Events in Sport
- 1818 Baron Karl von Drais de Sauerbrun patents "draisine" (early bicycle)
- 1882 1st Test Cricket match played at Sydney Cricket Ground
NHL Record
1923 Ottawa left wing Cy Denneny passes Joe Malone as all-time NHL goal scoring leader; scores his 143rd career goal in Senators' 2-0 win over Montreal Canadiens
Cy Denneny
Event of Interest
1924 American swimmer Johnny Weissmuller sets 100m world freestyle record 57.4s at Miami, Florida
Johnny Weissmuller
- 1927 Toronto Maple Leafs beat the New York Americans, 4-1 in the team's first game since changing name from "St. Patricks"
- 1928 American brothers, Jennison and John Heaton fight out the top placings in the cresta (now known as skeleton) at the St. Moritz Winter Olympics; Jennison takes the gold by 1.0s
- 1928 Johan Grøttumsbråten leads a Norwegian sweep of the medals in the 18k cross country at the St. Moritz Winter Olympics; he also wins the Nordic combined gold the following day
- 1931 1st telecast of a sporting event in Japan (baseball)
- 1939 Katwijk soccer team forms in the Netherlands
Event of Interest
1943 NY Yankee Joe DiMaggio enlists into the US army
Joe DiMaggio
Event of Interest
1951 Detroit right wing Gordie Howe scores his 100th career NHL goal and adds an assist in a 2-1 Red Wings' victory away to the Montreal Canadiens
Gordie Howe
- 1952 Montreal Canadiens center Elmer Lach picks up his 354th career assist in a 3-2 loss at the NY Rangers to become the NHL's all-time assists leader; passes Bill Cowley's mark
- 1952 Trude Jochum-Beiser of Austria wins the downhill gold medal at the Oslo Winter Olympics; second career gold medal after taking out the combined event at St. Moritz (1948)
- 1953 DSB soccer team forms in Eindhoven (now PSV Eindhoven), Netherlands
- 1955 Ice Dance Championship at Vienna Austria won by J Westwood/Demmy GRB
- 1955 Ladies Figure Skating Championship in Vienna won by Tenley Albright US
- 1955 Mike Souchak sets PGA 72-hole record of 257 (not broken until 2001)
- 1956 Ice Dance Championship at Garmisch won by Pamela Weight/P Thomas GRB
Event of Interest
1962 Wilt Chamberlain of NBA Philadelphia Warriors scores 67 points vs St Louis Hawks
Wilt Chamberlain
- 1963 Japanese runner Toru Terasawa runs a world record marathon (2:15:15.8) at the Beppu Marathon on the island of Kyushu, Japan
- 1964 101st member elected to Baseball Hall of Fame, Chicago WS shortstop Luke Appling
- 1965 US-Japan baseball relations suspended over Masanori Murakami dispute
- 1968 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Springfield, Massachusetts opens
- 1968 Frenchman Jean Claude-Killy completes a clean sweep of the alpine skiing events at the Grenoble Winter Olympics when he wins the slalom; also takes out the downhill and giant slalom
- 1968 Norwegian cross country skier Ole Ellefsæter wins 50k event at the Grenoble Winter Olympics; 2nd gold medal of the Games (4 x 10k relay)
- 1968 Soviet Union wins its 3rd Olympic ice hockey gold medal in Grenoble; clinch title with final round, 5-0 win over Canada; Soviet LW Anatoli Firsov top scores with 16 points
- 1971 England regains cricket Ashes with a 2-0 series win
- 1973 Rodney Redmond scores 107 on debut v Pakistan, his only Test Cricket
- 1974 49 die in stampede for seats at soccer match, Cairo, Egypt
Daytona 500
1974 16th Daytona 500: Richard Petty first driver to win back-to-back titles at Daytona; his 5th Great American race
Richard Petty
- 1976 NZ scores their 1st innings win in Test Cricket, v India
Event of Interest
