BIG DEBATESports history in 60 seconds
True sports stories in under a minute, each ending with a Would You Rather question. Watch one with the young fan in your family, then make them pick a side and defend it.
Baseball
He Wrote Baseball's Famous Song Before Seeing a Game
New York, 1908. Jack Norworth saw a sign for a game at the Polo Grounds and wrote the words to Take Me Out to the Ball Game. It became a hit on stage, and decades later the song every ballpark sings. The twist: Norworth didn't go to a big-league game until 1940, 32 years later.
Baseball Changed the Field Because Pitchers Were Too Good
In 1968 Bob Gibson finished the season with a 1.12 ERA, and scoring fell to its lowest in decades. So for 1969, baseball shrank the strike zone and lowered the pitcher's mound from 15 inches to 10. It's still 10 today.
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Gymnastics
Rope Climbing Used to Be an Olympic Sport
Athens, 1896: the Olympic rope was 14 meters high (46 feet). Climbers started sitting on the floor and used only their arms, and judges looked at speed and style. It came back in 1904, 1924 and 1932 as a straight race to the top. Then it disappeared from the Olympics. Now you mostly find it in gym class.
The Scoreboard Said 1.00. It Was Actually a Perfect 10
Montreal, 1976. A 14-year-old from Romania named Nadia Comaneci landed her routine on the uneven bars, and the scoreboard showed 1.00. It only had room for three digits, because nobody built it for a 10. She had just scored the first perfect 10 in Olympic gymnastics, then did it six more times.
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Soccer
The World Cup Final Played With Two Balls
Uruguay, 1930: the first World Cup final, the hosts against Argentina. Each team wanted to use its own ball, and neither would give in. So Argentina's ball was used in the first half, and Argentina led 2-1. Uruguay's ball was used in the second half, and Uruguay scored three to win 4-2. It's the only World Cup final ever played with two balls.
How a Traffic Light Gave Soccer Its Yellow and Red Cards
England, 1966 World Cup: a referee who spoke German sent off a player who spoke Spanish, and the player didn't understand. Driving home, referee chief Ken Aston stopped at a traffic light and had an idea. Yellow: slow down. Red: stop. Four years later, at the 1970 World Cup, the cards made their debut.
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Hockey
The Miracle on Ice Wasn't the Gold Medal Game
Lake Placid, 1980. A team of young American amateurs beat the mighty Soviet Union 4-3, and the world called it a miracle. But there was no medal yet. Two days later, the U.S. played Finland and was losing 2-1 going into the third period. They scored three goals and won 4-2. That's the game that won the gold.
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