Triviality

6/18/08 By Jamshid Mousavinezhad

Triviality

Photo credit: Game Face

Number 29 in an occasional series

Ailing Athletes

1970 - Willis Reed, New York Knicks

Reed suited up for Game 7 of the 1970 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers with a torn right thigh muscle. Although he only scored four points in the game that night in the Madison Square Garden, the inspirational lift he provided invigorated his teammates and led to a 113-99 victory and an NBA Championship, the first in team history.

1988 – Kirk Gibson, Los Angeles Dodgers

Two bad knees and a stomach virus could not stop 31-year-old Gibson from contributing to a Game 1 victory during the 1988 World Series against the Oakland Athletics. Pinch-hitting in the bottom of the ninth with two outs and down by a score of 4-3, Gibson hit a pinch-hit, game winning two-run homer off of future Hall of Fame pitcher Dennis Eckersley to electrify Dodger Stadium.

1996 – Kerri Strug, United States Gymnastics

A gold medal hinged on Strug’s left ankle, which had a third-degree sprain and torn ligaments, during her final vault of the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. Her first vault caused the damage to her ankle, but on the next, she made a near flawless effort with a one-footed landing to ensure that the Americans took home the gold.

1997 – Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls

The day before Jordan and his Bulls were to take the court for Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals in Utah, he was diagnosed with a stomach virus or food poisoning and told that there was no way he could play the next day. Instead, Jordan woke up three hours prior to game-time noticeably sick and contributed 38 points, seven rebounds, five assists, three steals and one block in a 90-88 victory.

2008 – Tiger Woods, PGA Tour

After undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his left knee for the third time and missing two months of action, Woods was in good enough shape to play at the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego. Wincing in pain and hobbling around the course, Woods forced a tie and an 18-hole playoff with Rocco Mediate with a birdie on the last hole of the tournament. The next day, he won the U.S. Open Championship on the first sudden death hole that he forced by sinking another birdie on the 18th hole that tied Mediate.

— Gregory Hassel
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