Thirty years in the past from this date was one of the memorable and notorious days in sports activities historical past. There have been moments of nice celebration that featured iconic sports activities figures, however they had been all overshadowed by the late O.J. Simpson and his white Ford Bronco.
Friday, June 17, 1994, was full of notable sports activities moments, starting with Arnold Palmer teeing up his remaining U.S. Open spherical and ending with Los Angeles police bringing Simpson into custody following a two-hour low-speed automotive pursuit.
In between, New York Metropolis had championship fever, the primary World Cup on U.S. soil started, and Ken Griffey Jr. pulled off a feat solely beforehand completed by Babe Ruth. The by line for all these occasions was the darkish dialogue about homicide costs being filed towards Simpson, a former Heisman Trophy winner and NFL MVP who had parlayed his gridiron accomplishments into success as an actor, soccer analyst and business pitchman.
Let’s have a look again at maybe probably the most unforgettable day in American sports activities historical past. All occasions Jap.
9:07 a.m. | Arnold Palmer tees off at remaining U.S. Open spherical
On the age of 64, Arnold Palmer teed off for his remaining U.S. Open spherical. Palmer hadn’t performed the occasion in 11 years, however he obtained an exemption from the USGA to play at Oakmont. As one would possibly anticipate, Palmer’s scorecard did not look nice. He missed the minimize at 16-over, nevertheless it was nonetheless a big day for {the golfing} legend. Palmer obtained immense assist from the group and obtained emotional after the spherical.
As for the remainder of the match, Ernie Els went on to win his first main on the age of 24. Els beat Loren Roberts in a sudden-death gap after the 2 had been tied on the finish of an 18-hole playoffs.
10:17 a.m. | Rangers’ Stanley Cup Parade rolls by New York
Simply three days earlier, the New York Rangers ended their 54-year Stanley Cup drought when Mark Messier, who assured a sequence win, scored the deciding objective towards the Vancouver Canucks in Sport 7 at Madison Sq. Backyard. On June 17, the Rangers celebrated by parading the Cup up New York’s “Canyon of Heroes.” An estimated 1.5 million folks packed the streets, sidewalks, balconies and rooftops attempting to catch a glimpse of Lord Stanley. The parade ended with the gamers receiving keys to town from Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
The Rangers have not received a Stanley Cup since 1994, and the closest they obtained was shedding to the Los Angeles Kings in 2014. The Rangers practically returned to the Ultimate this yr, however they misplaced Sport 7 of the Jap Convention Ultimate to the Florida Panthers.
11:09 a.m. | Homicide costs filed towards O.J. Simpson
The chaos actually started when information broke that homicide costs had been filed towards Simpson, who was accused of murdering his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her pal Ronald Goldman. The our bodies of Brown Simpson and Goldman had been discovered just some days earlier outdoors of her home. The pair had been brutally stabbed to demise, and O.J. Simpson wound up because the Los Angeles Police Division’s prime suspect after a number of days of investigation.
3:00 p.m. | United States hosts its first World Cup match
The 1994 FIFA World Cup was the primary time the occasion was held in the US. The opening ceremonies had been held at Soldier Subject, the house of the Chicago Bears, and it was a star-studded affair. Oprah Winfrey launched Diana Ross, who carried out a choreographed musical quantity on the sphere, and President Invoice Clinton addressed the group earlier than kickoff of the opening recreation. The primary World Cup match on American soil was between Germany and Bolivia, with the Germans pulling out a 1-0 win that afternoon.
The USA made it to the knockout stage within the 1994 World Cup, nevertheless it was eradicated within the Spherical of 16 by eventual Brazil on the Fourth of July. Brazil went on to win its fourth World Cup title, a primary in soccer historical past.
4:55 p.m. | LAPD press convention
Simply hours after homicide costs had been filed towards Simpson, LAPD commander David Gascon held a press convention saying that authorities had been looking for the previous NFL MVP. Gascon famous that the division was at the moment in “pursuit” of Simpson, who had not turned himself in after costs had been filed. Gascon added that he had spoken Simpson’s lawyer, Robert Shapiro, about getting Simpson into custody. “We spoke to Mr. [Robert] Shapiro, we expressed our dismay and we indicated to him that we anticipate to see Mr. Simpson instantly, if not sooner,” Gascon stated when requested about Simpson’s whereabouts.
