36th Anniversary Of The Miracle On Ice In Lake Placid

Lets go back in time 36 years ago. If you were up in Lake Placid, you were enjoying the 1980 Winter Olympics. Specifically if you chose to go back to February 22nd 1980, you could witness the Miracle On Ice.

It's Friday, February 22nd 1980. The United States national hockey team was made up of amateur and collegiate players. This team was led by veteran coach Herb Brooks. The U.S. was looking to beat the Soviet Union national team, which had won the gold medal in six of the seven previous Olympic games. This was going to be an impossible feat. Would this team of amateurs even have a chance against the well oiled machine of the Soviets?

The Soviet and American teams were natural rivals due to the decades-old Cold War. The Soviet Union entered the Lake Placid games as the heavy favorite, having won the previous four ice hockey gold medals. Soviet players, some of whom were active-duty military, played in a well-developed league with world-class training facilities. The average age of the U.S. team was 21 years old, making it the youngest team in U.S. team history to play in the Olympics and would be the youngest team in the Olympic tournament. Could these young boys pull it off? You bet they did.

Team USA went on to beat the Soviet Union 4-3. The home crowd waved U.S. flags and sang patriotic songs such as "God Bless America". All throughout the streets of Lake Placid, Americans celebrated at local bars and restaurants.  Team USA went on to win the gold medal by winning its last match over Finland. The Soviet Union took the silver medal by beating Sweden in its final game.

On February 22nd, 1980....one of the greatest sports moments in modern history took place in Upstate New York. You can still visit the arena today:

In 2004, the movie "Miracle" was created to share this moment with a new generation of fans:

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