2020 An Impactful Year In Sports

 I love sports. All things sports. So 2020 was extremely hard for me especially for several months when the sporting world went silent. 

When it did start back up there were amazing feats individually and by teams. Personally my favourite team Liverpool won their first league title in 30 years. Naomi Ozaka dominated the US Women’s Tennis Open both with her play and her promotion of racial injustice. The Black Lives Matter movement was embraced by the sporting world. Players took knees for anthems. Players boycotted games. Players created open dialogue and a forum for discussion. The sporting world will have changed forever and for the better.

The sporting world also lost a significant number of luminaries who many made an impression on their sports and life in general. It started early with David Stern and Don Larsen on January 1. Don Larsen is the only picture to pitch a perfect game in the World Series. David Stern was NBA commissioner who turned the NBA into a global entity. Stars were aplenty with Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant whose death on Jan 27th shocked the world. 

The hockey world lost Henri Pocket Rocket Richard, Eddie the Entertainer Shack who had a hit song named after him. With a famous line “Clear the Track, Here Comes Shack”. Dale Ducky Hawerchuk. A beloved Winnipeg Jet. The greatest to ever wear their jersey. I had the pleasure of meeting him twice. Once at Big Brothers of Winnipeg AGM and than at his induction into Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame. He was true to Winnipeg and Winnipeg was true to him.  

Baseball lost many Hall of Farmers including Whitey Ford, Bob Gibson, Tom Seaver, Darryl Cousins, Dick Allen, Tony Fernandez, Al Kaline, Lou Brock Bob Watson and Joe Morgan who I met when I went on a tour of the Cincinnati Reds stadium and Hall of Fame in 2013. I got a miniature statue of his as a keepsake. 

American football lost Gayle Sayers, Willie Wood, Bobby Mitchell (first African American to play for the Washington Football Team), Paul Hornung (Heisman winner who became more famous for his off field gambling exploits), Tarvaris Jackson, Fred Dean, Chris Doleman, Jim Kick and Tom Dempsey was born without toes on his kicking foot and for years held the record for longest field goal. One of the last of the straight on kickers. 

The coaching profession was hit hard with both college and pro football and basketball. One of my favourites John Thompson the towering figure of Georgetown Hoyas the first African American coach to win the championship. However, for me it was his kind words to Fred Brown in defeat that defined him for me. They had lost the 1981 title game and Fred Brown passed the ball to the opposing player by mistake. He was inconsolable and Thompson said to him, son if that is the only mistake you make you will live a charmed life. Fred Brown works mentoring inner city youth in Washington DC. Other coaching deaths were Lute Olson, Eddie Sutton, Johnny Majors, George Perles, Sam Whyche, Tom Webster, Jerry Sloan, Joe Bugel, Billy Tubbs, Lou Henson, Tom Heinsohn, Morgan Wooton winningest high school coach DeMatha High School and Don Shula winningest NFL coach (Miami Dolphins) 

Basketball lost Cliff Robinson (Survivor contestant) Curly Neal Harlem Globetrotter and greatest dribbler on record, Wes Unseld won NBA title with Washington Bullets the next year they changed the name to the Wizards. 

Other notables who died Mike Sexton World Series of Poker Champion, Rafer Johnson 1960 decathlon gold medalist, Pete Dye golf course designer, Peter Allis British golfing commentator. Travis Roy who created the ice bucket challenge who on his first shift for Boston College was paralyzed. Kurt Thomas Olympic Gold Medalist Gymnast, Phyllis George a pioneer in broadcasting. Two of the greatest soccer players Paola Rossi and Diego Maradona both beautifully skilled players who had off field problems. 

2020 was an impactful year in sports and I am eager to see how 2021 will play out. I will be rooting for my favourite teams. I will be cheering on the amazing feats and people of the world of sports. Sports plays a huge role in shaping life.