1976 Richard Hadlee takes 7-23 New Zealand v India, his 1st match-winning spell
Richard Hadlee
- 1979 Eric Heiden equals skating world record 1000m (1:14.99)
- 1980 22nd Daytona 500: Buddy Baker wins ahead of Bobby Allison and Neil Bonnett
- 1980 Sapporo downhill silver medallist Annemarie Moser-Pröll of Austria goes one better with gold at the Lake Placid Winter Olympics
- 1980 Swedish cross-country skier Thomas Wassberg earns first of 4 career Olympic gold medals in the 15k at Lake Placid; wins by 0.01s from Finland's Juha Mieto; closest margin of victory ever in Olympic cross-country skiing
- 1982 Commencement of Sri Lanka's 1st Test Cricket match, v England
- 1984 Biathletes Eirik Kvalfoss of Norway and West German Peter Angerer finish 2nd & 3rd respectively in the relay at the Sarajevo Winter Olympics; both have complete sets of medals from biathlon events at the Games
- 1985 Dutch speed skater Hein Vergeer becomes World Allround champion
- 1985 27th Daytona 500: After taking pole at then-record speed of 205.114 mph Bill Elliott dominates race leading 136 of 200 laps
Event of Interest
1987 Don Mattingly wins highest salary arbitration ($1,975,000 per year)
Don Mattingly
Event of Interest
1989 Former baseball player and manager Leo Durocher injured in a car crash
Leo Durocher
- 1991 US male Figure Skating championship won by Todd Eldredge
- 1991 33rd Daytona 500: Ernie Irvan, driving for Morgan-McClure Motorsports coasts to win after challengers crash on finals laps
- 1993 Mark Foster swims world record 50m free style (21.60 sec)
- 1993 Hartford right wing Pat Verbeek scores his 300th career NHL goal and adds his 300th career assist in a 5-3 Whalers' home loss to the Buffalo Sabres
Event of Interest
1995 Tiger Manager Sparky Anderson takes unpaid leave due to baseball strike
Sparky Anderson
- 1996 1st full ODI for the Netherlands, v NZ, cricket World Cup Nolan Clarke makes ODI debut for Netherlands at age 47
Event of Interest
1996 Garry Kasparov defeats Deep Blue 4-2 in chess
Garry Kasparov
- 1998 USA Women's Ice Hockey Team beats Canada and wins the first Olympic Gold medal
- 2002 44th Daytona 500: Ward Burton's win first for Dodge since Richard Petty's victory in the 1974 race
NBA All-Star Game
2008 57th NBA All-Star Game, New Orleans Arena, New Orleans, LA: East beats West, 134-128; MVP: LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers, F
LeBron James
- 2008 50th Daytona 500: Ryan Newman wins shootout going into the final turn from Tony Stewart, and the Busch brothers, Kurt and Kyle
- 2012 Approximately 70 ancient Olympic artifacts are stolen from the Archaeological Museum of Greece
- 2013 62nd NBA All-Star Game, Toyota Centre, Houston, TX: West beats East, 143-138; MVP: Chris Paul, LA Clippers, G
- 2013 Jess Cameron with 75 and Elise Perry 3-27 lead Australia to 114 run win over West Indies in the Women's Cricket World Cup Final in Bombay, India
- 2014 Belarusian biathlete Darya Domracheva wins her 3rd gold medal of the Sochi Winter Olympics in the mass start; also wins individual and pursuit gold
- 2014 American pair Meryl Davis and Charlie White win the first Olympic gold medal for the US in ice dance at the Sochi Winter Games
- 2014 Belarus takes the aerials double at the Sochi Winter Olympics when Anton Kushnir wins the men's event; Alla Tsuper claims the women's section
Event of Interest
2016 Nike ends endorsement deal with Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao after he made TV comments gay people are "worse than animals."
