of the
annual Polar Bear Run. "Besides the obvious cold, it
was very liberating," said second-year student and first-time
Polar Bear Linda Muzere, who went nude. "[The rain] adds
to the outrageousness of it."
Chicago
Sun Times, 14 January 2006
Streaking
is alive and well at Florida's nudist resorts
The Hidden River Resort hosts a 5km clothing optional run
that is proving very popular.
Feb 2006 - Press
release.
Less-Than-Recent Streaking News
Two
men have each been fined $5500 for pitch invasion after
streaking on the field during a cricket match between
Australia and Pakistan at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
The crowd had already had a fab time ignoring the game,
creating a giant snake from sponsor-provided plastic
tubes, joining them together to make a huge line that
stretched halfway around the ground.
Read more about the streakers and the crowd at The
Australian.
Various news sources, 4 January 2005
A Taiwanese student who streaked around a campus athletics field after losing a bet has become a focus of protest at his University. The student was given a heavy punishment of two major demerits, two minor demerits, and a detention under surveillance. Fellow students have said the university needs to be more understanding of youthful ebullence as well as freedom of expression.
An opinion piece in the Taipei Times said "Societies
should tolerate harmless delinquent behavior, because
who knows whether geniuses like Elvis Presley, the Beatles,
Nicolaus Copernicus or Karl Marx might appear among
the 'eccentrics?'"
- Taipei
Times, July 2004
Journalism
student Joe Leineweber took his studies that extra mile
when he streaked for an assignment. His teachers had asked
students to find a way to creatively overcome their fears,
and were asked to videotape whatever they did. Joe knew
he was a "modest" man, and so came up with the
idea to run naked through the Laurelwood Municipal Golf
Course. He had a friend write "I am in no way affiliated
with the UO School of Journalism and Communication"
in black marker on his back. Unfortunately this gave the
whole game away. Lecturers said they did not intend for
their students to break the law. The owners of the golf
course had called the police about the streak, but said
no-one turned up.
Daily Emerald, 28 May 2004
Mark
Roberts' latest streak was at the World Snooker Championships.
Wearing only a pair of novelty teeth he dashed around
the table and was led off by officials. Eventual winner
Ronnie O'Sullivan also donned a pair of false teeth to
accept the trophy as a tribute to his mentor, who used
to wear Dracula teeth as a joke.
- Agencies
A
US war veteran who had recently returned from Iraq celebrated
by running naked onto a the field at a Major League Baseball
game in Houston. He now faces charges, and if he does
it again, will be labelled a sex offender. While most
people found it amusing, there were some who thought the
act would warp their children for life. For me, the most
distressing thing about the article reporting his streak was this sentence: "Hawk is
a 22 year old war veteran."
- ABCOnline, 21 April 2004
Fresh
from facing a French court after his French Open appearance,
it seems that Mark Roberts could be facing jail in the
US. Prosecutors seem quite keen to put him in the slammer,
according to various news reports. They have no intention
of dropping a trespassing charge against him, and he could
be made into an "example" in times of terror-hysteria.
Roberts told reporters: "I could go to jail for six
months and be fined £1,100. It does scare me."
- Liverpool Daily Post 15 March 2004
A
man who streaked onto the World Cup Rugby match between
Romania and Namibia at Launceston, Tasmania in October
last year has been sentenced to community service. Jacob
Swierc, 21, pleaded guilty to illegally entering a sports
arena. His lawyer said that Jacob had consumed too much
booze and that his streak was the "highlight of a
pretty poor game of rugby". Romania won 37-7.
Jacob has since earned new fame because he has appeared
naked on a gay website, owned by an ex-teacher. News Limited
has gone on a moral crusade against the teacher, saying
he is not of "good character" (and neither is
anyone who looks at porn, if we take it to it's logical
conclusion). Swierc now wants his photos removed from
the site.
