Speaker 1: Welcome to This Moment in Sports History. Podcast number The
Speaker 1: Miracle on Ice begins January sixteenth, nineteen eighty five. On
Speaker 1: January sixteenth, nineteen eighty something extraordinary started brewing in Lake Placid,
Speaker 1: New York, though few could have predicted just how legendary
Speaker 1: it would become. This was the day that Team USA's
Speaker 1: hockey roster was officially finalized for the thirteen Winter Olympic Games,
Speaker 1: setting in motion one of the greatest underdog stories in
Speaker 1: sports history. Head coach Herb Brooks had spent months assembling
Speaker 1: and training a ragtag group of college kids and amateurs
Speaker 1: to face the world's best hockey teams. The final twenty
Speaker 1: man roster he submitted on this date was met with skepticism,
Speaker 1: if not outright derision by hockey experts. The Soviet Union's
Speaker 1: hockey team was considered virtually unbeatable. They had won gold
Speaker 1: in four consecutive Olympics and had recently demolished an NHL
Speaker 1: All Star team six zero in an exhibition match at
Speaker 1: Madison Square Garden. Brooks's squad was incomposed of superstars. These
Speaker 1: were young men, most barely in their twenties, pulled from
Speaker 1: college programs across America. Mike Arizunio, who would become the
Speaker 1: most famous name from the team, was a twenty five
Speaker 1: year old former college player who had been working in
Speaker 1: a sporting goods store. Jim Craig, the Goldender, was fresh
Speaker 1: out of Boston University. Mark Johnson from Wisconsin, Rob McClanahan
Speaker 1: from Minnesota. These were talented kids, sure, but they were
Speaker 1: about to face professional Soviet players who trained year round
Speaker 1: and played together as a cohesive unit for years. What
Speaker 1: made this roster submission on January sixteenth so significant was
Speaker 1: that it represented Brooks's controversial vision. He had cut several
Speaker 1: talented players in favor of those he believed could execute
Speaker 1: his hybrid style, combining North American physicality with European finesse
Speaker 1: and skating. He'd worked his team mercilessly, creating unity through
Speaker 1: shared suffering. The players initially hated him for it. The
Speaker 1: date also marked exactly one month before the Miracle on
Speaker 1: Ice game itself, February twenty second, nineteen eighty. In those
Speaker 1: intervening weeks, Team USA would warm up with exhibition games,
Speaker 1: showing flashes of potential, but nothing suggesting they could compete
Speaker 1: with the Soviets, who were averaging over eight goals per
Speaker 1: game in international competition. What unfolded from Brooks's January sixteenth
Speaker 1: roster decision became the stuff of legend. Team USA's improbable
Speaker 1: four to three victory over the Soviet Union, followed by
Speaker 1: their gold medal clinching win against Finland al Michaels is
Speaker 1: a mortal call. Do you believe in miracles? Yes? Would
Speaker 1: become one of sports broadcasting's most iconic moments. That roster
Speaker 1: submission might seem like mere administrative paperwork, but it was
Speaker 1: the final commitment to a dream that most considered impossible.
Speaker 1: Brooks had made his choices, and there was no turning back.
Speaker 1: Those twenty names on that piece of paper submitted on
Speaker 1: January sixteenth, nineteen eighty would soon make history and prove
Speaker 1: that heart, determination and brilliant coaching could overcome even the
Speaker 1: most daunting odds. The Miracle on ice transcended hockey and
Speaker 1: even sports itself, providing a Cold War era America still
Speaker 1: reeling from various national crises, with much needed moment of
Speaker 1: pride and unity. And it all became official on this date,
Speaker 1: forty six years ago, and that wraps it up. Join
Speaker 1: us tomorrow and be sure to hit that subscribe button
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