June 19
1867 — Ruthless, ridden by J. Gilpatrick, wins the inaugural Belmont Stakes at Jerome Park in the Bronx. The filly earns $1,850 for her victory.
1914 — Harry Vardon wins his sixth and final British Open by shooting a 306, three strokes ahead of J.H. Taylor at Prestwick Club.
1936 — German heavyweight boxer Max Schmeling knocks out previously unbeaten Joe Louis in the 12th round. Schmeling’s victory sets off a propaganda war between the Nazi regime and the United States on the eve of World War II.
1938 — FIFA World Cup Final, Stade Olympique de Colombes, Paris, France: Luigi Colausig & Silvio Piola each score 2 goals as Italy beats Hungary, 4-1.
1954 — Ed Furgol edges Gene Littler by one stroke to win the U.S. Open, the first golf tournament to be televised nationally.
1955 — Jack Fleck beats Ben Hogan by three strokes in a playoff round to win the U.S. Open.
1973 — Pete Rose (Cincinnati Reds) and Willie Davis (LA Dodgers) both record 2,000th MLB career hit; Rose, a single in 4-0 win vs SF Giants; Davis, a HR in 3-0 win vs Atlanta Braves.
1977 — Hubert Green wins the U.S. Open by one stroke over Lou Graham.
1986 — Len Bias, the second pick in the NBA draft made by the Boston Celtics two days before, dies of a heart attack induced by cocaine use.
1992 — Evander Holyfield wins a unanimous decision over Larry Holmes to remain unbeaten and retain the undisputed heavyweight title.
1992 — Charlie Whittingham becomes the second trainer in history, behind D. Wayne Lukas, to top $100 million in purse earnings when Little by Little finishes second in the sixth race at Hollywood Park.
1999 — Dallas wins its first Stanley Cup, as Brett Hull’s controversial goal at 14:51 of the third overtime gives the Stars a 2-1 victory over the Buffalo Sabres in Game 6.
2000 — NBA Finals: Los Angeles Lakers beat Indiana Pacers, 116-111 in Game 6 to win the franchise’s first title in 12 years; MVP: Shaquille O’Neal.
2005 — Michael Campbell answers every challenge Tiger Woods throws his way for a two-shot victory in the U.S. Open. Retief Goosen, the two-time U.S. Open champion, turns in a collapse that ranks among the greatest in major championship history. He loses his three-shot lead in three holes and closes with an 81 to tie for 11th at 8 over.
2006 — Cam Ward stops nearly everything giving the Carolina Hurricanes their first Stanley Cup title with a 3-1 victory over Edmonton in Game 7.
2011 — Rory McIlroy runs away with the U.S. Open title, winning by eight shots and breaking the tournament scoring record by a whopping four strokes. McIlroy shoots a 2-under 69 to close the four days at Congressional in Bethesda, Md., at 16-under 268.
2015 — Alex Rodriguez homers for his 3,000th career hit as the New York Yankees beat the Detroit Tigers 7-2.
2016 — Dustin Johnson atones for his past mishaps in the majors winning the U.S. Open by three shots. Shane Lowry, who began the final round with a four-shot lead, Jim Furyk and Scott Piercy finish tied for second.
2016 — LeBron James and his relentless Cavaliers pulls off an improbable NBA Finals comeback to give the city of Cleveland its first title since 1964. James delivers on a promise from two years ago to bring a championship to his native northeast Ohio, and he and the Cavs become the first team to rally from a 3-1 finals deficit by beating the defending champion Golden State Warriors 93-89.
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