- Seattle Post Intelligencer, 18 February 2004
- News.com.au, 13 March 2004
The
American Football Super Bowl game was interrupted at half
time as Mark Roberts streaked onto the field. Mark had
been dressed as an umpire and made use of his trademark
velcro to quickly strip before running onto the field.
He was advertising an online gambling service on his front
and had the words "Super Bowel" on his back.
Mark was tackled by a New England player, and arrested
by police. He's been charged with criminal tresspass and
public intoxication (I suspect they're making this last
one up). The Yanks have of course never heard of Mark
and seem generally confused by him. The real achievement
here is that Mark managed to get past the mammoth anti-terrorist
security surrounding the event.
I've finally made Mark his own page, here.
News articles:
Linebacker
levels Super Bowl streaker - SFGate
"Super
Bowel" streaker makes irregular appearance at Super
Bowl - Yahoo
Streaker
disrupts Super Bowl, gets upended by New England Linebacker - Canada.com
- 2nd February 2004
Steve Gough, the nude activist dubbed by the press as the "Naked Rambler" finally completed his goal of walking the length of Britain nude after 7 months and 13 arrests. Gough set out from Land's End in mid June 2003, his aim to bring awareness to public nudity and the prejudice against it. His plan to walk to John O'Groat's in Scotland was repeatedly sidelined as he was arrested and jailed on numerous occasions. Steve finally reached his goal after being released from prison in mid January. He hiked the final stages in freezing weather, still only wearing his boots, hat and backpack. He was greeting by a cheering crowd and frenzied press. More info on Steve's exploits at Naked Men News - Various news outlets, 22 January 2004
Three naked men got a nasty surprise when their car was stolen while they were streaking inside a restaurant. Three men who made a naked dash through a Washington restaurant ended up being the victims of crime as a thief made off with their car while they were busy inside. Unfortunately, the streakers had left their car running for a quick getaway, and their clothes were also in the vehicle. Police found the three men huddling naked in the car park in freezing weather. The thief had apparently been in the restaurant when they had begun their dash. No charges were laid. "I think it was just three kids who decided to fool around," said an attending police officer. "We always tell people to not leave their car running." - AP 15 January 2004
Around 40 German students protested the state of higher education by streaking through the centre of Berlin. Wearing shoes and holding placards, the students shouted their slogan of "We're here, we're naked, and cutting funds for education is stupid" (I'm sure it sounded much better in German). They sprinted through a Christmas market near the central business district, ignoring the freezing temperatures. Reuters, 5 December 2003
This streaker certainly has stamina. A naked man ran around the square in China's Changchun city for FIVE HOURS before he was finally arrested by police. The runner impressed onlookers not just by enduring sub-zero temperatures so well, but also by being fit enough to run barefoot around the city for most of Monday morning, the Beijing Morning Post said. - New Independent Press 27 November 2003
Here's another interview with Mark Roberts. A bit out of date, but not to worry :)
Mark's done it again, this time during the running of the bulls in Pamplona. Mark stripped off and dashed beside the hurtling herd, in possibly the most dangerous stunt he's tried so far. The bulls were apparently not so happy to see him and he became the object of pursuit for two very large and angry bulls.
"I honestly saw my life flash before my eyes,"
Roberts told Newswire. "I've seen the bullrun on
the TV but they are so much bigger and faster in real
life... I thought I was a dead man."
Roberts had an ad for Golden Palace casino painted on
his back, which makes him one of several streakers who
have advertised the online gaming site in this way. -
Newswire/PR, 11 July 2003
PS - Mark has given an interview to the International
Herald Tribune, here.
Online
gaming company Golden Palace has taken up using streakers
as a marketing strategy. In June two streakers made appearances
at sporting events with the company's URL painted on their
backs. The first was a male streaker who ran at the French
Open golf tournament. The second was a young topless woman
who approached golfer Jim Furyk at the US Open.
