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AP Photo/Pat Sullivan1 of 9
More and more these days, we are constantly reminded that professional athletes are human. Just like regular folk, they don't always succeed, they get hurt, and interestingly enough, they get scared. It seems like this year in particular, reports are being made about athletes with strange fears. The case of Houston Rockets forward Royce White (pictured) has been especially well-documented, as his major fear of flying and anxiety issues have been a cause for concern. But many famous athletes in the past have dealt with the fear of flying (Wayne Gretzky and Muhammad Ali being the most well-known), and that is very common. What is not common are the phobias of the rest of the athletes on this list. Click ahead to see them all.
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AP Photo/Alex Brandon2 of 9
Damian Lillard is Afraid of Statues
Last week the Portland Trailblazers were in Washington, D.C. to play the Wizards. Their rookie point guard Damian Lillard did not especially enjoy the trip, because statues freak him out. Lillard told the USA Today that he is scared of historical statues, specifically those of people like Abraham Lincoln, MLK, etc. He tweeted that he had a bad experience at the wax museum once. So, it appears that he suffers from automatonophobia, a fear of inanimate objects that resemble humans. And nobody is off limits, either - not even Jesus. Said Lillard, "Even at Lake Oswego (near Portland), I drive past the cemetery, and there's a statue of Jesus with his hands up. That even scared me. I don't mess with statues no more."
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Jamie Squire/Getty Images3 of 9
Eric Berry is Afraid of Horses
The fear of horses, or equinophobia, is a serious condition. Unfortunately for Kansas City Chiefs safety Eric Berry, that hasn't stopped his team from parading Warpaint, the team mascot horse, around the field at every home game this year. Fortunately for us, it means we get to watch this hilarious video:
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Harry How/Getty Images4 of 9
David Beckham is Afraid of Disorder
David Beckham seems to have it all together, and there may be a reason for that. Even though he's fresh off a second straight MLS Cup win with the LA Galaxy, don't expect him to take a break or let his hair down. That's because Beckham reportedly has ataxophobia, the fear of messes or disorder of any kind. For Becks, surrounding objects must be coordinated by color, form and quantity. This even goes for the sodas in his fridge.
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AP Photo/John Raoux5 of 9
Josh Freeman is Afraid of Elevators
To be honest, after seeing this elevator prank last week, it is easy to side with Freeman. But the Tampa Bay quarterback says he has had the fear of being stuck in an elevator his whole life, and once his fear became a reality at the dentist office. "It was only like five minutes, but it felt like forever. Yeah, the elevator is horrible" (Athlon Sports).
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AP Photo/Kevin Rivoli6 of 9
Alec Lemon is Afraid of Spiders
OK, so being afraid of spiders isn't so bad...if you're a 10-year-old girl. Syracuse senior wide receiver Alec Lemon is starting to garner some NFL draft chatter, but he might want to hide the fact that a couple years ago in class, he screamed and flipped out when a spider crawled on him. In his defense, at least his self-awareness is high, as he tweeted that his freakout was #pathetic.
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Denis Poroy/Getty Images7 of 9
Michael Cuddyer is Afraid of Bees and Wasps
For a guy who spends most of his career outdoors, this is not good. Cuddyer states that when he was 16 back home in Virginia, he opened a mailbox and a whole nest of wasps flew out and stung his face and head several times. This makes his dislike for the insects understandable, but Cuddyer says he is "absolutely terrified" of them (Athlon Sports). Do not expect to see him hanging around a ballpark garbage can any time soon.
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Larry Marano/Getty Images8 of 9
Andy Roddick is Afraid of Rabbits
If you ever find yourself sitting around being jealous of Andy Roddick because he is popular and married to Brooklyn Decker, take solace in the fact that the tennis star is afraid of bunny rabbits. That's right - sweet, cuddly, adorable little bunnies. What a freak! The story goes that years ago Roddick was attending a hotel event on Easter and there was a bunny in attendance (you know, for the kids), and Andy was visibly perturbed by it, even asking people to make sure it stayed far away (Deadspin).
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AP Photo9 of 9Next: Funny Sports Photos
Carl Everett is Afraid of the Truth About Dinosaurs
Finally, crazy ol' Carl Everett. This is less of a fear and more of a case of odd beliefs the outspoken former outfielder holds. Although he had a decent career, controversy seemed to follow him, and the best-known example was his denial of the existence of dinosaurs. "The Bible never says anything about dinosaurs. You can't say there were dinosaurs when you never saw them." Good point, Carl. This led Boston Globe columnist Dan Shaughnessy to dub Everett "Jurassic Carl," and several teammates openly referred to him as "Carlosaurus."
Everett also made several remarks back in the day that implied he is also afraid of gay people, but we digress.
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