2018 in the rearview mirror: From coach Roger Federer to Mo Salah making visually impaired fan's day, most heartwarming moments

2018 was not short of headline-making stories.

Yet, somewhere in the din smaller instances of athletes and teams showing their humane side was lost.

As 2018 winds down, here’s a list of the most heartwarming stories from sports from the year:

Virgil van Dijk consoles referee

Leicester City’s emotional homecoming after owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha’s passing away

Young fan hands a note to Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha’s son as football returns to King Power Stadium

New Zealand player’s family performs Haka for him

Topless taekwondo star from Tonga turns cross-country skiier

Alonso gets a donut sendoff from Formula 1

Visually impaired Liverpool fan gets to meet players, including Mo Salah, after video of him celebrating goal goes viral

When Mo Salah made a young fan’s day

When LeBron James made a return to Cleveland as a Laker

Hamilton and Vettel exchange helmets as a symbol of mutual respect

When a high school volleyball team lost all of their kits in the California fire, their state semi-final opponents surprised them with jerseys, food and even donations!

Donovan Mitchell brightens a young fan’s day after spotting the kid wearing his high school jersey

When no one turned up for a six-year-old’s birthday party, Phoenix Suns invited him to a game against the LA Lakers

Meet the high-fiving grandmom

Alastair Cook gets a gift from media on his Test retirement

James Anderson got emotional while talking about Alastair Cook’s departure

Everyone loves N’Golo Kante

Ahead of her US Open final against Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka has a message for the American

Serena Williams asks fans to stop booing and celebrate Naomi Osaka’s US Open victory

Naomi Osaka talks about feeling like a fan again after hugging her idol Serena Williams post her US Open win

When a stray dog became the ‘assistant manager’ of a football club in Paraguay

Novak Djokovic consoles Juan Martin del Potro after beating him in the US Open final

Roger Federer coaches Zverev at Laver Cup

And here’s Federer advising Novak Djokovic as well at the Laver Cup