Manny Pacquiao
- 2018 Czech skier Ester Ledecká wins super-G gold medal at Pyeongchang Winter Olympics; later wins parallel giant slalom snowboarding to be first female to win gold in different sports at a single Games
- 2018 Britain's Lizzy Yarnold wins her 2nd consecutive Olympic women's skeleton gold medal in Pyeongchang; also wins event in Sochi (2014)
- 2018 Russian biathlete Anastasiya Kuzmina wins her 3rd career Olympic gold medal in women's 12.5k mass start in Pyeongchang; 7.5k sprint champion in Vancouver (2010) and Sochi (2014)
- 2018 Japanese defending champion Yuzuru Hanyu retains his Olympic men's figure skating title by winning the gold medal at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics; first wins gold at Sochi (2014)
- 2018 10k freestyle cross country champion Ragnhild Haga and 30k classical winner Marit Bjørgen win their 2nd Olympic gold medal in Pyeongchang as part of Norway's 4 x 5k relay team
- 2018 Polish ski jumper Kamil Stoch retains his Olympic individual large hill title (Sochi 2014) with gold in Pyeongchang; beats normal hill winner Andreas Wellinger of Germany by 3.4m
- 2019 NBA All Star Game, Spectrum Centre, Charlotte, NC: Team LeBron beats Team Giannis, 178-164; MVP: Kevin Durant GS Warriors, F
Daytona 500
2019 61st Daytona 500: Joe Gibbs Racing goes 1-2-3; Denny Hamlin holds off reigning Cup Series champion Joey Logano and teammate Kyle Busch to win his 2nd Great American Race
Joe Gibbs
- 2020 62nd Daytona 500: Denny Hamlin wins second straight title by 0.014 seconds over Ryan Blaney on the second restart in overtime; his third Daytona victory
Event of Interest
2020 Laureus World Sports Awards, Berlin, Germany: Sportsman: Lewis Hamilton & Lionel Messi; Sportswoman: Simone Biles; Team: South Africa National Rugby Union team
Birthdays in Sport
- 1893 Wally Pipp, American baseball player (d. 1965)
- 1898 Tom Lowry, cricketer New Zealand cricketer (NZ batsman in seven Tests & their 1st Test captain), born in Fernhill, New Zealand (d. 1976)
- 1905 Andy Oberlander, American College Football Hall of Fame halfback and coach (National C'ship 1954), born in Chelsea, Massachusetts (d. 1968)
- 1908 Walter L "Red" Barber, Miss, sports announcer (Bkln Dodgers, NY Yanks)
- 1909 Joseph "Poeske" Scherens, Belgian cyclist (champ sprinter 1932-37)[NS]
- 1916 Don Tallon, Australian cricketer (perhaps Australia's greatest wicket-keeper), born in Bundaberg, Australia (d. 1984)
- 1916 Alexander Obolensky, Russian prince and famed Rugby Union footballer who played for England.(d. 1940)
- 1916 Vivian McGrath, Australian tennis player (Australian C'ship 1937), born in Merrendee, NSW (d. 1978)
- 1919 Joe Hunt, American tennis player (US Nat C'ship 1943), born in San Francisco, California (d. 1945)
- 1922 Marshall Teague, American race car driver (d. 1959)
- 1929 Paul Meger, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1931 Buddy Ryan, NFL coach (Philadelphia Eagles, Phoenix Cardinals), born in Frederick, Oklahoma (d. 2016)
- 1936 Barry Jarman, Australian cricket wicket-keeper (19 Tests; 54 dismissals), born in Adelaide, South Australia (d. 2020)
Jim Brown
1936 Jim Brown, American NFL Running Back (Cleveland Browns), born in St. Simons, Georgia
Jim Brown
- 1936 Peter Walker, English cricket batsman (3 Tests; Glamorgan CCC), born in Bristol, England (d. 2020)
