Events in Sport
- 1899 Walter Camp publishes his 1st All-American football team in Collier's
- 1910 Stanley Cup: Ottawa Senators sweep Galt (Ont) in 2 games
- 1927 Harlem Globetrotters play their 1st game in Hinckley, Illinois
- 1936 Tennis champs Helen Moody & Howard Kinsley volley 2,001 times (1h18m)
- 1947 Australia v England at MCG drawn in 6 days, 1st cricket draw in Australia since 1882
Event of Interest
1955 Marian Anderson becomes the 1st African American to perform with the New York Metropolitan Opera
Marian Anderson
Event of Interest
1955 20 year-old future world heavyweight boxing champion Floyd Patterson scores a 5th-round TKO of Willie Troy in a non-title super middleweight bout at New York’s Madison Square Garden
Floyd Patterson
Event of Interest
1963 The rift between Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell and head coach Paul Brown reaches a boiling point, and Brown is fired
Paul Brown
- 1972 Los Angeles Lakers defeat the Atlanta Hawks, 134-90 for their 33rd straight win, the longest winning streak in major professional sports
- 1973 British Darts Organisation founded in North London
- 1979 AFC Championship, Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh Steelers beat Houston Oilers, 34-5
- 1979 NFC Championship, LA Memorial Coliseum Dallas Cowboys beat Los Angeles Rams, 28-0
- 1980 Minn ends Philadelphia Flyers' NHL record 35 game unbeaten streak ends
Event of Interest
1982 Islander's Bryan Trottier's 10th career hat trick
Bryan Trottier
Event of Interest
1995 Hopman Cup Tennis, Perth: Boris Becker beats Andrei Medvedev of the Ukraine 6-3, 6-7, 6-3 for a 2-0 win, and Germany's second title
Boris Becker
- 1995 Larry Brown posts his 500th career NBA coaching victory, following the Indiana Pacers' 88-83 road win at the Houston Rockets
Event of Interest
1998 Los Angeles Lakers center Shaquille O'Neal blocks 3 shots in a 114-102 win over Milwaukee to bring his career total to 1,002
Shaquille O'Neal
- 1999 NBA Board of Governors unanimously ratifies a new 6-year collective bargaining agreement between the league and the National Basketball Players Association
Event of Interest
2007 Phil Jackson wins his 900th game as a head coach, becoming the fastest coach to reach 900 career wins
Phil Jackson
Football Awards
2013 FIFA Ballon d'Or: Barcelona forward Lionel Messi wins award for a record 4th consecutive year; US forward Abby Wambach wins women's award
Lionel Messi
Abby Wambach
- 2013 College Football, 15th BCS National Championship, Sun Life Stadium, Miami Gardens: #2 Alabama beats #1 Notre Dame, 42-14
- 2019 Rain ruins last 2 days of 4th cricket Test in Sydney as India wins series 2-1; become first Asian side to win a Test series in Australia, 71 years after the first Indian touring team in 1947-48
Birthdays in Sport
- 1875 Thomas Hicks, English/US marathon runner: (Olympic gold 1904)
- 1875 Gustav Flatow, German gymnast (d. 1945)
- 1890 Maurice E McLoughlin, tennis champ (US Open-1912)
- 1911 Merv Waite, cricketer (S Australian all-rounder)
- 1913 Johnny Mize, American baseball player (d. 1993)
- 1916 Gerrit Schulte, [Le Fou Pedalant], Dutch 6 day cyclist
- 1916 Paul Keres, USSR, chess grandmaster (1950)
- 1918 Colin Snedden, cricketer (Test NZ v England 1947, 0-46, did not bat)
- 1920 Aubrey Brabazon, jockey/trainer
- 1924 Pablo Birger, Argentine racing driver (d. 1966)
- 1926 Joe Marston, Australian soccer defender (1954 FA Cup Final), born in Leichhardt, NSW (d. 2015)
- 1928 Rajindranath, cricketer (4 stumpings in his only Test for India)
- 1929 Kenneth Henry, American 500m speed skater (Olympic gold 1952)
