Today in sports history: Aug. 8
In 1984, Carl Lewis sets the Olympic record in the 200 meters with a 19.80 clocking. See more sports moments from this date:
1982: Ray Floyd wins PGA championship by three shots
1982 — Ray Floyd, who shot a record 63 in the opening round, wins the PGA championship by three shots over Lanny Wadkins.
1984: Carl Lewis sets Olympic record in 200 meters with a 19.80 clocking
1984 — Carl Lewis sets the Olympic record in the 200 meters with a 19.80 clocking.
1992: The Dream Team picks up its gold medal
1992 — The Dream Team picks up its gold medal and Carl Lewis anchors a world-record 400-meter relay, winning his eighth gold medal in three Olympics. The U.S. basketball team beats Croatia 117-85, with the 32-point margin of victory the smallest of the Games. In the 400, Mike Marsh, Leroy Burrell, Dennis Mitchell and Lewis set a world record of 37.40 seconds. Steve Lewis anchors another world-record as the Americans won the 1,600 relay by nearly half the length of a football field. The team of Andrew Valmon, Quincy Watts, Michael Johnson and Lewis ran the 1,600 in 2:55.74.
2006: Roger Goodell is chosen as NFL’s next commissioner
2006 — Roger Goodell is chosen as the NFL’s next commissioner. Favored for months to get the job, he is unanimously elected by the league’s 32 owners on the fifth ballot.
2010: Tina Thompson scores 23 points to become the WNBA’s all-time scoring leader
2010 — Los Angeles Sparks forward Tina Thompson scores 23 points to become the WNBA’s all-time scoring leader in a 92-83 loss to the San Antonio Silver Stars. She surpasses Lisa Leslie’s career total of 6,263 points. Thompson is the last of the original WNBA players.
2012: Misty May-Treanor, Kerri Walsh Jennings become first 3-time gold medalists in beach volleyball
2012 — Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings of the United States become the first three-time gold medalists in Olympic beach volleyball history. The duo beat Jennifer Kessy and April Ross 21-16, 21-16 in the all-American final, extending their Olympic winning streak to 21 matches.
2012: Brittney Reese becomes first U.S. woman to win Olympic long jump since Jackie Joyner-Kersee
2012 — Brittney Reese wins the long jump, becoming the first U.S. woman to win the Olympic long jump since Jackie Joyner-Kersee in 1988. Caster Semenya makes her Olympic debut three years after being forced to undergo gender tests, finishing second in her 800 heat.
2015: Katie Ledecky breaks own world record in 800 freestyle by 3.61 seconds
2015 — Katie Ledecky ends her world swimming championships in spectacular style, lowering her own world record by 3.61 seconds in the 800-meter freestyle for her fifth gold medal. The 18-year-old American completes a sweep of the 200, 400, 800 and 1,500 freestyles in Kazan, Russia. She was the anchor leg on the victorious 4x200 free relay, too.
The European climate monitoring organization has made it official: July 2023 was Earth’s hottest month on record by a wide margin. Here's more on that, plus today's top stories, celebrity birthdays and a look back at this day in history.