60 Fun Facts About 90s Sports

Which team did the Bulls beat in the 1998 NBA Finals, ended by Michael Jordan's last shot as a Bull?

Jordan's jumper over Bryon Russell with 5.2 seconds left gave Chicago an 87-86 lead in Game 6 and a sixth title. He retired for the second time the following January.

When Michael Jordan returned to the NBA in March 1995, which number did he first wear?

He announced the comeback with a two-word press release, "I'm back," and initially wore his baseball number before switching back to 23 after two games.

During his 1994 baseball detour, Michael Jordan played for which minor-league team?

He signed a minor-league deal with the Chicago White Sox and hit .202 for their Double-A affiliate, with three home runs and 30 stolen bases.

What regular-season record did the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls post, an NBA best that stood for twenty years?

The mark stood until the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors went 73-9, though Golden State lost in the Finals and the Bulls did not.

How many points did Michael Jordan score in the 1997 'Flu Game' against Utah?

He also hit the game-winning three-pointer with 25 seconds left in Game 5, then collapsed into Scottie Pippen's arms.

The 1994 baseball strike wiped out the World Series for the first time since which year?

The strike began on August 12, 1994, lasted 232 days and cancelled 948 games. The 1995 season was shortened to 144 games.

Which team owned the best record in baseball, 74-40, when the 1994 players' strike ended the season?

Montreal never got its shot at a title; the franchise moved to Washington a decade later. Tony Gwynn was hitting .394 when play stopped.

Which future Supreme Court justice's March 1995 injunction effectively ended the baseball strike?

She was a federal district judge in Manhattan at the time. Players returned for a 144-game season that started in late April.

On September 6, 1995, Cal Ripken Jr. played in his 2,131st consecutive game, breaking whose record?

Ripken kept going until 1998, voluntarily ending the streak at 2,632 games, 502 beyond the old mark.

Which Cubs pitcher gave up Mark McGwire's record-breaking 62nd home run on September 8, 1998?

The ball travelled just 341 feet, one of McGwire's shortest of the year. He finished with 70; Sammy Sosa, who was in right field that night, ended with 66 and won the NL MVP.

Sammy Sosa set a still-standing record in June 1998 with how many home runs in one calendar month?

He was NL MVP that year with 66 homers and 158 RBIs, even though McGwire out-homered him.

Whose walk-off three-run home run off Mitch Williams won the 1993 World Series for the Toronto Blue Jays?

Toronto became the first repeat champion since the 1977-78 Yankees. Game 4 of that Series was a 15-14 slugfest with 29 total runs.

Who hit the 11th-inning walk-off single in Game 7 of the 1997 World Series for the Marlins?

They were the first wild-card team to win it all. Owner Wayne Huizenga then sold off the roster and the Marlins went 54-108 the next year.

What was the final score of Super Bowl XXV, where Scott Norwood's kick went 'wide right'?

It was the first of four straight Super Bowl losses for Buffalo. Whitney Houston sang the anthem and the Giants held the ball for a record 40 minutes 33 seconds.

Who was named MVP of Super Bowl XXXII after three rushing touchdowns despite a migraine?

Davis missed most of the second quarter with the headache and still set a Super Bowl record. The win snapped a 13-game AFC losing streak in the big game.

How many rushing yards did Barry Sanders gain in 1997, his co-MVP season with Brett Favre?

He topped 100 yards in the final 14 games of the season, still an NFL record, and retired abruptly two years later by faxing a letter to the Wichita Eagle.

How far short of Walter Payton's NFL rushing record was Barry Sanders when he retired in 1999?

He walked away the day before Lions training camp opened, having played only ten seasons and won just one playoff game.

Which team did the Dallas Cowboys beat 30-13 in Super Bowl XXVIII in January 1994?

It was Buffalo's fourth consecutive Super Bowl loss, and the second straight to Dallas.

The 1994 New York Rangers ended a Stanley Cup drought of how many years?

They needed seven games to beat Vancouver after blowing a 3-1 series lead. Captain Mark Messier had guaranteed a Game 6 win over New Jersey in the previous round and delivered a hat trick.

Which country won the men's ice hockey gold at Nagano 1998, the first Olympics to feature NHL players?

