4. Portuguese footballer Cristiano Ronaldo signed a six-year deal with Real Madrid with a record-setting tag of 130 million U.S. dollars.

FIFA Men's World Player of the Year 2009 nominee Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal attends a press conference before the FIFA World Player Gala in Zurich December 21, 2009. [Xinhua/Reuters File Photo]

5. Swimming ruling body FINA decided to ban the high-tech swimsuits that had helped bring down a dozen world records at the 2009 world championships from next year.