I was recently asked to teach ASU's "History of U.S. Sports" class this fall—the largest upper level history course we offer.
96 of the 100 available seats have already been filled.
And while I could go into the methodological and pedagogical approaches I will be taking, one thing I want to make sure I do is to give my students at least one great story per lecture. Stories like the
bearded House of David baseball team or the
first "olive ball" (football) team to play in China or the bizarre popularity of
19th century pedestrianism.
Because, let's be honest, that's why these students are signing up for this course.
We'll be covering all of the major sports—from the "Big Four" in North America to the more traditional competitions like boxing, horse racing, and automobile racing all the way to e-sports and the future of sports.
So what are your absolute favorite inspiring/shocking/bizarre/hilarious sports stories?