In 1996, Holyfield produced one of the great upsets when breaking down and stopping a resurgent Mike Tyson in 11 rounds.
A fourth risk is resurgent economic nationalism as countries such as Russia and china-and indeed america-race to secure and exploit scarce raw materials.
By January the financial crisis had faded and Europe's sovereign-debt crisis seemed less acute. America's economy was resurgent.
Mr Putin has positioned himself as the symbol of a resurgent nation recovering from years of humiliation and weakness.