Previously, Golden Palace had used it's back-painting
marketing idea on boxers. - Yahoo news, June 2003
Congrats
to Mark Roberts, now up to 271 streaks! His latest effort
was at the UEFA Cup Final in Seville, Spain, when Mark
strolled onto the field just before the second half of
the game was due to begin. Dressed in a specially velcroed
referee's uniform, he flashed a red card at the real ref,
ripped off the gear and attempted a 12 yard shot at the
Portuguese goal without success. As usual he was then
arrested and carried off to be charged. - KR, 24 May 2003
Earlier, Roberts had appeared before a judge for his big
Commonwealth Games streak, charged with public nuisance.
Interestingly, prosecution counsel Jamie Hamilton said
he had difficulty proving the charge of public nuisance
because the crowd had been cheering and clapping happily
at his appearance. The judge bound him over and fined
him 400 pounds, warning him that things could get serious
if he did it again. Mark told the press he had no plans
to retire. - BBC Website, 13 May 2003
A
British student shocked members of the Czech Republic
when he streaked during a televised soccer match in Prague.
Streaking is almost unknown in that country. Wayne Cleworth,
27, was jailed for two days, and then kicked out of the
country, unable to return for at least two years.
Wayne
told the Prague Post that he enjoyed the streak. "On
the pitch, I was like a man possessed. I heard the stadium
go mad. There was this huge roar and flags waving. It
was insane. I'll never forget that moment. It seems to
me that my treatment was more severe than the crime. I
didn't mean to offend anyone, it was all meant as fun."
- Ananova, 15th April 2003
Nike
has taken a leaf out of the Vodafone streakers book and
used streaking to promote it's new brand of shoes. The
ad features a streaker running onto the field during a
soccer game and outrunning the cops thanks to his shoes.
Nike advertised for a real person to be the streaker in
the ad, through the Streakers Yahoo Group. You can find
an example of the ad here.
Note: I was contacted by someone called Justin,
asking if I'd post a link to the ad. Interestingly, Justin
is from an online marketing company that offers "innovative
online strategies". Part of what they do is "Create
online street buzz via fan sites, message boards, chats,
discussion groups, etc."
Obviously the push to get Nike's ads on various streaking
sites is part of a "stealth" advertising campaign.
The fact that I've gone ahead and posted this link makes
me complicit in this form of advertising, but I'd like
to point out I don't endorse their product. Due to defamation
laws I'm not going to say why I don't like Nike on this
site, but I recommend you check out No
Logo, and buy a pair of cheap shoes instead.
An
ice hockey fan who decided he'd streak at a Canadian Calgary
Flames game got more than he bargained for when he knocked
himself out on the ice. Tim Hurlbut, 21, slipped while
climbing over the glass railing and fell flat on his back,
unconscious. While being carried off in a stretcher he
came to and pumped his fist in the air to cheers and jeers.
"I
felt bad for him, the poor guy. I thought he'd broken
his neck," said Flames netminder Jamie McLennan.
"Once he started acting like a jackass on the way
off, you really didn't feel that bad for him."
"It was weird. I mean everyone was in shock,"
said Flames forward Steve Begin. "What is this guy
doing? I guess he had a few cocktails. It was funny."
The case drew national attention when it occurred in October.
The Hockey News referred to Tim as a "naked buffoon".
The streaker's trial for indecent exposure was delayed
until January 31, 2003.
- Canadian Press 18 Oct 2002, Calgary Herald, 2 Jan 2003
40
schoolboys caused a stir at a local arthouse cinema in
Sydney when they one by one appeared naked in the foyer
asking for tickets. The prank was part of a end-of-year
treasure hunt, in which students are dared to do various
outrageous thing in order to earn points. The owners of
the cinema have started legal action, saying the boys
have destroyed their reputation as a "secure and
safe" place. Police have not made any arrests because
the cinema has refused to release the security video of
the incident.
- Sydney Morning Herald, 1st October 2002
A
court in Canada has ruled that you are not naked if you
are wearing shoes, and thus not engaging in indecent exposure.
Seven men were charged with "being nude in a public
place without a decent excuse" (hey, what IS a decent
excuse??) after taking part in a gay pride parade in Toronto.
