Thirty Years Ago, A Miracle Occurred in New York

Today is the thirtieth anniversary of the "Miracle on Ice." At the 1980 Winter Olympics at Lake Placid in New York, a group of college kids defeated the heavily favored Soviet Union team. Back then, only amateurs were allowed to participate in the Olympics. The Soviets were hardly amateurs as some of them were in the military or had bogus government jobs with advantage of allowing them to play and practice virtually full time. (Wikipedia article on the game.)

How good were the Soviets? The prior year they thumped an all-star NHL team 6-0. Thirteen days before the game, they crushed the Americans 10-3. Meanwhile, the United States seemed to be in a downward spiral. The economy was a mess. Iran had our diplomats as hostages. The Soviets occupied Afghanistan. The Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union still existed.

It is indeed a happy coincidence that we celebrate this day as the United States just upset a favorite Canadian team at this year's Olympics. Mind you the United States hasn't won anything yet, and like that legendary 1980 team sill had some games to go before winning the Gold. But thirty years ago, miracles do happen; David beat Goliath.