The 20 Greatest Moments In Sports - for African American Athletes - Brief Article

Ebony, Dec, 1999

In this tough and demanding society, sports provide a welcome respite from the everyday struggles of life, delivering the kind of satisfying entertainment that, for some, is only produced by athletic competition.

And from the early part of the century when Jack Johnson vanquished "the Great White Hope" to Jackie Robinson's triumph to Michael Jordan's final shot, the sports world has provided some of the most memorable and enduring moments in the past 100 years.

While some of the special moments recall the extraordinary performances of beloved icons, others are examples of incredible perseverance and determination that propelled the participants in the face of bitter prejudice and hate.

In decade after decade, the performances of African-American athletes have created undying memories that continue to resonate--still inspirational, still moving and some still unbelievable.

As we approach the end of the century, EBONY has focused on what many believe to be the 20 greatest moments in sports--those moments that are so powerful and enduring that they helped to shape a century and will serve as inspiration for those athletes who follow in the new millennium.

20 GREATEST MOMENTS IN SPORTS

(Listed in chronological order)

1. JACK JOHNSON retained his heavyweight championship in 1910 with a win over Jim Jeffries, "the Great White Hope," who angry Whites had urged to come out of retirement to take the title from the Black champ.

2. JESSE OWENS won four gold medals (100-, 200-meter dashes, 400-meter relay and the broad jump) at the 1936 Olympics, smashing Hitler's theory of Aryan supremacy.

3. JOSH GIBSON hit the longest home run ever documented--580 feet--in 1937 in Yankee Stadium. Legend has it that the ball would have sailed out of the stadium had he hit it two feet farther.

4. JOE LOUIS knocked out Max Schmeling in a 1938 fight to avenge an earlier defeat. With World War II on the horizon and nationalism at its peak, spontaneous celebrations erupted when Louis crushed his German challenger in the first round.

5. JACKIE ROBINSON broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball in the modern era when he made his debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15,1947, at Ebbets Field.

6. SUGAR RAY ROBINSON won the middleweight title by scoring a 13th-round TKO over Jake LaMotta on February 14,1951, in Chicago.

7. ALTHEA GIBSON became the first African-American to win the Wimbledon title on July 6,1957. She defeated Darlene Hard 6-3, 6-2 in 100-degree heat.

8. WILMA RUDOLPH won three Olympic gold medals in Rome on Sept. 2 & 3, 1960. A victim of polio as as child, she excelled in the 100- and 200-meter dashes, and the 400-meter relay.

9. WILT CHAMBERLAIN scored 100 points in a game on March 2, 1962, in a 169-147 victory over the New York Knicks in Hershey, Pa.

10. JIM BROWN played his last regular-season game on December 19, 1965, against the St. Louis Cardinals in St. Louis and retired in his prime after gaining a record-setting 12,312 yards during a nine-year career.

11. TOMMIE SMITH & JOHN CARLOS' black-gloved salute at the 1968 Olympics, which focused international attention on the Black struggle for human and civil rights, and raised the level of Black consciousness in the U.S.

12. MUHAMMAD ALI-JOE FRAZIER battled in "the Fight of the Century" on March 8, 1971, at Madison Square Garden in New York. Both men were unbeaten as Ali returned after a three-year ban to try to reclaim the title. Frazier won by unanimous decision.

13. HANK AARON broke Babe Ruth's "unbreakable" home run record on April 8, 1974, when he hit his 715th home run at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium.

14. ARTHUR ASHE became the first African-American man to win the title at Wimbledon on July 5,1975, by defeating heavily favored Jimmy Connors 6-1, 6-1, 5-7, 6-4.

15. REGGIE JACKSON of the Hew York Yankees hit three dramatic home runs on October 18,1977, to tie a record (set by Babe Ruth on October 6, 1926) for most home runs in a World Series game.

16. WALTER PAYTON broke Jim Brown's 19-year career rushing record on October 7,1984, at Chicago's Soldier field.

17. DOUG WILLIAMS, the first Black player to quarterback in the Super Bowl, passed for a record 340 yards and tied a record with four touchdown passes on January 31, 1988. He led the Washington Redskins to a 42-10 victory over the Denver Broncos and was named the game's MVP.

18. FLORENCE GRIFFITH JOYNER won three gold medals at the 1988 Olympics, collecting medals in the 100- and 200-meter dashes and as a member of the 4X100-meter relay team. After setting the world record in the 100 meters two months earlier, she set the world record in the 200 at the Games on September 29,1988.

19. TIGER WOODS won the prestigious Masters tournament with a record-setting setting performance on April 13, 1997, igniting Tigermania and soldifying his status as a golf phenomenon.

20. MICHAEL JORDAN'S dramatic last shot in the NBA on June 14, 1998, which he sank with 5 seconds to go to win Game 6, 87-86, over Utah and secured the Chicago Bulls' sixth title.