- 1940 Dennis Gamsy, South African cricketer (South African bat in 2 Tests v Australia 1970), born in Glenwood, South Africa
- 1940 Willi Holdorf, German athlete (Olympic gold, United Team of Germany, decathlon 1964), born in Blomesche Wildnis, Germany (d. 2020)
- 1941 Heidi Biebi, German downhill skier (Olympic gold 1960), born in Oberstaufen, West Germany
- 1946 Valdemar Bandolowski, Danish sailor (Olympic gold 1976, 80)
- 1948 Rick Majerus, American college basketball coach (5× WAC Coach of the Year; Uni of Utah), born in Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin (d. 2012)
- 1952 Insook Bhushan, US table tennis player (Olympic-92), born in Seoul, South Korea
- 1952 Karin Janz, East German gymnast (medals at 1968 Olympics, born in Lübben, East Germany
- 1958 Karen Lende O'Connor, equestrian 3-day (Olympic silver 1996), born in Concord, Massachusetts
- 1959 Ambrose "Rowdy" Gaines, American 100m swimmer (3 Olympic golds 1984) and television commentator, born in Winter Haven, Florida
- 1961 Deb[ra] Richardson, beach volleyballer (Olympics 1996), born in Minneapolis, Minnesota
- 1961 Guy McIntyre, NFL guard (Philadelphia Eagles)
- 1962 Hennie Meijer, Dutch soccer player (Cambuur L, FC Heerenveen)
- 1962 Tony Blain, New Zealand cricketer (NZ Test wicket-keeper)
Michael Jordan
1963 Michael Jordan, American Basketball Hall of Fame forward, owner (5-time NBA MVP, 6-time NBA champion Chicago Bulls), born in Brooklyn, New York
Michael Jordan
- 1964 Mike Campbell, American pitcher (Chicago Cubs), born in Seattle, Washington
- 1964 Buster Olney, American sports columnist
- 1965 Jim Bowie, Japanese-American baseball infielder (Oakland Athletics)
- 1966 Luc Robitaille, NHL left wing (NY Rangers, Pitts Penguins), born in Montreal, Quebec
- 1966 Ioannis Kalitzakis, Greek footballer, born in Eleusis, Greece
- 1967 Gary Shuchuk, Canadian former NHL centre and coach (LA Kings), born in Edmonton, Alberta
- 1967 Robert Massey, American NFL cornerback (Arizona Cardinals, Detroit Lions) and coach, born in Rock Hill, South Carolina
- 1968 Bryan Cox, American NFL linebacker and coach (Miami Dolphins, Chicago Bears), born in East St. Louis, Illinois
- 1968 Celita Schutz, American half-middleweight judoka (Olympics 1996), born in Riverdale, New Jersey
- 1969 David Klingler, American NFL quarterback (Oakland Raiders, Cin Bengals), born in Houston, Texas
- 1969 Joel Steed, American NFL nose tackle (Pittsburgh Steelers), born in Frankfurt, Germany
- 1969 Levon Kirkland, American NFL linebacker (Pittsburgh Steelers), born in Lamar, South Carolina
- 1970 Tommy Moe, American nordic skier (Olympic-gold/silver-1994), born in Anchorage, Alaska
- 1972 Lloy Ball, American volleyball setter (Olympics 1996), born in Ft Wayne, Indiana
- 1972 Richard MacQuire, Australian canoeist (Olympics 1996), born in Melbourne, Victoria
- 1972 Stephen Robinson, rower (Olympics 1996), born in Arlington, Virginia
- 1972 Tony Lawson, NSA Australia, diver (Olympics 1996)
- 1972 Vladimir Vujtek, Czech NHL forward (Team Czech Olympic gold 1998, Tampa Bay), born in Ostrava, Czechoslovakia)
- 1972 William Floyd, American NFL full back (San Francisco 49ers), born in Jacksonville, Florida
- 1973 Chris Robinson, NBA guard (Vancouver Grizzlies)
- 1973 Drew Barry, NBA guard (Atlanta Hawks)
- 1973 Frank Sanders, NFL wide receiver (Arizona Cardinals)
