George Plimpton was probably a Sportsphile and he just did not know it….but this literary master was seemingly a sincere lover of all sports….as he wrote books about them like Paper Lion…. while he was the host of sports programs like Sports Legend: Curt Gowdy….plus he produced and syndicated sports programs like this George Plimpton’s Review of 1982 in Sports….as seen in this video herewith.
The year 1982 in sports featured many outstanding teams and athletes performing at levels of excellence that was unsurpassed….such as USA Phil Mahre winning the men’s overall season championship of the World Cup of Alpine Skiing….while the San Francisco 49’ers kicked off the new year with a 26 – 21 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals…..as the Clemson Tigers won the national championship of college football by defeating the Nebraska Cornhuskers by a score of 26 – 21 in the Orange Bowl. 1982 also saw the 1st ever NFL players strike which lasted 59 days….as the 1981 season finally began play on November 16.
The 1982 FIFA World Cup in soccer was held in Spain….as Italy defeated Germany 3 – 1 to win their 3rd World Cup….while in Major League Baseball, the St Louis Cardinals won an exciting 7th game of the World Series against the Milwaukee Brewers….and in basketball, the Los Angeles Lakers won the NBA Finals by 4 – 2 over the Philadelphia 76’ers….while the Tar Heels of North Carolina University were led by Michael Jordan, Sam Perkins, Matt Doherty and James Worthy over the Georgetown Hoyas with Patrick Ewing and Sleepy Floyd by a score of 63 – 62 to win the NCAA championship.
There were three significant world championship boxing matches in 1982….as on June 11th, WBC Heavyweight Champion Larry Holmes defeated Gentleman Gerry Cooney….and on November 12th, WBA Jr. Welterweight Champion Aaron Pryror defeated legendary Featherweight Champion Alexis Arguello by a 14th round KO, in a fight that was voted as Ring Magazines fight of the decade….then, one day later on November 13th, lightweight champion Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini defended his title against Duk Koo Kim with a tragic 14th round KO….as Kim would die in the hospital just 5 days later….as a result of the beating he took.
1982 also unveiled Bernard Hinault as the winner of his 4th Tour du France cycling race….along with USA’s Scott Hamilton and Elaine Zayak winning the men’s and women’s World Figure Skating Championship….as GBR Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean won the Ice Dancing world title….then on the PGA circuit, Tom Watson won the British Open and US Open….while Craig Sadler won the Masters title and Ray Floyd won the PGA Championship….when the New York Islanders defeated the Vancouver Canucks 4 – 0 to win Lord Stanley’s Cup….whereas on the professional tennis circuit, USA Jimmy Connors won the US Open and Wimbledon Championships…..as SWE Mats Wilander won the French Open and South Africa’s John Kriek won the Australian Open…..whereas on the women’s side, Chris Evert won the Australian Open and US Open….and Martina Navratilova won the French Open and Wimbledon Championships.
George Plimpton provides some wonderful highlights of the year 1982 in sports….as he applies the Plimpton literary touch to the narration of each highlight….which makes this video well worth watching.
