| January 1 |
 |
| 404 |
|
Last gladiator competition in Rome. |
| 1838 |
The first official horse race in
South Australia-Adelaide. |
| 1840 |
First recorded bowling
match in US (Knickerbocker Alleys, NYC). |
| 1862 |
New Zealand’s first
rowing regatta held on Lyttelton Harbour. |
| 1902 |
The first Rose Bowl game
was held in Pasadena, CA (University of Michigan
beat Stanford 49-0). |
| 1912 |
First running of San
Francisco's famed "Bay to Breakers" race
(7.63 miles/12.3 km). |
| 1935 |
The first Orange Bowl
game was held in Miami, FL (Bucknell beat Miami
26-0). |
| 1935 |
The first Sugar Bowl
game was held in New Orleans, LA (Tulane beat Temple
20-14). |
| 1936 |
The first Sun Bowl game
was held in El Paso, CA (Hardin-Simmons tied New
Mexico State 14-14). |
| 1937 |
The first Cotton Bowl
game was held in Dallas, TX (Texas Christian beat
Marquette 16-6). |
| 1948 |
Bradman scored 132 in
the 1st innings of the 3rd Test vs India. |
| 1954 |
Rose & Cotton Bowls
were broadcast in color for the first time. |
| 1961 |
Briggs Stadium was renamed
Tigers Stadium. |
| 1969 |
Jack Kent Cooke, owner
of NHL's Los Angeles Kings, fined each player $100
for "NOT" arguing with the referee. |
| 1990 |
Mitsuko Nishiwaki beats
Nakano to become Japan Women wrestling champ. |
| 1990 |
Sports News Network began
operation on cable TV. |
| 1994 |
Aleksandr Popov set world
record 100m free style (47.83) |
| |
| January
2 |
| 1832 |
|
First Curling club in
US (Orchard Lake Curling Club) opened. |
| 1879 |
Northwestern League (minor
league baseball) was organized in Rockford, IL. |
| 1918 |
NHL's Montreal Wanderers
disband after Westmount Arena burned down. |
| 1961 |
First AFL Championship
Game, Houston Oilers beat Los Angeles Chargers 24-16. |
| 1965 |
University of Alabama
quarterback Joe Namath signed with the New York
Jets for a reported $400,000. |
| 1981 |
Mary Terstegge Meagher
of the US set women's 200m butterfly swimming record
(2:05.65). |
| 1983 |
Cincinnati Bengals' Ken
Anderson completed NFL record 20 consecutive passes. |
| 1983 |
Don Muraco beat Pedro
Morales to become WWF Intercontinental Champ. |
| 1985 |
Nevada-Las Vegas beat
Utah 142-140, highest college basketball score. |
| 1986 |
New York Islanders' Mike
Bossy scored his 500th NHL goal. |
| 1999 |
Ottowa Senators' Damian
Rhodes was the 6th goalie to be credited with a
goal. |
| 1986 |
San Jose Sharks' Jose
Theodore was the 8th goalie to be credited with
a goal. |
| |
| January
3 |
| 1931 |
|
Montreal Maroons' Nels
Stewart scored NFL record 2 goals in 4 seconds. |
| 1970 |
NFL's San Francisco 49ers
played in Kezar Stadium for the last time, losing
to the Dallas Cowboys 17-10. |
| 1973 |
The Columbia Broadcasting
System (CBS) sold the New York Yankees to a 17-person
syndicate headed by George Steinbrenner for $10
million. |
| 1977 |
Kansas City Royals' Lindy
McDaniel retired with 2nd most pitching appearances
(987 games). |
| 1981 |
Mary Terstegge Meagher
of the US set women's 100m butterfly swimming record
(58.91). |
| 1983 |
Dallas Cowboys' Tony
Dorsett set NFL record 99 yd run against the Minnesota
Vikings. |
| 1991 |
Los Angeles Kings' Wayne
Gretzky scored his 700th goal against the New York
Islanders. |
| |
| January 4 |
| 1863 |
|
4-wheeled roller skates
patented by James Plimpton of NY. |
| 1887 |
Thomas Stevens was the
first man to bicycle around the world (San Francisco-San
Francisco, 21,700 km). |
| 1906 |
South Africa beat England
by one wicket, their first Test win. |
| 1920 |
National Negro Baseball
League organized. |
| 1971 |
Philadelphia's Veteran
Stadium was dedicated. |
| 1977 |
Mary Shane was hired
