The 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team

3081 Words7 Pages

People consider the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team to be one of the greatest things to happen in U.S Olympic history. Their game against the Soviets is known as "The Miracle on Ice." The world was stunned when the United States defeated the Soviets in the semi-final game of the 1980 Olympics. The Soviets hadn't been beaten in the gold medal game in years. This miracle game is still greatly known around the world and will not be forgotten by Americans any time soon. In an article titled, "This "Miracle on Ice" is considered to be the single most incredible moment in all of U.S. sports history. When coach Herb Brooks was made the team's coach, he spent a lot of time reviewing and searching for the right people for the team. Seeing as Brooks was the last man cut from the 1960 U.S. Olympic team, He wanted to do everything he could to win gold for his country. Once try outs started Brooks knew who he wanted on his team after one day. All of the players trying out were in college. The United States and Herb Brooks had picked their Olympic team after the first day of a week of try outs. After picking the team Herb had trained and prepared the team for the Olympics for over a year and a half. He had to prepare them for to face the Soviets. Brooks knew there was no matching them in speed, so he emphasized working on speed, conditioning, and discipline. Doing this my not make them as fast of the Kaplewicz 2 Soviets, but Brooks knew that the United States would be able to keep the pressure on throughout the entire game. In an article written by ESPN, it explains how the U.S. team is made up of all college students. This miracle game is amazing because of the fact that all of the U.S. team was college players. While the USSR was a tea... ... middle of paper ... ...ymartinez.wordpress.com/2012/01/15/miracle-on-ice-1980- olympic-mens-hockey-team-cold-war/>. -Winter Olympics: When USA Hockey Team Beat Soviets in 1980, We Knew It Would Last Forever." NY Daily News. . -1980usahockeyteam.com The Miracle on Ice." 1980usahockeyteamcom RSS. . -Eskenazi, Gerald. "Herb Brooks, 66, Dies in Auto Accident; Coached U.S. Olympians to 'Miracle on Ice'" The New York Times. The New York Times, 11 Aug. 2003. . -McKinley, Michael. Hockey: A People's History. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 2006. Print.

Show More
Related

  • The Boys of Winter by Wayne Coffey

    601 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the book “The Boys of Winter” by Wayne Coffey, shows the struggle of picking the twenty men to go to Lake Placid to play in the 1980 Olympics and compete for the gold medal. Throughout this book Wayne Coffey talks about three many points. The draft and training, the importance of the semi-final game, and the celebration of the gold medal by the support the team got when they got home.

    Read More

  • The 1980 Miracle on Ice

    1321 Words  | 3 Pages

    The most memorable moment in hockey history came thirty-four years ago with the 1980 Miracle on Ice. The Americans defeating the dominant Soviet team at the Olympics was not only an important triumph for USA Hockey, but for the entire nation. Contrary to popular belief, the underdog win was not only the result of a miracle; it was also the result of a hard-working team led by Coach Herb Brooks. With increasingly negative views on the position of the United States in the Cold War, the Miracle on Ice and the gold medal win lifted the spirits of the nation and brought hockey into the American spotlight.

    Read More

  • Herb Brooks Miracle Sparknotes

    478 Words  | 1 Pages

    Miracle shows us the true story of the 1980 United States Men’s Hockey team as they prepare and compete in the Winter Olympics. Herb Brooks, the head coach, along with his assistant coach Craig Patrick, attempt to prepare young men to compete against the world’s toughest competition. Their leadership styles help lead the team to a victory over the favored Soviet Union and to Olympic gold at the 1980 Olympics. The movie starts with Herb arguing his case for the head coaching position, as well as him picking his team to compete at the Olympics. The tryout scene involves Herb choosing his team without consulting anyone after watching the players for only one day. Once Herb chooses his team, we get to meet the players as they start practicing. The Linear perspective of

    Read More

  • Alexandre Bilodeau Research Paper

    579 Words  | 2 Pages

    It took until day three of responsible third time hosting the Winter Olympic Games, but Canada has finally won a gold at home! Men’s moguls' finals Sunday duskiness at Cypress Mountain in West Vancouver, B.C. won by Alexandre Bilodeau which no one speculation he would accomplishment and he pulled off the feat. To say Bilodeau laid it all on the line would be an understatement! In his gold medal run, Bilodeau skied hard, fast, and on edge, walking the thin line between greatness and disaster! The skiing was nearly excellent, and his two jumps were spectacular! The run of a lifetime! When the score posted, Bilodeau a man everyone understanding was a long shot to reach the podium, had edged past defending Olympic champion and favorite Dale Begg-Smith and into first place! My biography and information on Alexandre Bilodeau.

