By MIKE PUMA
Last updated: 11:05 pm
August 18, 2008
Posted: 3:42 am
August 17, 2008
Go ahead and say it: 2008 is the most electric year in sports history.
From the Giants' stunning upset in Super Bowl XLII to Tiger Woods' victory on a bum leg at the US Open to a classic men's Wimbledon final between Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer to Michael Phelps' amazing run, it's been a one-of-a-kind year in sports - with four months still remaining.
Gallery: The Best Sports Years
A handful of other years can lay claim to "best" status, but really, does any resume match 2008's in terms of sheer drama? We're enjoying an unprecedented year of firsts, bests and cliffhangers - a joy for any sports fan.
Right at the top you'll find Giants 17, Patriots 14 - probably the greatest Super Bowl of all time. Start with the fact the Patriots were trying to become the first perfect team since the 1972 Dolphins and the Giants were 12-point underdogs, add David Tyree's circus catch, with the ball pinned against his helmet, in the closing minute and you have a classic.
As much suspense as the Super Bowl produced, it was topped by the US Open in June, when Woods was forced into a playoff at Torrey Pines in San Diego against Rocco Mediate. Two days after winning a sudden death ending, it was revealed he had played the Open with a torn ligament in his left knee and he had suffered a double stress fracture in his left leg less than two weeks earlier.
There were no such physical handicaps, other than exhaustion, for Federer and Nadal to overcome in the Wimbledon men's final. The top-ranked Federer was within two points from becoming the first male since the 1880s to win a sixth straight Wimbledon, when his longtime rival, No. 2 Nadal, rallied for a 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-7 (8), 9-7 victory, ending a grueling 4-hour, 48-minute match - the longest Wimbledon men's final in history. After two rain delays and with darkness becoming an issue, Federer hit a forehand into the net on Nadal's fourth match point.
At the Olympics, Michael Phelps' won a record eight medals in mind-boggling fashion - winning the 100-meter butterfly by a fingernail, as well as a heart-stopping 4x100 relay, with an come-from-behind assist by Jason Lezak in the final leg.
And just in case 2008 needs to bolster its case, there was the NCAA men's basketball championship between Memphis and Kansas. The Jayhawks rallied from a nine-point deficit in the final 2:12 of regulation to win 75-68 in overtime.
There you have it: The most riveting year in sports history - with perhaps another big moment or two yet to come. A Cubs world championship, anyone?
Mike Puma is a Post sports writer.
COULDA BEEN CONTENDERS
2008 will have to stack up to these six stellar years:
1941
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