by Chicago White Sox as first woman TV play-by-play
announcer. |
| 1983 |
US Football League held
its first player draft. |
| 1984 |
Edmonton Oilers and Minnesota
North Stars set NFL record highest-scoring game;
Oilers win 12-8. |
| 1986 |
David Robinson set NCAA
basketball record of 14 blocked shots. |
| 1991 |
Fu Mingxia became the
youngest world champion winning the women’s
10m platform title at the World Swimming Championships
in Perth, Australia. |
| |
| January 5 |
| 1920 |
|
Boston Red Sox sold Babe
Ruth to the New York Yankees. |
| 1925 |
French Baseball Federation
awarded silver medals to John McGraw, Charlie Comiskey,
& Hugh Jennings. |
| 1931 |
Mrs. Lucille Thomas became
the first woman to buy a professional baseball team,
purchasing the Topeka franchise in the Western League. |
| 1934 |
Boston's Fenway Park
caught fire for 2nd time. |
| 1934 |
National & American
baseball leagues selected a uniform ball. |
| 1971 |
Harlem Globetrotters
lost 100-99 to New Jersey Reds, ending 2,495-game
win streak. |
| 1984 |
Utah Jazz's Adrian Dantly
tied NBA record of 28 free throws. |
| 1991 |
Kevin Bradshaw of US
International scored NCAA Division 1 record 72 points. |
| 1994 |
Aleksandr Popov set 100m
free style swimming world record (47.82). |
| 1994 |
Yat Weiju set 100m butterfly
swimming world record (58.71). |
| |
| January 6 |
| 1681 |
|
First recorded boxing
match (Duke of Albemarle's butler vs his butcher). |
| 1883 |
Ontario Rugby Football
Union (forerunner of CFL) formed. |
| 1896 |
First US women's 6-day
bicycle race started (Madison Square Gardens II,
NYC). |
| 1925 |
Paavo Nurmi set indoor
mile record (4:13.6) and indoor 5,000m record (14:44.6). |
| 1951 |
Indianapolis Olympians
beat Rochester Royals 75-73 in NBA-record 6 overtimes. |
| 1952 |
Louise Suggs won the
LPGA Jacksonville Open at Brentwood Municipal Golf
Club in Jacksonville, FL. |
| 1956 |
Federal court barred
former Little League Commissioner Carl Stotz from
forming a rival group. |
| 1980 |
Philadelphia Flyers set
NHL record of 35 straight games without a defeat. |
| 1985 |
Miami Dolphins' Dan Marino
passed for a record 421 yds and four touchdowns,
beating the Pittsburgh Steelers 45-28. |
| 1991 |
Qian Hong set women's
50m butterfly swimming record (27.30). |
| 1994 |
US Figure Skater Nancy
Kerrigan was assaulted after she finished a practice
session in Detroit, MI. |
| 1994 |
Yat Weiju set 50m butterfly
swimming world record (26.44). |
| 1995 |
Atlanta Hawks coach Lenny
Wilkens set NBA record for wins with 939. |
| 2002 |
NFL's Detroit Lions played
in Pontiac Silverdome for the last time, beating
the Dallas Cowboys 15-10. |
| |
| January 7 |
| 1899 |
|
Walter Camp published
his first All-American football team in Collier's. |
| 1927 |
Harlem Globetrotters
played first game (Hinckley, IL). |
| 1951 |
Babe Didrikson-Zaharias
won the LPGA Ponte Vedra Beach Women’s Open
at Ponte Vedra Country Club in Jacksonville, FL. |
| 1951 |
Leonid Meshkov of the
USSR set 100m breaststroke swimming record in Moscow,
USSR (1:06.6). |
| 1961 |
Detroit Lions beat the
Cleveland Browns 17-16 in first NFL Playoff Bowl
(runner-up bowl). |
| 1962 |
West beat East 47-27
in the first AFL All-Star Game. |
| 1972 |
Los Angeles Lakers set
NBA record with 33rd consecutive win. |
| 1973 |
British Darts Organization
founded in North London. |
| 1973 |
Jo Ann Prentice won the
LPGA Burdine’s Invitational at Doral Country
Club (Red Course) in Miami, FL. |
| 1982 |
New York Islanders Bryan
Trottier got his 10th hat trick. |
| 1989 |
Cleveland Cavaliers tied
NBA regulation game record by blocking 21 New York
Knick shots. |