The men are part of a group called TNTMEN (Totally Naked
Toronto Men Enjoying Mudity). Their defence lawyer, Peter
Simm, argued that "Nude means
absolutely, utterly, completely bare without a single
solitary scrap of clothing. If you have any scrap of apparel
anywhere on your body, no matter where or how flimsy,
then ... you are not 'nude in a public place' under the
law."
Faced with this logical defence, Crown prosecutors dropped
the charges. It would thus appear that Canadian streakers
have the protection of the law, so long as they keep their
joggers on!
- National Post / Canada.com, 19 Sept 2002
Interestingly,
two women were cleared of indecent exposure charges
in February 2002 when a judge ruled that an offence
is committed only when the genitals are knowingly exposed
in public. He said that since women's genitals are largely
internal, they weren't exposed. Obviously this man (and
only a man would say this) has never heard the terms
"vulva" or "clitoris". Still, if
you're a streaking female in Maine, US, the world is
your (largely internal) oyster.
Ananova, 5th February 2002
Streaking
is big news in Australia again after two male streakers
interrupted the Bledisloe Cup Rugby Union match between
Australia and
New Zealand. Kiwi Aaron Bain and Australian named Brett
Mutton took streaking into the corporate realm when they
painted Vodafone logos on their back before running nude
onto the pitch, moments before an NZ player was due to
take a penalty kick (he missed).
Vodafone is now in serious trouble with the police, due
to the fact that Brett had rung Graham Maher, managing
director of the company, and asked whether the company
would help out with fines resulting from a "media
stunt". Mr Maher had agreed to support them, despite
not knowing the details of the incident. NSW Police are
now investigating whether this is aiding and abetting
a crime.
Bain's family, tuned in to the match, were shocked to
discover him running around nude on the field. "Yeah,
Mum, Dad, Nanna, Grandad [saw the streak]. Mum said she
recognised that butt from about 20-odd years ago running
around the loungeroom."
Both men have been charged and will pay fines of around
$500.
SMH Online, 6 August 2002
This pic from the SMH. More
pics here.
Click
here for comments from the public on this incident.
Mark
Roberts - again! Successfully streaked at the main
stadium during the Manchester Commonwealth Games.
I'll just put the photo over in his section.Mark
Roberts has done it again. This time he's repeated
his 2000 trick by
running onto centre court at Wimbledon during the men's
final between Lleyton Hewitt and Argentinian David Nalbandian.
Just as play was due to begin after a rain delay, Roberts
stripped off and ran onto the court, doing a dance at
the net and then athletically leaping over it in a somersault
when chased by security. Apparently it took some minutes
for officials to even react. The crowd was reportedly
delighted, clapping and cheering Robert's antics. Naturally
he's been charged and fined. Yahoo, BBC, 8 July 2002
During
the Queen's Jubilee tour of a northern England town, 27
year old
Brynn Richard Reed stripped naked in a pub and then ran
along side the Queen's Rolls Royce as it drove by the
gathered crowds. His buttocks marked "RUDE BRITANNIA"
(in the best tradition of Mark Roberts), Reed waved into
the cab and shouted "Yoo hoo!" at Her Majesty,
who steadfastly continued to look straight ahead. "He
may have given the Queen the best gift of all," wrote
Time Magazine. "The chance to be embarrassed by someone
other than her own children."
Police managed to jump on Reed after the motorcade had
passed, covering him with their coats and sitting on him
while he was handcuffed. He has appeared in court charged
with outraging public decency. - bbc.co.uk, Time Magazine,
news.com.au, 8 May 2002
Singer
Robbie Williams again revealed his outrageous side when
he streaked at the trendy Rheinkassen nightclub in Cologne,
Germany. Robbie, fresh from his concert at the Popkomm
fesitval in the city, had gone to the club to relax and
let it all hang out after the show. He ran naked across
the dance floor and then escaped via a back door. - thesun.co.uk
More streaking news stories in the Archive