- 1933 Diane Leather, British athlete (first woman to run sub-5 minute mile), born in Streetly, England (d. 2018)
- 1934 Charles Lamont Jenkins, American 400m runner (Olympic gold 1956), born in NYC, New York
- 1939 Tom Kierman, British(?) rugby player
- 1942 Vasiliy Ivanovich Alekseyev, USSR, weightlifter (Olympic gold 1972, 76)
- 1943 Jim Lefebvre, American baseball manager (Seattle Mariners), born in Hawthorne, California
- 1944 Arne Scheie, Norwegian sports commentator, born in Skedsmo, Norway
- 1945 Tony Conigliaro, American baseball outfielder (Boston Red Sox), born in Revere, Massachusetts (d. 1990)
- 1950 Ross Grimsley, American baseball player, born in Topeka, Kansas
- 1953 Agha Zahid, Pakistani cricketer (open batting for Pak v WI 1975, scored 14 & 1), born in Lahore, Pakistan
- 1954 Alan Butcher, English cricketer (one Test England v India, scored 14 & 20), born in Croydon, United Kingdom
- 1956 Robin Walton, American LPGA golfer (1995 GHP Heartland Classic-15th), born in Boise, Idaho
- 1956 Rosalyn Bryant, American 4x400m runner (Olympic silver 1976), born in Chicago, Illinois
- 1957 Julian Solis, Puerto Rican boxer, born in Rio Pedras, Puerto Rico
- 1962 Jeff Montgomery, American baseball player (KC Royals), born in Wellston, Ohio
- 1963 Craig Shipley, Australian-American baseball infielder (San Diego Padres), born in Parramatta, Australia
- 1964 Francisco Maciel, Mexican tennis star, born in Querétaro, Mexico
- 1965 Mark Rushmere, South African cricketer (South African opening bat in comeback Test 1992), born in Port Elizabeth, South Africa
- 1966 Jennifer Luff, Australian rower (Olympics 1996), born in Sydney, Australia
- 1966 Randy Burridge, Canadian NHL left wing (Buffalo Sabres), born in Fort Erie, Canada
- 1966 Corrie Sanders, South African boxer, (WBO heavyweight champion, 2003), born in Brits, South Africa (d. 2012)
- 1967 Guy Hebert, American NHL goalie (Anaheim Mighty Ducks, Team USA 98), born in Troy, New York
- 1967 Scott Galbraith, American NFL tight end (Washington Redskins, Dallas Cowboys), born in Sacramento, California
- 1969 Chris Hatcher, American baseball outfielder (Houston Astros), born in Kinston, North Carolina
- 1969 Erric Pegram, American NFL running back (Pit Steelers, NY Giants, San Diego Chargers), born in Dallas, Texas
- 1969 Todd Kinchen, American NFL wide receiver (St Louis Rams, Atlanta Falcons), born in Los Angeles, California
- 1970 Paul McCallum, Canadian football punter and placekicker (Claymores, Sask Roughriders), born in Vancouver, British Columbia
- 1970 Todd Day, American NBA guard/forward (Boston Celtics), born in Decatur, Illinois
- 1970 Joao Ricardo, Angolan footballer, born in Luanda, Angola
- 1972 Aaron John Mcintosh, New Zealand sailor (Olympics 1996), born in Auckland, New Zealand
- 1972 Chuck Levy, American football running back (SF 49ers), born in
- 1972 Donald Brashear, American NHL left wing (Montreal Canadiens), born in Bedford, Indiana
- 1973 Bobby Engram, American football wide receiver (Chicago Bears), born in Camden, South Carolina
- 1973 Brian Milne, American fullback (Cincinnati Bengals), born in Waterford, Pennsylvania
- 1973 Ricky Wood, American diver (Olympics 1996), born in Troy, New York
- 1973 Robert Dunn, American team handball left wing (Olympics 1996), born in Glenn Cove, New York
- 1975 Rob Waddell, New Zealand single scull rower (Olympics 1996) and America's Cup sailor (Team NZ), born in Cambridge, New Zealand
- 1976 Éric Gagné, Canadian baseball player, born in Montreal, Canada
