Miracle+on+Ice

The "Miracle on Ice" is considered by many to be the greatest upset in American sports history. The "Miracle" remains sublime even to today because of its themes and impact on multiple levels. The journey began in the 1980 Winter Olympics, or the XIII Winter Olympics, on February 13, 1980 in Lake Placid, New York. Led by innovative and opportunistic coach Herb Brooks, the American ice hockey team completed an improbable run to win the gold medal. The most famous of the American team’s seven games was the first game of the medal-round, against the Soviet Union. The Soviet team was heavily-favored, as they had won gold in the past four Winter Olympic Games. On February 22, the American team defeated the Soviets in a 4-3 victory. They followed it up two days later by beating the Swedish team 4-2 to win the gold medal. The American people rejoiced along with their team, as it was the country's first victory in foreign affairs in a long time.

1. 1980 Winter Olympics Background 2. Journey of American Team 3. "Miracle" 4. Aftermath 5. Analysis 6. Works Cited


 * 1980 Winter Olympics Background**

Lake Placid, New York had recieved the honors of hosting the 1980 Winter Olympics. It was the second Winter Olympics in a row that were scheduled to be in the United States. In 1976, the Winter Olympics were to be held in Denver, Colorado as a bicentennial celebration, but Colorado voted to back out because of rising costs. Innsbruck, Austria was then awarded the 1976 Winter Olympics. In December 1979, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan to protect the left-wing government against the Mujahideen rebels. President Jimmy Carter countered the attack by putting an embargo on grains and high technology to the Soviet Union. This new conflict with an old enemy gave the United States added anxiety for letting the communist athletes into their country for the Olympic Games. The invasion of Afghanistan would eventually lead to a sixty-one-country boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics that were to be held in Moscow later that year.


 * Journey of American Team**

In 1979, Herb Brooks left his post as the hockey coach of the University of Minnesota to coach the U.S. national team. A few months later, he was named the coach of the American Olympic team. Brooks held the tryouts for the team in August at Colorado Springs, Colorado, where sixty-eight college hockey players attended. At this time in history, all of the American team players were required to be amateurs; they could never have been paid to play hockey before. So while other teams were sending out veterans on the ice, Brooks had to send out kids mostly around the age of twenty. Brooks tested the twenty year-olds thoroughly in every way, from hockey skill to psychological makeup by giving the players a written test of more than 300 questions. After a few days, Brooks had cut the roster down to twenty-six. Training for the American team focused especially on conditioning, because the international hockey style consisted of speed and finesse more than the American style of hockey. Brooks became famous for making his players do what came to be known as "herbies", in which the players skate back and forth across the lines on the rink. Brooks would make his players do this over and over to put them in top physical condition to keep up with the European teams. In the preliminary round of the Olympics, the team went above expectations, finishing with four wins, zero losses, and one tie, a record good enough to advance to the medal round.


 * "Miracle"**

The Soviet team had also advanced to the medal round almost effortlessly, pitting the Soviets against the American team in the first game of the four-team tournament. The two teams had met once already earlier that month, in which the Soviets crushed the young American team, 10-3. But the outcome of that match did not matter anymore. The Soviets came out in the first period by dominating the American team. The American goalie Jim Craig did all he could to keep his team in the game by only allowing two goals with his team barely managing to score one goal. But with only one second remaining in the first period, Mark Johnson gave the Americans some hope by scoring a goal off a rebound to tie the score at two. After one period, the Americans had salvaged a tie. After the embarrassing last-second goal, the Russian coach Viktor Tikhonov decided to pull arguably the world’s best goaltender in Vladislav Tretiak in favor of the backup, Vladimir Myshkin. Many later questioned the coach’s rash decision. The second period was again mostly dominated by the Soviets, but the Americans still had a chance, as they were down only by one at 3-2. In the final period, Johnson scored his second goal of the game on a power-play to help the Americans pull even at three. With ten minutes left, captain Mike Eruzione scored the go-ahead goal with a twenty-five-foot wrist shot past the overwhelmed Myshkin. In the last few agonizing minutes, the Americans managed to hold on to their slim lead. The American college kids had beaten the juggernaut Soviets, 4-3. With the last few waning seconds on the clock, announcer Al Michaels gave the call that defined the moment. "Do you believe in Miracles?... Yes!"


 * Aftermath**

After the game, the players mobbed the goalie Craig, and then returned to the locker room to break out the traditional celebratory champagne. On the team bus, the team spontaneously started to sing "God Bless America" on an impetuous rush of patriotism. Even after the huge victory, their journey was not done, as they could not drink too much champagne. There remained a possibility that the Soviets could would the gold medal if the American team did not win their next game. After two periods in the championship game against Finland, the American team was down 2-1. Brooks scolded his team in the locker room during intermission, "This will haunt you the rest of your lives." The Americans responded to Brooks by stopping the anticlimactic collapse and they scored three goals in the final period to come away with a 4-2 victory. American flags and patriotism were now abundant, as the college hockey players had united the nation. They had won the gold medal, and more importantly, defeated the Soviets.


