Events in Sport
Event of Interest
1943 Washington Redskin Sammy Baugh passes for 6 touchdowns vs Bkln (48-10)
Sammy Baugh
Event of Interest
1950 The Big Cat, Earl Lloyd becomes the first African-American to play a game in the NBA, scoring 6 points on debut for the Washington Capitols
Earl Lloyd
- 1967 SF Giants Mike McCormick wins NL Cy Young Award
- 1968 Milwaukee Bucks win their 1st game beating Detroit 138-118 (6th game)
- 1985 Last day in Test cricket for Pakistan's Zaheer Abbas
- 1987 American jockey Chris Antley becomes first rider to win 9 races in a day (4 at Aqueduct / 5 at The Meadowlands)
- 1987 A pair in Coventry, England, ties world record for longest singles tennis match at 80 hrs 21 minutes
- 1988 1st Monday Night NFL game in Indianapolis, Colts beat Denver 55-23
- 1992 Breeders' Cup Horse Racing, Gulfstream Park; winners: A P Indy, Fraise, Gilded Time, Liza, Lure, Paseana, Thirty Slews
- 1993 25 people killed during Ghana-Ivory Coast soccer match
Event of Interest
1994 American tennis star Venus Williams makes her professional debut as a 14 year old with a 6-3, 6-4 win over former NCAA champion and world No. 58 Shaun Stafford in the Bank of the West Classic in Oakland, California
Venus Williams
- 1995 NHL NJ Devils agree to stay in NJ
- 1999 Yachtsman Jesse Martin returns to Melbourne after 11 months of circumnavigating the world, solo, non-stop and unassisted.
- 1999 Finnish McLaren driver Mika Häkkinen wins season ending Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka to clinch his second straight F1 World Drivers Championship; wins by 2 points from Irishman Eddie Irvine
Event of Interest
2003 Bethany Hamilton, aged 13, has her arm bitten off by a shark while surfing in Hawaii
Bethany Hamilton
- 2010 Belgian tennis star Kim Clijsters beats Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark 6–3, 5–7, 6–3 for her 3rd season ending WTA Championship in Doha, Qatar
Hall of Fame
2014 Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, Frank Thomas, Bobby Cox, Tony La Russa and Joe Torre are inducted into Baseball Hall of Fame, Cooperstown, NY
Tony La Russa
Greg Maddux
- 2014 Breeders' Cup Horse Racing, Santa Anita Racetrack; Day 1 winners: Hootenanny, Goldencents, Lady Eli, Untapable
- 2015 8th Rugby World Cup Final, Twickenham, London: All Blacks fly-half Dan Carter lands 4 penalties and 2 conversions as New Zealand defeats Australia, 34-17
- 2015 Breeders' Cup Horse Racing, Keeneland Racetrack; Day 2 winners: Songbird, Mongolian Saturday, Wavell Avenue, Stephanie's Kitten, Runhappy, Tepin, Nyquist, Found, American Pharoah
Birthdays in Sport
- 1883 Anthony Wilding, New Zealand tennis player (Wimbledon 1910-13), born in Christchurch, New Zealand (d. 1915)
- 1887 Newsy Lalonde, Canadian ice hockey (Montreal Canadiens) and lacrosse player, born in Cornwall, Ontario (d. 1970)
- 1887 William Whysall, British cricketer (4 Tests for England 1924-30) (d. 1930)
- 1895 C. K. Nayudu, Indian cricketer (7 Tests for India in 30's), born in Nagpur, Maharashtra (d. 1967)
- 1897 Pete Henry, American NFL tackle (Canton, NY Giants, Pottsville), born in Mansfield, Ohio (d. 1952)
- 1900 Cal Hubbard, American football and baseball player, and umpire (only person in Baseball and Football Hall of Fame), born in Keytesville, Missouri (d. 1977)
- 1902 Willie Shaw, race car driver (Indy 500-1937, 39, 40)
- 1920 Dick Francis, British jockey and detective writer (Whip Hand, High Stakes), born in Lawrenny, Pembrokeshire, Wales (d. 2010)