8:06 p.m. | Ken Griffey Jr. ties Babe Ruth with 30 dwelling runs earlier than June 30
Ken Griffey Jr. obtained off to a scorching begin within the 1994 MLB season. The 24-year-old slugger was hitting the ball out of the park at a charge not seen since Babe Ruth. On June 17, Griffey crushed a solo dwelling run off Kansas Metropolis Royals pitcher David Cone, tying him with Ruth as the one gamers in historical past to hit 30 homers earlier than June 30. Sadly for baseball followers in every single place, nobody obtained to see how a lot injury Griffey might have achieved in a full season. That is as a result of, earlier within the day, MLBPA government director Donald Fehr met with 55 gamers to debate the homeowners’ proposal for a wage cap, an concept the gamers instantly spurned.
Simply 5 days later, on June 22, Griffey would go Ruth along with his thirty first dinger of the season. And, with the gamers having balked on the homeowners’ proposal, that set the wheels in movement for the 1994-95 strike. The season ended on Aug. 11, and the World Collection was canceled for simply the second time in historical past.
8:56 p.m. | Police pursuit of O.J. Simpson begins
Issues actually started to spiral uncontrolled when Simpson and his pal, Al “AC” Cowlings, fled from police within the former’s white Ford Bronco. The low-speed chase lasted a few hours and lined roughly 60 miles of California pavement. The chase was proven dwell on each information broadcast in America. Simpson had a gun within the automotive with him, however police finally talked him down and allowed him to return dwelling with out incident. Mobs of individuals lined the streets to catch a glimpse of the chase or see Simpson as he fled from the authorities. The chase lastly ended when Simpson pulled into his driveway at 10:57 p.m.
9:00 p.m. | NBA Finals Sport 5: Knicks vs. Rockets
With the stress of the Simpson state of affairs rising in Los Angeles, Sport 5 of the NBA Finals between the Houston Rockets and New York Knicks was getting underway throughout the nation in Madison Sq. Backyard. The beginning of the sport was regular sufficient, however about 45 minutes in, in the course of the second quarter, NBC briefly pre-empted the sport to offer updates on Simpson whereabouts, which by this level was a pursuit. Ultimately, within the third quarter, NBC pushed the sport to a small nook of the display whereas displaying the dwell police chase in the primary image. The NBA Finals may need been an afterthought to some, however the Knicks had been capable of pull out a 91-84 win behind Patrick Ewing’s 25 factors. Houston’s Hakeem Olajuwan led all scorers with 27 factors.
Sadly for the Knicks, that was the final recreation they’d win as they dropped each Video games 6 and seven in Houston to lose the sequence. Each golf equipment have reached the NBA Finals yet one more time. Houston swept the Orlando Magic the next season, and New York was defeated by the San Antonio Spurs in 1999.
11:47 p.m. | LAPD takes Simpson into custody
With a slew of stories crews and bystanders on the road outdoors Simpson’s dwelling, police lastly talked Simpson into ditching his gun, getting out of the Bronco and getting into his dwelling. Simpson then referred to as his mom and drank a glass of orange juice earlier than the LAPD took him into custody.
Simpson could be charged with the murders of his ex-wife and Goldman. The homicide trial started in January of 1995, lasted till October, and it grew to become one of the extremely publicized circumstances in American historical past. After a prolonged and controversial trial, Simpson was finally acquitted of the homicide costs.
In 1997, Simpson was discovered responsible for wrongful demise and battery in a civil lawsuit filed and was ordered to pay greater than $30 million in damages to the households of Brown Simpson and Goldman. The case has remained a focal point all through the years, and it has develop into the topic of a number of TV reveals and documentaries. On April 10, 2024, Simpson died on the age of 76 after a battle with most cancers.