The Czechs, led by Dominik Hašek in goal, beat Russia 1-0 in the final. Nagano also introduced women's ice hockey, curling and snowboarding to the Winter Games.

At 15, who became the youngest individual Winter Olympic gold medallist at Nagano in 1998?

She upset the favoured Michelle Kwan in the free skate and turned professional soon afterwards.

Nancy Kerrigan was clubbed on the leg on January 6, 1994, in the corridor of which building?

Attacker Shane Stant used a baton; the plot traced back to Tonya Harding's ex-husband. Harding was later banned for life by the US Figure Skating Association.

Who lit the Olympic cauldron at the 1996 Atlanta opening ceremony?

Ali, visibly shaking from Parkinson's, took the torch from swimmer Janet Evans. A record 197 nations took part in Atlanta.

What world-record time did Michael Johnson run in the 200 metres at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics?

He is still the only man to win the 200 and 400 at the same Games, and he did it in gold-coloured Nike spikes.

Which Canadian sprinter won the 100 metres in Atlanta in a then world record 9.84 seconds?

He anchored Canada's 4x100 relay to gold as well, beating the US team on home soil.

How many people were killed by the pipe bomb in Centennial Olympic Park during the Atlanta Games?

The July 27 blast also injured 111. Eric Rudolph later confessed and was sentenced to life in prison.

Who was the only college player on the 1992 US Olympic 'Dream Team'?

The Duke forward was picked over LSU's Shaquille O'Neal. The team won its games by an average of 43.8 points and beat Croatia 117-85 for gold.

Which Detroit Pistons star was controversially left off the 1992 Dream Team roster?

Charles Barkley led the team in scoring at 18 points a game under coach Chuck Daly, who happened to be Thomas's own coach in Detroit.

On November 7, 1991, which NBA superstar announced he had HIV and was retiring immediately?

He still played in the 1992 All-Star Game, scored 25 points and won MVP, then joined the Dream Team in Barcelona.

To how many games was the 1998-99 NBA regular season cut by the lockout?

The 204-day lockout ran from July 1, 1998 to January 20, 1999 and was the first time NBA games were cancelled over a labour dispute. San Antonio won the title.

Which team did Houston beat in the 1994 NBA Finals for the first of its back-to-back titles?

Game 5 was famously interrupted on TV by O.J. Simpson's white Bronco chase. Houston swept Orlando the following year.

By how many strokes did 21-year-old Tiger Woods win the 1997 Masters?

He shot 40 on his first nine holes and still finished at 18-under 270, a tournament record. Tom Kite was a distant runner-up.

Whose long putt on Brookline's 17th set off the premature US celebration at the 1999 Ryder Cup?

Europe had led 10-6 going into Sunday. The US won 14½-13½, but the stampede across the line of José María Olazábal's putt is what people remember.

How much did Nevada's commission fine Mike Tyson for biting Evander Holyfield's ears in 1997?

Referee Mills Lane disqualified him after the third round at the MGM Grand and his boxing licence was revoked until October 1998.

In which city did 42-1 underdog Buster Douglas knock out Mike Tyson in February 1990?

Douglas's mother had died 23 days before the fight. Tyson later said his career had effectively been over since that night.

How old was George Foreman when he became the oldest heavyweight champion in 1994?

He was behind on every scorecard entering the tenth round, and he wore the same red trunks he had lost in against Ali twenty years earlier.

Which Italian sent his penalty over the bar to hand Brazil the 1994 World Cup?

It stayed 0-0 through 120 minutes at the Rose Bowl, the only scoreless final in World Cup history. It was Brazil's fourth title and the first time they lifted the current trophy.

Which Colombian defender was shot dead in July 1994, days after scoring an own goal at the World Cup?

The own goal against the United States helped eliminate Colombia in the group stage. He was killed outside a Medellín nightclub.

Who scored two headed goals from corners for France in the 1998 World Cup final against Brazil?

France won 3-0 despite Marcel Desailly's red card. Ronaldo had suffered a convulsive fit that afternoon and was left off the teamsheet before being reinstated 30 minutes before kickoff.

How many spectators watched the 1999 Women's World Cup final at the Rose Bowl, then a record?

