They Believed In Miracles: The 1980s Winter Olympics
The Soviet Union had won four consecutive Olympic gold medals and had beaten Team USA all 12 times the teams had played over the previous two decades — most recently in an exhibition game at Madison Square Garden, a week before the 1980 Olympics began in Lake Placid, New York.
There was simply no way the young American team, full of college players, could beat the fearsome hockey veterans from the Soviet Union. Right?
Yet, that’s just what they did on Feb. 22, 1980 — 45 years ago Saturday — in one of the most dramatic upsets in sports history.
A Stunning Upset Victory Over a Dominant Team
Twelve countries competed in ice hockey in the 1980 Winter Olympics at Lake Placid, New York. The young, inexperienced U.S. team entered play as a seventh seed. The Soviet team — manned with seasoned veterans of international play — was seeded No. 1 and was heavily favored to win a fifth consecutive Olympic gold medal.
Leading the U.S. team was Herb Brooks, who had coached the University of Minnesota to a national championship in 1979 and had a reputation for being awfully hard on his players. But Brooks knew that in order to compete against the Europeans — and especially the Soviets — the Americans would need to be tougher and stronger, and would need to exercise more precise puck control.
Coach Herb Brooks
Over the first two periods, the Americans were outshot by the Soviets 30-10, but only trailed 3-2. Goaltender Jim Craig kept the U.S. in the game with save after amazing save.
Goaltender Jim Craig
Nine minutes into the third period, the U.S. tied the score 3-3. Then, at the 10-minute mark, team captain Mike Eruzione slapped a 30-foot shot that found the net.
Mike Eruzlone
The Soviets attacked furiously over the final 10 minutes but again, Craig fended off shot after shot. The capacity crowd counted down the final seconds.
Outside, as snow began to fall on Lake Placid’s Main Street, fans sang “God Bless America.” It was a big win for America, which was weary after years of dealing with political scandals, a sluggish economy and a hostage crisis in Iran.
The next day, Brooks “rewarded” his team with yet another grueling workout. They were just lucky against the Soviets, he told them. They hadn’t won anything yet.
But then, as they faced the other finalist, Finland, on Feb. 24, Brooks encouraged his team. “You were born to be a player,” he told them. “You were meant to be here. This moment is yours.”
That night, the U.S. team trailed Finland 2-1 after two periods but then scored three goals in the third period to win 4-2.
Al Michaels With The Call
Nearly as memorable as the game itself was ABC Sports’ Al Michaels’ call as time ran out: “Do you believe in miracles? YES!”
“You’re not making a call for posterity, you’re doing it for the moment,” Michaels said later. “I had no idea that technology is able to take us to the point where I’ve heard it, obviously, hundreds of times now.”
Al Michaels in the booth in Lake Placid in 1980. Image from ABC Sports.
All-Time Olympic Medal-Winners in Men's Ice Hockey
Top 10 Upsets In Sports History
10
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The
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7
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5
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4
Buster Douglas vs. Mike Tyson
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3
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2
Super Bowl III
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1
The Miracleon Ice
A young USA ice hockey team defeats the heavily favored Soviets in the medal round of the 1980 Winter Olympics. Two days later, the USA defeats Finland for the gold medal.
Feb. 22, 1980