- 1973 Raymond Jackson, NFL defensive back (Buffalo Bills)
- 1975 Sung-Hee Park, Korean tennis star (1993 Futures-Seoul), born in Pusan, Korea
- 1975 Todd Harvey, Canadian NHL center (Dallas Stars), born in Hamilton, Ontario
- 1975 Vaclav Prospal, NHL forward (Team Czech Olympic gold 1998, Philadelphia)
- 1976 Scott Williamson, American baseball player
- 1977 Matthew Kaminski, jazz, and baseball organist (Atlanta Braves), polka accordionist, and educator, born in Chicago, Illinois
- 1979 Josh Willingham, American baseball player
- 1980 Shanyn MacEachern, Brampton Ontario, gymnast (Olympics 1996)
- 1980 Klemi Saban, Israeli soccer defender (25 caps; Maccabi Netanya), born in Netanya, Israel
- 1980 Al Harrington, American basketball player
- 1981 Donielle Thompson, American gymnast (World-bronze-95, Olympics 1996), born in Wheat Ridge, Colorado
- 1981 Lisa Skinner, Australian gymnast (Olympics 1996), born in Queensland, Australia
- 1982 Adriano, Brazilian footballer, born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- 1982 Brian Bruney, American baseball player, born in Astoria, Oregon
- 1983 Gérald Cid, French footballer, born in Talence, France
- 1984 AB de Villiers, South African cricketer, born in Warmbad, South Africa
- 1986 Joey O'Brien, Irish footballer, born in Dublin, Ireland
- 1995 Madison Keys, American tennis player (US Open runner-up 2017), born in Rock Island, Illinois
Weddings in Sport
- 2007 Australian TV presenter Natalie Gruzlewski (30) weds pro surfer Luke Egan at St. Augustine's Catholic Church
Deaths in Sport
- 1929 John Read, English cricketer (batted in 17 Tests for Eng for 463 runs), dies
- 1934 Siegbert Tarrasch, German chess player (b. 1862)
- 1959 Tim Mara, American founder and administrator (NFL NY Giants), dies at 59
- 1982 Nestor Chylak, American baseball umpire (b. 1922)
- 1989 Lefty Gomez, pitching great (NY Yankees), dies at 80
- 1990 Hap Day, Canadian Hockey Hall of Fame defenceman (Stanley Cup 1932 [captain], 42, 45, 47, 48, 1949 [coach], 1951 [assistant manager]; Toronto Maple Leafs), dies at 88
- 1993 Leslie Townsend, English cricket all-rounder (England in 4 Tests 1930-34), dies at 89
- 2001 Bob Geary, Canadian football player and manager (b. 1933)
- 2004 Shirley Strickland, Australian athlete (Olympic gold 80m hurdles 1952, 56; 4 x 100m relay 1956), dies at 78
- 2005 Omar Sívori, Argentine soccer forward and manager (19 caps Argentina, 9 caps Italy; Juventus), dies of pancreatic cancer at 69
- 2008 Brian Harris, English footballer and manager, dies at 72
- 2016 Andy Ganteaume, Trinidadian cricketer (West Indian batsman who scored 112 in his only Test innings 1948), dies at 95
- 2016 Tony Phillips, American MLB player (Oakland Athletics), dies at 56
- 2017 Peter Richardson, British cricketer (England batsman mid-50's), dies at 85
- 2020 Terry Lineen, New Zealand rugby union centre (12 caps; Auckland), dies at 84
Mickey Wright
2020 Mickey Wright, American golfer (13 major titles; 82 LPGA Tour wins), dies from a heart attack at 85
Mickey Wright
- 2021 Özcan Arkoç, Turkish soccer goalkeeper (9 caps; Hamburger SV) and manager (Hamburger SV, Hannover 96), dies at 81
- 2021 Gianluigi Saccaro, Italian fencer (Olympic gold épée team 1960; silver épée team 1964; bronze épée 1968), dies at 82
- 2021 Martí Vergés, Spanish soccer midfielder (12 caps; FC Barcelona), dies at 86