The US beat China 5-4 on penalties after a 0-0 draw. Brandi Chastain's shirt-off celebration made the covers of Sports Illustrated, Time and Newsweek.

Which US goalkeeper's save on Liu Ying's penalty set up the 1999 Women's World Cup win over China?

Chinese media protested that she had stepped off her line early, but the save stood and Brandi Chastain converted the winner.

Which two substitutes scored in injury time against Bayern Munich in May 1999 to complete Ferguson's treble?

United became the first English club to win the league, FA Cup and European Cup in one season. Alex Ferguson was knighted that November.

Nelson Mandela presented the 1995 Rugby World Cup to which Springbok captain while wearing his jersey?

South Africa beat New Zealand 15-12 at Ellis Park on an extra-time drop goal. The moment inspired the film Invictus.

Which Spanish cyclist won five consecutive Tours de France from 1991 to 1995?

He was the first to win five in a row, and his resting pulse was reportedly as low as 28 beats per minute. In 1994 he also set the hour record at 53.040 km.

At which corner of the Imola circuit did Ayrton Senna crash fatally on May 1, 1994?

Roland Ratzenberger had died in qualifying the day before. Senna had won three world titles with McLaren before joining Williams that season.

Dale Earnhardt finally won the Daytona 500 in February 1998. How many attempts did it take?

Crews from every team lined pit road to shake his hand. He dedicated the win to Neil Bonnett, who had died practising for the 1994 race.

Which team won the very first Major League Soccer match in 1996 and went on to claim the first MLS Cup?

MLS was created in 1993 as part of the US bid for the 1994 World Cup and launched with ten teams. Its shootouts and countdown clock were dropped after 1999.

Which player was the first ever signed by the WNBA before its 1997 debut season?

The league launched with eight teams; the Houston Comets won its first four championships and the New York Liberty beat the Sparks 67-57 in the first game.

Whom did 17-year-old Serena Williams beat in the 1999 US Open final for her first Grand Slam?

She was the first African-American woman to win a singles major since Althea Gibson in 1958. Twenty-two more would follow.

Agassi completed the career Grand Slam at the 1999 French Open from two sets down against whom?

He was the first man to complete the set on three different surfaces. That tournament was also Roger Federer's first Grand Slam appearance.

Which club won the 1994-95 Premier League, denying Alex Ferguson's side a third straight title?

Later that year the Bosman ruling let EU players move for free at the end of their contracts, reshaping European transfers.

Which CFL franchise became the first US-based team to win the Grey Cup, in 1995?

They beat Calgary 37-20. The CFL's American experiment folded the following year and the Stallions relocated to become the Montreal Alouettes.

Which cyclist won the 1999 Tour de France for US Postal Service, a result later erased by USADA in 2012?

Organisers had billed the race as the 'Tour of Renewal' after the 1998 Festina doping scandal. The 1999 edition now officially has no winner.

Which NASCAR driver won the inaugural Brickyard 400 in 1994 and racked up 13 wins in 1998?

His No. 24 Hendrick crew were the 'Rainbow Warriors', and he was Winston Cup champion in 1995, 1997 and 1998.

In which German city was Monica Seles stabbed on court by a Steffi Graf fan in April 1993?

Günter Parche attacked her during a break at the Citizen Cup; he spent less than six months in pre-trial detention.

John Daly won the 1991 PGA Championship at Crooked Stick after entering the field how?

He had no time for a practice round yet opened with a 69 on the notoriously difficult course near Indianapolis.

Which Norwegian speed skater won three golds at the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Olympics?

He swept the 1,500, 5,000 and 10,000 metres at the northernmost city ever to host the Games.

How old was Nolan Ryan when he threw his record seventh no-hitter on May 1, 1991?

He struck out Toronto's Roberto Alomar for the final out, extending a record nobody has approached since.

Which owner moved the Cleveland Browns to Baltimore for the 1996 NFL season?

The NFL brokered a deal in which Modell's team became a new franchise, the Ravens, while the Browns name and history stayed in Cleveland.

Whom did 19-year-old Pete Sampras beat in the 1990 US Open final to become its youngest men's champion?

At 19 years and 28 days he began a career of 14 majors, including seven Wimbledon titles.