- 1920 Fritz Walter, German footballer, born in Kaiserslautern, Germany (d. 2002)
- 1929 Eddie Charlton, Australian snooker player, born in Merewether, Australia (d. 2004)
- 1933 Phil Goyette, Canadian ice hockey player, born in Lachine, Canada
Hobart "Hobie" Alter
1933 Hobart "Hobie" Alter, American surf and sailing entrepreneur and pioneer who created the Hobie Cat, born in Ontario, California (d. 2014)
Hobart "Hobie" Alter
- 1941 Lucas Brown Jackson, American basketball player (Olympic gold 1964), born in San Marcos, Texas
- 1941 Derek Bell, British racing driver, born in Pinner, Middlesex, England
- 1942 Dave McNally, American baseball player, born in Billings, Montana (d. 2002)
- 1946 Ramnath Parkar, Indian cricket batsman (Indian in 2 Tests v England 1972-73), born in Mumbai, India (d. 1999)
- 1947 Frank Shorter, American marathoner (Olympic gold/silver-72, 76), born in Munich, Germany
- 1951 Nick Saban, American college football coach, born in Fairmont, West Virginia
- 1953 John Lucas, NBA guard (Houston, Golden State, Milwaukee), born in Durham, North Carolina
- 1958 Russ Cochran, American golfer (Senior Open C'ship 2011), born in Paducah, Kentucky
- 1958 Jeannie Longo, French cyclist (59-time French champion and 13-time world champion), born in Annecy, France
- 1959 Ann Henricksson, tennis star, born in Saint Paul, Minnesota
- 1960 Janice Harrer, American WPVA volleyballer (US Open-1989, Olympics 1996), born in Torrance, California
- 1961 Alonzo Babers, 400m/4X400m relay (Olympic gold 1984), born in Montgomery, Alabama
- 1961 Christine Bridged, Australian European class sailor (Olympics 1996)
- 1961 Doc Rivers, NBA guard (San Antonio Spurs), born in Chicago, Illinois
- 1961 Sterling Hinds, 4X100m relayer (Olympic bronze 1984), born in Toronto, Ontario
- 1963 Fred McGriff, infielder (Atlanta Braves), born in Tampa, Florida
- 1963 Dunga [Carlos Caetano Bledorn Verri], Brazilian footballer, born in Ijuí, Brazil
- 1964 Marco van Basten, Dutch soccer star (Ajax, AC Milan), born in Utrecht, Netherlands
- 1965 Blue Edwards, NBA guard (Vancouver Grizzlies), born in Washington, D.C.
- 1965 Ruud Hesp, Dutch soccer player (Roda JC), born in Bussum, Netherlands
- 1966 Brian Keyser, American baseball pitcher (Chicago White Sox), born in Castro Valley, California
- 1968 Antonio Davis, American NBA forward-center (Indiana Pacers), born in Oakland, California
- 1968 Eddie Taubensee, American baseball catcher (Cincinnati Reds), born in Beeville, Texas
- 1969 Damon Mashore, outfielder (Oakland A's), born in Ponce, Puerto Rico
- 1969 Henry John Mills, American NFL tight end (Houston Oilers), born in Jacksonville, Florida
- 1969 Lee Woodall, NFL linebacker (SF 49ers), born in Carlisle, Pennsylvania
- 1970 Steve Trachsel, American baseball pitcher (Chicago Cubs), born in Oxnard, California
- 1971 Alphonso Ford, American basketball player, born in Greenwood, Mississippi (d. 2004)
- 1971 Ian Walker, English footballer, born in Watford, Hertfordshire, England
- 1972 Clifford Rozier, NBA center/forward (Golden State Warriors), born in Bradenton, Florida
- 1972 Jamie Asher, NFL tight end (Washington Redskins), born in Indianapolis, Indiana
- 1972 Matt Dawson, English rugby union footballer, born in Birkenhead, England
- 1973 Fiona Smith, Canadian ice hockey defenseman (Canada, Olympics 1998), born in Saskatchewan, Canada
