• September 10 down the years

Controversy on the court

The American players' celebrations were short-lived © Getty Images

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1972
A big day at the Olympic Games, including a momentous and controversial three seconds.

Before today's basketball final, the USA had played 62 matches at the Olympics, winning the lot. They were under pressure at the start, with a talented USSR team leading 26-21 at half-time and by eight points with six minutes to go. Right at the end, they were only one point in front - but there were only six seconds to go. Then a blunder by Sasha Belov gave the ball to Doug Collins, who was fouled with three seconds left. Collins sank both free throws to put the USA 50-49 ahead, and that seemed to be that. When time ran out, the American players jumped for joy - only to be brought back to earth by a complicated ruling. After Collins took his first free throw, the Soviet coach called a time-out as he was entitled to do. The German officials thought he'd cancelled his request and didn't inform the referee about the time-out. At the end of the match, the secretary-general of FIBA, Britain's William Jones, ordered the clock to be put back three seconds, to the time when the USSR called their time-out. Technically he wasn't allowed to make such a decision, but it was clearly the fair one, despite American protests that are still going on. In those few seconds, Belov redeemed himself by catching a long pass and scoring the winning basket. An American protest was rejected and the team voted to refuse their silver medals. The USA regained the title four years later. Belov was 26 when he died of a rare form of cancer in 1978.

In the boxing ring, Teófilo Stevenson completed his blitz of the heavyweight division. One of the stars of any sport at these Games, he'd destroyed America's big white hope Duane Bobick in the quarter-finals before stopping the very experienced West German Peter Hussing in his own country ('I have never been hit so hard in all my 212 fights'). In the final today - well, there was no final today. The other semi was a very insipid affair, which neither boxer seemed keen to win. They should have been told that the loser would have to face Stevenson twice! As it was, Romania's Ion Alexe turned up with his thumb in plaster, a small price to pay for not getting hammered by the great Cuban. Stevenson retained the title at both the next two Olympics( August 2).

In track and field, Frank Shorter won the Marathon in the town where he was born. An American from Munich, he worked his way over a course with tight corners and crumbling surfaces, taking the lead after 15 kilometres and pulling away to win by more than two minutes. His big moment was spoiled slightly by the unreal atmosphere when he re-entered the stadium. The crowd was still amusedly confused by the emergence of a young student who'd created a hoax by running into the stadium as if he'd won the race. Belgium's European champion Karel Lismont won silver, while the bronze went to Ethiopia's 40-year-old defending champion Mamo Wolde of Ethiopia.

Also on the athletics track, Finnish legend Lasse Virén completed the middle-distance double. After setting a world record in the 10,000 metres despite falling over (!)( August 31), he made his break at the bell in the 5,000. In the back straight, he was overtaken by defending champion Mohammed Gammoudi of Tunisia, but Virén had more in reserve and came through to win by eight yards. A late sprint by Britain's Ian Stewart took him past US favourite Steve Prefontaine for the bronze.

Britain won another track and field medal on the same day. Their quartet for the men's 4x400 metres relay was cobbled together from odds and ends. David Hemery had won bronze while defending his title in the 400 metres hurdles, but the other three hadn't reached their finals in the 200 metres (Martin Reynolds), 110 metres hurdles (Alan Pascoe), or 400 metres (European champion David Jenkins). Unpromising. But the USA couldn't raise a team ( September 7), so a medal was always a possibility when the first three runners kept Britain in it. Host country West Germany led for most of the way, but their big hope Karl Honz went off too fast on the last leg and they finished out of the medals. Julius Sang had won bronze in the individual 400 and now brought Kenya home for gold. Jenkins also ran an excellent anchor leg to take silver as Britain finished in half a second outside three minutes, equalling the European record.

When the USA did get a men's team onto the track, they won gold and equalled a world record. In the sprint relay, Eddie Hart brought home the baton in 38.2 seconds to make up for missing his heat in the individual 100 ( August 31).

The women's race was expected to be a walkover for East Germany, who had big Renate Stecher on the anchor leg. Hosts West Germany had a slight lead before that, but Stecher had won the 100 and 200 metres and the world waited for her to overtake Heide Rosendahl, who was featuring in her third close finish of these Games. She'd won gold in the long jump ( August 31) and silver in the pentathlon behind the UK's Mary Peters ( September 3).but wasn't in Stecher's class as a 100-metre runner. Except today. Running the race of her life, Rosendahl held the ogre off and deprived her of the sprint treble. West Germany's time of 42.81 seconds equalled the world record set at altitude in the previous Games and was faster on automatic timing.

