1988 in sports

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

1988 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.

Years in sports: 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991
Centuries: 19th century · 20th century · 21st century
Decades: 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s
Years: 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991

Alpine skiing[]

  • Alpine Skiing World Cup
    • Men's overall season champion: Pirmin Zurbriggen, Switzerland
    • Women's overall season champion: Michela Figini, Switzerland

American football[]

  • Super Bowl XXII – the Washington Redskins (NFC) won 42–10 over the Denver Broncos (AFC)
    • Location: Jack Murphy Stadium
    • Attendance: 73,302
    • MVP: Doug Williams, QB (Washington)
      • Williams becomes the first black quarterback to play in a Super Bowl.[1]
  • December 17 – Jamie Morris of Washington Redskins sets NFL single game record for rushing attempts (45) in 20–17 loss to Cincinnati Bengals.
  • January 1 – Orange Bowl (1987 season):
    • The Miami Hurricanes won 20-14 over the Oklahoma Sooners to win the national championship

Association football[]

Main article: 1988 in association football

Athletics[]

Australian rules football[]

Baseball[]

  • January 12 – Former Pirates slugger Willie Stargell is the only player elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Stargell, leader of two world champions in Pittsburgh and NL co-MVP in 1979 at age 39, becomes the 17th player to be elected in his first year of eligibility. Jim Bunning falls four votes shy of the 321 needed for election in his 13th year on the ballot.
  • August 8 – The first night game ever at Wrigley Field is played. After an attempt the previous night was rained out, the Cubs defeat the New York Mets 6–4.
  • World Series – Los Angeles Dodgers won 4 games to 1 over the Oakland Athletics. The Series MVP was Orel Hershiser, Los Angeles

Basketball[]

Boxing[]

  • June 6 – in Las Vegas, Iran Barkley knocked out Thomas Hearns in the 3rd round to win the WBC Middleweight Title.
  • June 27 – in what was dubbed Superfight '88 Mike Tyson knocks out Michael Spinks in Atlantic City, New Jersey and defends the Undisputed Heavyweight Championship of the World.
  • November 7 – in Las Vegas, boxer Sugar Ray Leonard knocks out Donnie LaLonde.

Canadian football[]

Cycling[]

Darts[]

Dog sledding[]

  • Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Champion –
    • Susan Butcher wins with lead dogs: Granite & Tolstoi

Field hockey[]

  • Men's Champions Trophy held in Lahore won by West Germany
  • Olympic Games (Men's Competition) won by Great Britain

Figure skating[]

  • World Figure Skating Championships –
    • Men's champion: Brian Boitano, United States
    • Ladies' champion: Katarina Witt, East Germany
    • Pair skating champions: Elena Valova / Oleg Vasiliev, Soviet Union
    • Ice dancing champions: Natalia Bestemianova / Andrei Bukin, Soviet Union

Gaelic Athletic Association[]

Golf[]

Men's professional

Men's amateur

Women's professional

Harness racing[]

Horse racing[]

Steeplechases

Flat races

Ice hockey[]

  • Art Ross Trophy as the NHL's leading scorer during the regular season: Mario Lemieux, Pittsburgh Penguins
  • Hart Memorial Trophy for the NHL's Most Valuable Player: Mario Lemieux, Pittsburgh Penguins
  • Stanley Cup – Edmonton Oilers won 4 games to 0 over the Boston Bruins
  • August 9 – Hockey's Wayne Gretzky traded to the Los Angeles Kings
  • World Hockey Championship –
    • Men's champion: Soviet Union won the Olympic gold medal
    • Junior Men's champion: Canada defeated the USSR
  • December 31 – in a game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and New Jersey Devils, Mario Lemieux scores five goals and becomes the only player in NHL history to score a goal in all five possible game situations in the same game: even-strength, power play, shorthanded, penalty shot, and empty net.

Lacrosse[]

  • The New Jersey Saints beat the Washington Wave 17–16 to win the Eagle Pro Box Lacrosse League Championship.
    • Following the season, the Eagle Pro Box Lacrosse League changes its name to the Major Indoor Lacrosse League (MILL).
  • The Brooklin Redmen win the Mann Cup.
  • The Kitchener-Waterloo win the Founders Cup.
  • The Esquimalt Legion win the Minto Cup.

Motorsport[]

Main articles: 1988 in motorsport and List of 1988 motorsport champions

Olympic Games[]

  • 1988 Summer Olympics takes place in Seoul, South Korea
    • USSR wins the most medals (132) and the most gold medals (55).
    • September 24 – Canada's Ben Johnson wins Olympic gold in 100 metres. Two days later, he is stripped of the medal after testing positive for a banned substance.
  • 1988 Winter Olympics takes place in Calgary, Canada
    • USSR wins the most medals (29) and the most gold medals (11).

Racewalk[]

Radiosport[]

  • Fourth Amateur Radio Direction Finding World Championship held in Beatenberg, Switzerland.

Rugby league[]

Rugby union[]

Snooker[]

  • World Snooker Championship – Steve Davis beats Terry Griffiths 18–11
  • World rankings – Steve Davis remains world number one for 1988/89

Swimming[]

  • Olympic Games held in Seoul, South Korea (September 18 – September 25)
  • March 25 – USA's Tom Jager betters his own world record (22.32) in the 50m freestyle (long course) at a swimming meet in Orlando, Florida, clocking 22.23.
  • September 24 – Matt Biondi breaks Tom Jager's world record (22.23) in the 50m freestyle (long course) in the final of the event at the Seoul Olympic Games, clocking 22.14.

Tennis[]

  • Grand Slam in tennis men's results:
    1. Australian Open – Mats Wilander
    2. French Open – Mats Wilander
    3. Wimbledon – Stefan Edberg
    4. US Open – Mats Wilander
  • Steffi Graf becomes only the third woman in history to win the Grand Slam in tennis and the golden slam –
    1. Australian Open – Steffi Graf
    2. French Open – Steffi Graf
    3. Wimbledon – Steffi Graf
    4. US Open – Steffi Graf
  • 1988 Summer Olympics
    • Men's Singles Competition – Miloslav Mečíř
    • Women's Singles Competition – Steffi Graf
    • Men's Doubles Competition – Ken Flach & Robert Seguso
    • Women's Doubles Competition – Pam Shriver & Zina Garrison
  • Davis Cup
    • Germany won 4–1 over Sweden in world team tennis

Yacht racing[]

Volleyball[]

Water polo[]

Awards[]

  • Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year – Orel Hershiser, Major League Baseball
  • Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year – Florence Griffith Joyner, Track and field

References[]

  1. ^ "This Day in Sports: Doug Williams and the Redskins Set the Postseason Bar". ESPN.com. January 31, 2010. Retrieved February 26, 2021.
  2. ^ "Epsom Derby | History, Winners, & Facts | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
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