    Read More

  • The Importance Of International Sports Events During The Cold War

    2530 Words  | 6 Pages

    The Cold War of the 20th century is seen by many to be a war fought in order to spread the ideologies of the world’s two major powers, the Soviet Union and the United States. In order to successfully spread their communist ideals, the Soviet Union had to show to the world that their system was working better than the capitalist ideals of the West and the United States. In their attempt to do so, the Soviet Union used various methods of propaganda and persuasion to convince the outside world that their economy and people were flourishing under their communist system. One of these methods was through international sport. The Soviets built strong sports programs, mainly their prized hockey team and Olympic program, to assert their world power

    Read More

  • Informative Essay On Wayne Gretzky

    679 Words  | 2 Pages

    It’s February 24th 1982 and you are standing in the stadium watching the Edmonton Oilers take on the Buffalo Sabers. The score is 5-3 for Edmonton. Player number 99 has control of the puck and is headed straight for the opposing teams net. Everybody in the stands is on the edge of their seat because they know what is going to happen next. Then everyone goes wild. “AND HE SCORES”. Wayne Gretzky has just beat the all-time record for goals scored in a single season (77), previously held by Phil Esposito (76) (The Great One 1). Gretzky has done it again, he has amazed everyone in the hockey world with his amazing abilities.

    Read More

  • Herb Brooks Miracle

    1402 Words  | 3 Pages

    During the time the only players that were allowed to the try out were amateurs. The next Olympics USA Hockey allowed the professionals to compete and create dream teams (Hardy 944). He held tryouts in Colorado Springs in the summer before the winter games. Although the best players were there, he was not looking for them; he was looking for the players were willing to rewire the brain for his system skate hard and fit together as a team. Once the team was finalized, Brooks had to shave six more guys of the roster in order to make it meet the Olympics’ requirements. Brooks’s main concern was with strategy but break the college loyalty and hatred of other players due to rivalries. In the 1970s and 1980s hockey was not played in most places other than Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and New England. Drawing the players from the collegiate level, players had a great loyalty to their colleges of Boston University, University of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, they was bond to be heated rivalries still carried over from 1976 heated blood bath of a semifinal. Brooks was cruel to everyone no matter where each player came from. One line that stuck to players and him “I’ll be your coach I won’t be your friend”(Goldberg). The coach that was a friend to the players was soft-spoken 1967 national teammate of Brooks’s was Craig Patrick. His ways were warranted for the reasoning of the unifying the team under the hatred of

    Read More

  • 2020 Winter Olympic Team Case Study

    1213 Words  | 3 Pages

    They enter the ice one day to practice there power play and penalty kill but to be quickly stunned by the Russians as they shut the lights off in the rink only letting you see ten to fifteen feet in front of you. Coach Casey believed if this is what it takes for them to win, we won't give it to them. They continued to practice there special teams, however they did not shoot the puck as it would be dangerous. After many other ice sessions and off ice workouts the Team Canada hockey club was entering there first game of the 2020 Winter Olympics. They play the Russians and they were the best team in world and showed them went they lost in a terrible defeat with a final score of 12-2. After the four exhibition games Casey's team was seeded 12 with a record of 3-1-0. Entering the semi finals they play Slovakia in which they were seeded 3rd and had one of the best defenseman in the world. Team Canada fought hard each shift and the results were beginning to show. The third period close to being final however, star player and the player that Casey has been working with a lot scored the game tying

    Read More

  • Quit Hockey Research Paper

    656 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hockey is the essential winter sport. It is, after all, one of Canada’s two national sports. Running jokes often centre on Canadians’ passion for the sport, and how almost every Canadian child has played a game of hockey at some point or another.