East Germany went one better in the inaugural women's 4x400 metres. Monika Zehrt, their young champion at the individual 400, brought them home in another world record.

Emerson Fittipaldi won at Monza on this day in 1972 © Sutton Images

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In 1972, Emerson Fittipaldi of Brazil went one better than Hill by winning the title with two races to go. At Monza, Jacky Ickx started on pole and set the fastest lap, but his electrics failed after 45 laps and Fittipaldi won from sixth on the grid. Second place went to Britain's Mike Hailwood, a motorcycling legend who never came closer to winning a World Championship race on four wheels. At 25 years 273 days, Fittipaldi was the youngest Formula One champion before Fernando Alonso in 2005.

Britain's Johnny Herbert won the 1995 race less than a fortnight after being dropped by Benetton for the following season. He profited from the latest collision between Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill, and Gerhard Berger's retirement when a TV camera flew off another car and broke his suspension!

The 2006 race went better for Schumacher as he became the only driver to win the Italian Grand Prix times. Kimi Räikkönen started on pole and set the fastest lap but finished eight seconds adrift, while Robert Kubica finished third in only his third race, the first Polish driver to mount a podium in Formula One.

Schumacher also won at Monza on the same day in 2000 when tragedy struck again. On the opening lap, the two Jordans bumped into each other and hit two other cars from behind. One of Heinz-Harald Frentzen's wheels came off and shot away towards the safety fence, where it killed fire marshal Paolo Ghislimberti. It was the first death during a World Championship race since Ayrton Senna in 1994 ( May 1).

1936
At Wembley Stadium, one of speedway's most thrilling and controversial evenings ended with Lionel Van Praag as the sport's first world champion. Fellow Australian Arthur 'Bluey' Wilkinson won all his five races that night, finishing top of the table with 15 points. Van Praag scored 14 and England's Eric Langton 13. But a system was in place which included bonus points from qualifying rounds. With those added on, the unfortunate Wilkinson finished third, one point behind Van Praag and Langton, despite beating them both on the night. He'd even had to ride two races back-to-back without a break. The other two tied with 26, so a run-off took place, which Van Praag won by a couple of lengths. Wilkinson took the world title two years later - by one bonus point!

1978
Jimmy Connors became the only tennis player to win the US Open on three different surfaces. Grass in 1974, cement in 1976, and now clay - by beating Björn Borg, of all people. In a way, this final should have sealed Jimbo's reputation as an all-round player. He'd beaten Borg in the 1976 final, but today he did it on the Swede's favourite surface. Hammering the king of clay in straight sets, the last two both 6-2, should leave no doubts. But Borg was suffering from an infected calloused on the thumb of his right hand: he could hardly hold the racquet. This would have been his best chance of winning the US Open. Instead he never did, losing four Finals in all, the last two to John McEnroe. Connors won it five times.

1989
Ivan Lendl played in the US Open singles final for the last time. Champion three years in a row from 1985, he came close to winning again today - but Boris Becker was in his pomp, playing the tie-breaks better. He won the first and fourth sets that way, and his hammerfist serving took the third after he'd lost the second 6-1. Lendl was the last player to reach the singles final at the same Grand Slam event eight years in a row. Only Martina Navrátilová played in nine: at Wimbledon from 1982 to 1990. The others were Charlotte Cooper Sterry, also at Wimbledon (1895-1902) and the great Bill Tilden at the US Championships from 1918 to 1925.

1933
Another milestone US Open champion was crowned in 1933 as Fred Perry won his first grand slam title, coming from two sets to one down to defeat Jack Crawford on the grass at Forest Hills. With this victory began a spell of dominance from Perry, as well as a short rivalry with Australian Crawford. Following his New York triumph, the Stockport-born Perry sailed from America to Sydney where he defeated Crawford again in the final of the Australian Open. Perry went on to win six more grand slam singles titles, taking his overall tally to eight, and also became the first player to win all four majors - although not in the same season.

1931
Earlier this year, Tony Canzoneri had kept his world titles at lightweight and junior-welterweight by knocking out Britain's Jack 'Kid' Berg in the third round, revenge for a pounding he'd taken the year before. Today the decider ended in uproar. Canzoneri knocked Berg down in each of the first two rounds, but the Kid won three in a row with his aggression. Then, in the eighth, Berg was down again, this time from a punch below the belt. The fight was held at the Polo Grounds in New York. It was originally scheduled for London, where Canzoneri would have been disqualified and lost his titles. But under a mad NYSAC rule, boxers couldn't lose fights on a foul. Berg got up and survived all fifteen rounds, but Canzoneri's straight punching won him a unanimous decision.

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