“If not you, who? If not now, when?” - Garry Herbert
#MJMondays
“You work your whole life to try to be the best you can, even if it’s for only one day or one week.” - Lindsay Davenport
Mar. 6, 1985 - Mike Tyson made his professional debut as an 18-year-old
Mike Tyson made his professional debut as an 18-year-old, defeating Hector Mercedes via first round knockout.
Tyson won gold medals at the 1981 and 1982 Junior Olympic Games, defeating Joe Cortez in 1981 and beating Kelton Brown in 1982. Brown’s corner threw in the towel in the first round. He holds the Junior Olympic record for quickest knockout (8 seconds). He won every bout at the Junior Olympic Games by knockout.
Tyson had 15 bouts in his first year as a professional. Fighting frequently, Tyson won 26 of his first 28 fights by KO or TKO; 16 of those came in the first round. The quality of his opponents gradually increased to journeyman fighters and borderline contenders, like James Tillis, David Jaco, Jesse Ferguson, Mitch Green and Marvis Frazier. His win streak attracted media attention and Tyson was billed as the next great heavyweight champion. D’Amato died in November 1985, relatively early into Tyson’s professional career; some speculate that his death was the genesis of many of the troubles Tyson was to experience as his life and career progressed.
Mike Tyson vs. Hector Mercedes full fight video:
Happy 50th Birthday, Charles Barkley!
Nicknamed “Chuck”, “Sir Charles”, and “The Round Mound of Rebound”, Charles Barkley established himself as one of the NBA’s most dominating power forwards. He was drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers with the 5th pick of the 1984 NBA Draft. He was selected to the All-NBA First Team five times, the All-NBA Second Team five times, and once to the All-NBA Third Team. He earned eleven NBA All-Star Game appearances and was named the All-Star MVP in 1991. In 1993, he was voted the league’s Most Valuable Player and during the NBA’s 50th anniversary, named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. He competed in the 1992 and 1996 Olympic games and won two gold medals as a member of the United States’ Dream Team. In 2006, Barkley was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
In 2000, Barkley retired as the fourth player in NBA history to achieve 20,000 points, 10,000 rebounds and 4,000 assists. Since retiring as a player, Barkley has had a successful career as a television NBA analyst.
“Awards become corroded, friends gather no dust.” - Jesse Owens
“Age is no barrier. It’s a limitation you put on your mind.” - Jackie Joyner-Kersee
“A trophy carries dust. Memories last forever.” - Mary Lou Retton
Jan. 30, 1996 - Magic Johnson made his comeback with the Lakers
Four years after he last stepped on an NBA court (the 1992 All-Star Game), Magic Johnson donned the Lakers uni again on Jan. 30, 1996, against the Warriors. Coming off the bench and playing power forward, Magic posted 19 points, eight boards and 10 assists, including one memorable ball-fake on Latrell Sprewell that had Spree on Amber Alert. Magic averaged 14.6 points, 5.7 boards and 6.9 dimes in 32 games following his mid-season comeback, and the Lakers lost to the Rockets (Hakeem, Drexler, Horry, Cassell) in the first round of the playoffs. After that series Magic retired again, on his own terms.
Highlights from Magic’s comeback game vs Golden State Warriors:
“You can’t get much done in life if you only work on the days when you feel good.” - Jerry West
Jan. 26, 1956 - The Winter Olympics opened in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy
This celebration of the Games was held from 26 January to 5 February 1956. The city was originally slated to host the 1944 event but that was cancelled due to World War II. The Cortina Games were unique in that all of the venues except one were within walking distance of each other.
Thirty-two nations—the largest number of participating Winter Olympic countries to that point—competed in the four disciplines and twenty-four events. The Soviet Union made its Winter Olympics debut and won more medals than any nation. Austrian Toni Sailer became the first person to sweep all three alpine skiing events in a single Olympics. The figure skating competition was held outdoors for the last time at these Games. Logistically, the only problem encountered was a lack of snow at the alpine skiing events. To remedy this, the Italian army transported large amounts of snow to ensure the courses were adequately covered.
These are the top ten nations that won medals at the 1956 Winter Olympics:
1 — Soviet Union: 7 Gold, 3 Silver, 6 Bronze = 16 Total
2 — Austria: 4 Gold, 3 Silver, 4 Bronze = 11 Total
3 — Finland: 3 Gold, 3 Silver, 1 Bronze = 7 Total
4 — Switzerland: 3 Gold, 2 Silver, 1 Bronze = 6 Total
5 — Sweden: 2 Gold, 4 Silver, 4 Bronze = 10 Total
6 — United States: 2 Gold, 3 Silver, 2 Bronze = 7 Total
7 — Norway: 2 Gold, 1 Silver, 1 Bronze = 4 Total
8 — Italy: 1 Gold, 2 Silver, 0 Bronze = 3 Total
9 — Germany: 1 Gold, 0 Silver, 1 Bronze = 2 Total
10 — Canada: 0 Gold, 1 Silver, 2 Bronze = 3 Total
“When I go out on the ice, I just think about my skating. I forget it is a competition.” - Katarina Witt
“Walk to the stadium. Sprint to the finish.” - Perri Shakes Drayton
“It takes a lot of hard work and dedication just like any pro sport. Especially for beach volleyball you don’t have to be tall or as fast as other sports. You just have to have the skills.” - Misty May
Sept. 5, 1960 - Cassius Clay won the gold medal in light heavyweight boxing
Before Muhammad Ali, there was an 18 year old named Cassius Clay (178 lbs) that entered the Light Heavyweight division of the 1960 Rome Olympics. Clay went 5-0 on his way to winning gold.
He received a first round bye, and then went on to win his next fight due to a referee stoppage in the 2nd round. He would then finish off his last three fights with convincing unanimous decisions.
The gold medal fight was against Poland’s Zbigniew Pietrzykowski, who was making a return trip to the Olympics after winning bronze in Melbourne 1956.
Cassius Clay vs Zbigniew Pietrzykowsky: 1960 Olympics Video
