Browsing: Sports

A Brief History On September 5, 1970, German race car driver Karl Jochen Rindt was killed in a practice lap accident for the 1970 Italian Grand Prix event at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza in Italy.  Despite succumbing to his injuries, he became the first driver to be posthumously awarded the Formula One World Drivers’ Championship after piling up enough wins to secure the championship. Digging Deeper Despite being born in Germany, Rindt competed as an Austrian.  The 1970 win was his only Formula One World Drivers’ Championship season, though he also won the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans in…

A Brief History On July 28, 2018, Australian yacht skipper Wendy Tuck made sailing history by becoming the first female skipper to win the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.  Held every two years, this epic boat race is run by Clipper Ventures that supplies 11 identical yachts to skippers and crews to compete in since 1996, with only 2004 skipped. Digging Deeper A real test of skill and endurance, all participants are required to undergo a four-week training program before the race.  The same year that Wendy Tuck made sailing history, British skipper Nikki Henderson became the youngest person…

A Brief History On July 27, 1996, at the Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia, a pipe bomb exploded killing 2 and injuring 111.  The perpetrator was caught seven years later.  This terrorist act is one of several Olympic incidents that go against the Olympic principles of ethics, comradery, peace, brotherhood and all that is good about humanity.  Politics and hate have no place in the Olympic Games, but sometimes these factors intrude anyway. Digging Deeper Some incidents where the Olympic ideal was betrayed include: In 1972, the Munich Olympics were marred by a terrorist attack that cost 17 lives. In…

A Brief History On July 10, 2007, Turkish adventurer Erden Eruç, almost 46 years old at the time, set off on what may be the greatest feat of human endurance and physical performance in history, the solo, only human powered circumnavigation of the Earth.  As if this feat was not daunting enough, he threw in making it a point to climb the tallest mountain on each continent as part of his trip!  For financial reasons, he ended up journeying on a route that did not include all of the tallest mountains on each continent. Digging Deeper Eruç accomplished this feat…

A Brief History On June 19, 2005, the United States Grand Prix in Indianapolis, Indiana, suffered a mass exodus when 14 cars running on Michelin tires withdrew from the race due to tire failures by the French tire giant.  Only six cars remained to race on Bridgestone tires. Digging Deeper Michelin and Bridgestone combine with Goodyear to make up more than half of all tire sales in the world each year.  Each tire company pours millions of dollars into research to make their tires with the best wet and dry traction, best heat resistance, best gas mileage, least noise, longest…