Today’s Sports Highlight in History:
In 1994, Tonya Harding is stripped of her national title and banned for life from the U.S. Figure Skating Association because of her role in an attack on Nancy Kerrigan.
On this date:
1909 — Jack Johnson fights Tony Ross to a no decision in 6 rounds at Duquesne Gardens, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to retain his heavyweight boxing title.
1916 — Amateur Chick Evans Jr. wins the U.S. Open with a record 286 total.
1929 — Bobby Jones beats Al Espinosa by 23 strokes in a 36-hole playoff to win the U.S. Open.
1962 — Murle Lindstrom wins the U.S. Women’s Open by two strokes over Jo Anne Prentice and Ruth Jessen.
1965 — The NFL grants Atlanta a franchise. Rankin Smith Sr., an Executive Vice President of Life Insurance Company of Georgia, pays $8.5 million for the franchise. It’s the highest price paid in league history at the time.
1975 — Muhammad Ali retains world heavyweight boxing crown by beating Englishman Joe Bugner by unanimous points decision in a re-match in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
1978 — Willie McCovey becomes the 12th player in major league history to hit 500 home runs.
1991 — Wimbledon breaks 114 years of tradition by playing on the middle Sunday of the tournament, a move forced by a huge backlog of matches caused by rain earlier in the week.
1991 — Meg Mallon sinks a 10-foot birdie putt on the final hole to break a tie with Pat Bradley and Ayako Okamoto and win the LPGA Championship.
1993 — NBA Draft: Michigan center Chris Webber first pick by Orlando Magic (traded to Golden State).
1994 — Diego Maradona is kicked out of the World Cup by FIFA for failing a drug test following Argentina’s June 25 victory over Nigeria in Foxboro, Mass.
1995 — Eddie Murray of the Cleveland Indians becomes the second switch-hitter and the 20th player in baseball history to reach 3,000 hits when he singles in the sixth inning against the Minnesota Twins. Murray joins Pete Rose, the career hits leader with 4,256.
1996 — UEFA European Championship Final, Wembley Stadium, London, England: Oliver Bierhoff scores his second goal in extra time as Germany beat Czech Republic, 2-1.
1999 — NBA Draft: Duke power forward Elton Brand first pick by Chicago Bulls.
2002 — Ronaldo scores both goals to lead Brazil to a 2-0 victory over Germany for the team’s record fifth World Cup title.
2012 — Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan becomes the first player in a Grand Slam tournament to win every point of a set on her way to beating French Open runner-up Sara Errani 6-0, 6-4 in the third round of Wimbledon.
2013 — Inbee Park wins the U.S. Women’s Open for her third straight major this year. Babe Zaharias is the last player to win three straight majors on the calendar, but that was in 1950 when that’s all there were.
2013 — NHL Draft: Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL) center Nathan MacKinnon #1 pick by Colorado Avalanche.
2015 — The United States defeat Germany 2-0 in semifinals at Women’s World Cup. Carli Lloyd converts a penalty kick for Team USA and a 1-0 lead. Substitute Kelley O’Hara scores in the 84th minute off a Lloyd cross to seal the U.S. team’s 2-0 victory.
2016 — Coastal Carolina capitalizes on two errors on the same play for four unearned runs in the sixth inning, and the Chanticleers win their first national championship in any sport with a 4-3 victory over Arizona in Game 3 of the College World Series finals. The Chanticleers are the first program since Minnesota in 1956 to win the title in its first CWS appearance.
2018 — FIFA World Cup: Kylian Mbappé (19) becomes only 2nd teenager (Pelé 1st 1958) to score twice in a World Cup match as France eliminate Argentina 4-3 in Kazan.
2020 — FC Barcelona’ Argentine soccer player Lionel Messi scores his 700th career goal in a 2-2 draw with Atletico Madrid.
2021 — Washington Nationals shortstop Trea Turner ties the major league record with his third hit for the cycle in a 15-6 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.