Miracles Do Happen In Sports

Miracles are thought by many to happen everywhere, so why would sporting events be an exception? A miracle is thought to be an extraordinary event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs. In sports, many people believe miracles have happened in the past, whether it is on the track, field, court, arena, rink, etc.

Remember the day after Thanksgiving in 1984 when Doug Flutie threw his "Hail Mary" pass for a touchdown to defeat the defending national champion Miami Hurricanes? Maybe you remember when Buster Douglas beat Mike Tyson for the heavyweight boxing championship. How about the two moments in baseball where the New York Yankees pitcher Don Larsen pitched a perfect game in the 1956 World Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers, or Bobby Thompson’s shot heard around the world in the 1951 national league play offs. Not all miracles in sports are human feats, as can be judged by what Secretariat the wonder horse did. She won the triple crown in 1973 and set two track records that have not yet been eclipsed to this day.

The Boston Red Sox reversed the curse of the Bambino by winning the 2004 World Series. There have been so many miracles in sports that there are too many to name. The one miracle that sticks out in most peoples minds is the miracle on ice. In the 1980 Olympic Winter Games in Lake Placid New York, the U.S. hockey team lead by Coach Herb Brooks, defeated the Soviet Union. The Soviet team had dominated hockey for the past 20 years and there was little hope for the U.S., but the United States prevailed. This miracle ended up being made into a very popular sports movie called “The Miracle.”