This Day in Sports History: February 18
Sports in February include the NBA and NHL seasons, Super Bowl, NBA All-Star game, college basketball tournaments, spring training for the MLB, NASCAR’s Daytona 500, Formula E, some PGA Tour…
Sports in February include the NBA and NHL seasons, Super Bowl, NBA All-Star game, college basketball tournaments, spring training for the MLB, NASCAR's Daytona 500, Formula E, some PGA Tour Events and the Winter Olympics. Over the years, Feb. 18 has witnessed many notable moments and stories involving sporting legends. Here are some of them.
Unforgettable Games and Remarkable Records
Great moments in sports history from Feb. 18 included:
- 1899: The Montreal Victorias beat the Winnipeg Victorias 3-2, and swept the Stanley Cup series.
- 1909: The Boston Red Sox traded Cy Young to the Cleveland Naps.
- 1919: Cy Denneny of the Ottawa Senators scores a record 52nd goal.
- 1924: Figure skater Sherwin Badger won the United States Men's Figure Skating championship.
- 1936: An NHL record of 32 points was scored. NY Americans (28) & Mont Maroons (24).
- 1952: Norwegian speed skater Hjalmar Anderson wins his 3rd gold medal of the Oslo Winter Olympics when he claims the 10,000m in an Olympic record time of 16:45.8. He also won gold in the 1,500m and 5,000m.
- 1962: Fireball Roberts won the 4th Daytona 500. He dominated the event by leading 144 of the 200 laps. He drove his famous number 22 Pontiac to victory in three hours and 10 minutes, during which the race was run without a single caution flag.
- 1973: Richard Petty won the 15th Daytona 500. It was his fourth Great American Race that was won by more than 2 laps from Bobby Isaac.
- 1978: The first ever Iron Man Triathlon was held, beginning and ending at the Aloha Tower in Honolulu Harbor of Oʻahu, Hawaii.
- 1979: The 21st Daytona 500 was once again won by Richard Petty. Race leaders Cale Yarborough and Donnie Allison collided with each other on the final lap. This was also the first 500-mile race broadcasted from start to finish.
- 1981: Wayne Gretzky became the first player in NHL history to score five career hat-tricks before the age of 21.
- 1986: Alvin Robertson scored the NBA's second ever quadruple double.
- 1990: Derrike Cope won the 32nd Daytona 500 after Dale Earnhardt shreds the right rear tire on the last lap.
- 1994: Dan Jansen skates a world record time of (1:12.43) in the 1000m.
- 2007: The 56th NBA All-Star Game took place at the Thomas & Mack Center in Paradise, Nevada, where the West beat the East, 153-132. The MVP was the Black Mamba, Kobe Bryant.
- 2018: The 67th NBA All-Star Game took place at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, where Team LeBron beat Team Curry, 148-145. The MVP was Cavs legend Lebron James.
Three athletes who stood out on Feb. 18 were Cy Young, Richard Petty, and Alvin Robertson.
Young holds unbreakable records with 511 wins, 749 complete games, and 7,356 innings pitched over a 22-year career (1890–1911). Petty's legendary career included a record 27 wins in 1967 (with 10 consecutive) and seven Daytona 500 victories. Robertson is famous for being the only player to record a quadruple-double (points, rebounds, assists, steals) as a guard and for holding the highest career steals-per-game average in NBA history at 2.71.