- 1976 Alfonso Soriano, Dominican baseball player, born in San Pedro de Macorís, Dominican Republic
- 1978 Kevin Mench, American baseball player, born in Wilmington, Delaware
- 1981 Alex Auld, Canadian ice hockey player, born in Cold Lake, Canada
- 1981 Marquis Daniels, American basketball player, born in Jasper, Florida
- 1982 Francisco Rodriguez, Venezuelan baseball player, born in Caracas, Venezuela
- 1982 Hannah Stockbauer, German swimmer, born in Nuremberg, Germany
- 1982 Ianina Zanazzi, Argentine racing driver, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina
- 1983 Liesbeth Mouha, Belgian beach volleyball player, born in Tongeren, Belgium
- 1983 Natalie Gulbis, American golfer, born in Sacramento, California
- 1984 Jon Lester, American baseball player, born in Tacoma, Washington
Lewis Hamilton
1985 Lewis Hamilton, English racing driver (World F1 Champion 2008, 14-15, 17-18), born in Stevenage, England
Lewis Hamilton
- 1986 Grant Leadbitter, English footballer, born in Chester-le-Street, United Kingdom
- 1987 Davide Astori, Italian footballer (Milan), born in San Giovanni Bianco, Italy (d. 2018)
- 1989 Emiliano Insúa, Argentine footballer, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina
- 1990 Elene Gedevanishvili, Georgian figure skater, born in Tbilisi, Georgia
- 1990 Gregor Schlierenzauer, Austrian ski jumper, born in Tyrol, Austria
- 1991 Eden Hazard, Belgian football player (Chelsea, Belgian national team), born in La Louvière, Belgium
Weddings in Sport
Wedding of Interest
1989 MLB player Greg Maddux (22) weds Kathy Ronnow
Greg Maddux
Deaths in Sport
- 1913 Jack Boyle, American baseball player (b. 1866)
- 1936 Howard Francis, cricketer (2 Tests S Af v Eng 1898-99, 39 runs), dies
- 1944 George Mullin, American baseball pitcher (Detroit Tigers-no-hitter on 7/4/1912), dies at 63
- 1955 Gerald Hartigan, cricketer (South African batsman in 5 Tests 1911-14), dies
- 1960 Dorothea Lambert Chambers, British tennis player (7-time Wimbledon champion), dies at 81
- 1967 Sid Emery, cricket leg-spinner (NSW & Aus, 5 wkt in 1912 series), dies
- 1972 Clarence Passailaigue, Jamaican cricketer (487 for 6th wkt for Jamaica), dies at 70
- 1982 Bert Oosterhuis, Dutch motor racer (Paris-Dakar), dies in race crash
Bronko Nagurski
1990 Bronislau "Bronko" Nagurski, football hall of famer, dies at 81
Bronko Nagurski
- 1990 Horace Stoneham, baseball owner (Giants), dies at 86
- 1990 Joseph Robbie, lawyer/NFL owner (Miami Dolphins), dies at 73
- 1991 Joe Hicks, baseball coach, dies of cancer at 64
- 1995 Harry Golombek, chess Grandmaster, dies at 83
- 2007 Bobby Hamilton, NASCAR team owner (b. 1957)
- 2011 Derek Gardner, British Formula 1 car designer (b. 1931)
January in History
'The Most Famous of All Streaks'
Erika Roe bounced into the history books on this day when, topless, she skipped onto the pitch at a rugby game to the roar of 60,000 cheering spectators.
January 2, 1982
Designer Throws His Hat Into the Ring; Creates a Sensation
The first time a man stepped out in London wearing a topper it caused a sensation, then a court case. Who now could imagine Fred Astaire without his famous top hat?
January 5, 1797
A Crackdown on Lovers in New York
New York wasn't always a free and easy city. Time was when not only adultery was a crime, but even looking at a lady in the wrong way could land a guy in trouble.
January 8, 1902
The Man Who Saved Elton John's Life
Long John Baldry was born on this day - a friend of stars from Rod Stewart to The Beatles and who, in 1969, famously took Elton John aside and saved the life.
January 12, 1941