- 1973 Ross Verba, NFL tackle (Green Bay Packers-Super Bowl 31), born in Des Moines, Iowa
- 1973 Grigorios Georgatos, Greek footballer, born in Piraeus, Greece
- 1973 Tim Byrdak, American baseball player, born in Oak Lawn, Illinois
- 1973 David Dellucci, American baseball player, born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
- 1974 Jeff Gooch, linebacker (Tampa Bay Buccaneers), born in Nashville, Tennessee
- 1974 Serge Heuveling, soccer player (NEC)
- 1974 Muzzy Izzet, Turkish footballer, born in Mile End, London
- 1975 Carla Boyd, Australian basketball player (Olympic bronze 1996), born in Wynyard, Tasmania
- 1975 Jagan Hames, Australian decathlete (Olympics 1996), born in McLaren Vale, Australia
- 1975 Fabio Celestini, Swiss footballer, born in Lausanne, Switzerland
- 1976 Guti [José María Gutiérrez Hernández], Spanish footballer, born in Torrejón de Ardoz, Spain
- 1977 Sylviane Félix, French athlete, born in Créteil, France
- 1978 Emmanuel Izonritei, Nigerian boxer
- 1978 Martin Verkerk, Dutch tennis player, born in Leiderdorp, Netherlands
- 1979 Simão Sabrosa, Portuguese footballer, born in Vila Real, Portugal
- 1979 Ricardo Fuller, Jamaican footballer, born in Kingston, Jamaica
- 1982 Tomáš Plekanec, Czech ice hockey player, born in Cladno, Czech Republic
- 1986 Chris Alajajian, Australian racing driver, born in Sydney, Australia
- 1988 Sébastien Buemi, Swiss racing driver, born in Aigle, Switzerland
Divorces in Sport
Divorce of Interest
1976 NBA legend Larry Bird (19) divorces highschool sweetheart Janet Condra only 11 months after getting married
Larry Bird
Divorce of Interest
2011 Socialite and model Kim Kardashian (31) divorces basketball player Kris Humphries (26) due to irreconcilable differences only 72 days after getting married
Kim Kardashian
Deaths in Sport
George Halas
1983 George Halas [Papa Bear], American NFL coach and pioneering owner of the Chicago Bears, dies of pancreatic cancer at 88
George Halas
- 1985 Anton Christoforidis, Greek light heavyweight boxer, dies at 68
- 1998 Elmer Vasko, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1935)
- 1999 Greg Moore, Canadian race car driver (b. 1975)
- 2001 Art Wall Jr, American golfer (Masters 1959), dies of respiratory failure at 77
- 2007 Ray Gravell, Welsh rugby union footballer (b. 1951)
- 2010 Maurice Lucas, American basketball player (b. 1952)
- 2011 Flórián Albert, Hungarian footballer (b. 1941)
- 2012 Konstantin Vyrupayev, Soviet wrestler (Greco-Roman Bantamweight Olympic Gold 1956), dies at 82
- 2018 Willie McCovey, American Baseball Hall of Fame 1st baseman (6-time All Star), dies of an infection at 80
October in History
The Gunfight at OK Corral
Said to have lasted just 30 seconds, the gunfight at OK Corral in Tombstone, Arizona, is remembered as one of the great shootouts in the annals of the Wild West
October 26, 1881The Man Who Saved The World
Many people think John F Kennedy saved the world with his handling of the Cuban missile crisis. But an unknown Russian sailor also played a dramatic role.
October 27, 1962'Splendid Achievement' becomes the 'Road To Hell'
London's orbital road, the M25 was hailed as a splendid achievement by PM Margaret Thatcher when she opened it on this day. But it soon developed another nickname...
October 29, 1986Panic Over War of the Worlds
When Orson Welles decided to present the War of the Worlds story in a radio newscast format, his broadcast on this day apparently caused panic across the US.
October 30, 1938