    Read More

  • Descriptive Essay: How The Players Hit The Ice

    248 Words  | 1 Pages

    The players hit the ice. What was once glistening pristine unmarked ice is now being shredded by newly sharpened blades, etching out the ice with a gritting sound. The warm up begins, sending a bass pounding, electrifying echo throughout the stands. The referee dressed in stripes of black and white, elbows cuffed in a bright hunting orange, blows his small black slightly curved whistle that expels an earsplitting pitch. The players line up as if they were placed and molded by hand into the perfect statue. The black hard rubber puck hits the ice with a thud and they come to life. They dart around the ice’s white surface with blue and red markings buried underneath. Dressed in their attire of a white jersey with a winding tornado on the front,

    Read More

  • Patriotism In Hockey

    1062 Words  | 3 Pages

    This movie accurately portrays the events leading up to the game and how the underdog, The United States Men’s National Hockey Team, overcame a lack of talent, size, and experience to win an Olympic Gold Medal. Legendary head coach, Herb Brooks, coached and conditioned his inexperienced team to play fast and tough on the arena. The teams known lack of experience caused them to be majorly overlooked. There was low expectations for the team leading up to the Olympic tournament. To make matters even worse, the American team suffered a 10-3 loss during an exhibition game in New York City against the USSR, who had won the previous four gold medals in ice hockey. The team’s motivation shifted completely during their first game of the tournament when they made an upset comeback against Sweden in the final 30 seconds of the game. Following this game, the team played the rest of the tournament with an impressive record of 4-0-1. The “miracle on ice” as they say, mostly stems from the semifinals, where Team USA played Russia. Surprisingly, the young team managed to hold their own throughout the game, and before they knew it, they were winning. With 10 minutes remaining in the game, the American team found themselves in the lead. They knew the only way they could hold their lead was through relentless effort and

    Read More

  • Informative Essay On Ice Hockey

    245 Words  | 1 Pages

    Have you ever had a major knock-out in a sport like ice hockey? This is a report about several details of hockey. Firstly, there are many rules for ice hockey. There is no high sticking to the face or anywhere on the body. You can only hit the puck. There are only twelve people in the rink. Another feature of hockey is the history. It was invented in 1877. Ice hockey has been a sport for a long time because it is intensely fun yet painful. Though it is a sport with excruciating injuries it is worth it to these athletes. Lastly, ice hockey came to the Olympics in 1877 and again in 1920. In conclusion, ice hockey has been around for a long time and it's a hard sport, but it is always fun. The U.S.A team won the Olympic

    Read More

  • Hockey In The 20th Century

    358 Words  | 1 Pages

    As hockey continued to grow it was beginning to be seen as a form of entertainment that brought the nation together (unit 4). Through the mid nineteenth century to the early twentieth century the Canadian society had less concern towards where the players on the team where from, how they looked, and who they are as the society just wanted to have the greatest team to win (unit 4). Hockey was seen as a sport that united people together. This was evident during the Summit Series as Canada had very high confidence when they won against Russia 4-1, but then lost their confidence when they tied with Winnipeg and then lost to Russia 5-3. Canada’s hockey team was booed off the ice at this time and Canada's confidence plummeted. This show how Canadians were passionate about the game, but it also showed how they had no

    Read More

  • The Ukrainian National Identity In The History Of Ukraine

    1524 Words  | 4 Pages

    One was Oksana Baiul who was the 1993 figure skating world champion and in 1994, won the Olympic gold medal in ladies singles. Another was Viktor Petrenko who has won multiple Olympic medals, European championships, and world championships. As a result, skaters from all over the world, but especially the Ukraine, came to New Jersey to train with Viktor and Oksana’s coach, Galina Zmievskaya. One day, when I was perhaps fourteen years old, I got into an argument with one of Galina’s older pupils who had traveled to the United States from the Ukraine to train. I don’t remember anything about that argument except for one thing he said to me, “You have no idea what it is like to wake up one day and have no idea what country you are living in.”

    Read More

  • Saginaw Descriptive Writing

    420 Words  | 1 Pages

    Everyone stood to their feet and cheered with thrill and astonishment as the whistle blew. It was on a beautiful Sunday morning. We were on the field with the opposing team, we were playing Saginaw. We were so similar in skill, that no one had a good enough opportunity to score.

    Read More

More about The 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team

Open Document