 * Analysis**

The impact of sports is often diminished by more "practical" people. While many people spend significant portions of their time on sports, the outcomes of games have little real impact on the world. "Rooting for laundry", these practical people will say. But there have been a handful of games that have affected the world in more ways than one. This happens when people react passionately altogether, which can create a movement that can affect politics and economics and other more "significant" things. The game itself is not as important as how people react to it. The "Miracle on Ice" was one sporting event that created a large enough reaction and can be argued that the game had much more significance than just hockey. The victory over the Soviets marked a turnaround in politics and social outlook for the U.S., and gave Americans hope for a new era. Starting with the "New Deal" in Roosevelt’s presidency, American politics had taken a turn to the left. In a time marked by economic and social reform, liberals ruled Washington. This liberal rule continued from after WWII, with the exception of the 1950's, until the late 1970's. Then, after the devastating Vietnam War and the embarrassing impeachment affair of President Nixon, the American people were ready for a change. Conservatives took advantage of the situation by telling them that recent events were caused by "failed liberal policies". And the people believed them. After all, America was getting desperate and was willing to believe anyone. The people needed some hope. At the beginning of the year 1980, the U.S. were still in dark times. The military was still recovering from the Vietnam War, the government trying to regain trust after Nixon’s impeachment, Jimmy Carter in the middle of a mediocre presidency damaged by the shocking Iran Hostage Crisis, and the ominous threat of the potent Soviet Union hanging over it all. But the 1980 Winter Olympics were coming soon, so people could turn on the TV for a little while without seeing bad news. The Olympics were a time that people could set aside differences and play sports. During the run of the American Olympic hockey team, the American public had grown quite close to the team, as they were the only thing the U.S. were successful at recently. These hockey players resembled the same values that Americans liked to characterize themselves as: hard-working, courageous, and communist-crushing. American flags were abundant in the time that followed because the hockey team showed off to the world the way Americans were meant to be. The hockey team reminded people of America's former greatness. People decided it was time for the country to move on from the old era into a new one where the U.S. would reassert itself as the world power it was meant to be. The republicans took advantage of these new sentiments by offering political reform. The public was convinced by their optimism and voted Reagan into office, ending the democrat Carter’s presidential stint at four years. Reagan and the other republicans in office tried to bring America back to those same basic values that worked for the Olympic hockey team so well. They believed that America could be restored through hard-work and motivation. The hockey team not only gave hope to a country that needed it, but also set an example of work ethic to be followed. The "Miracle on Ice" is arguably the best sports story in American history. It also created the largest reaction nationally, and possibly created the largest impact of any sports event. The "Miracle" gave the country some much-needed hope in a time surrounded by wars and scandals. After the game, the Soviets did not look as strong as they were before, which gave hope that the threat of a nuclear war might be soon over. The game would become somewhat of a harbinger of doom for the Soviets, as their economy and union would collapse just nine years later. The "Miracle" renewed patriotism and optimism for the future. The college hockey players reminded people of the American Dream: by pursuing happiness through hard-work and perseverance. And all of this happened because of a "silly game". But it was not a "silly game". It was a miracle.


 * Works Cited**

Allen, Kevin. "ESPN Classic - College Kids Perform Olympic Miracle." //ESPN: The Worldwide Leader In Sports//. ESPN. Web. 19 May 2011. [].

Fitzpatrick, Jamie. "Miracle On Ice - How The 1980 US Olympic Hockey Team Won Gold." //About Hockey - The NHL, the Stanley Cup, Fantasy Hockey, Trade Rumors and More.// About.com. Web. 19 May 2011.

. "HickokSports.com - History - The 1980 Winter Olympics." //HickokSports.com Main Menu//. 18 Feb. 2009. Web. 19 May 2011. [].

"MIRACLE ON ICE." //Olympic Regional Development Authority//. Lake Placid Olympic Region. Web. 19 May 2011. [].

"Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan (1979) -- Britannica Online Encyclopedia." //Encyclopedia - Britannica Online Encyclopedia//. Britannica Encyclopedia. Web. 19 May 2011. [].

Swift, E.m. "CNNSI.com - SI Online - SI Flashback: The Golden Goal - Friday February 22, 2002 11:58 AM." //Breaking News, Real-time Scores and Daily Analysis from Sports Illustrated – SI.com//. Sports Illustrated. Web. 19 May 2011. [].

"Top Story of the Century." //Home//. International Hockey Foundation. Web. 19 May 2011. [the-century.html].

Tristam, Pierre. "1980 Olympics Boycott Over Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan - Moscow Olympics and the Invasion of Afghanistan." //Middle East News and Issues from About.com//. About.com. Web. 19 May 2011. .