C’mon, 2017, you owe us!
2016 was an amazing year in sports.
The Chicago Cubs won their first World Series in 108 years, beating the Cleveland Indians in an historic Game 7. The Indians haven’t won a World Series since 1948, but Cleveland earlier ended its own championship drought when the NBA’s Cavaliers rebounded to defeat the record-setting Golden State Warriors in dramatic fashion.
Ottawa won a Grey Cup for the first time since 1976. Villanova won the NCAA men’s basketball crown with a buzzer-beating three-pointer and the Saskatchewan Rush won a National Lacrosse League title following its first season in Saskatoon. Serena Williams in tennis. Brooke Henderson in golf. Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps dominated the Olympics in Rio de Janiero, Penny Oleksiak and Andre de Grasse notwithstanding.
Sports fans would love another year with that much excitement.
But 2016 also claimed Gordie Howe, Muhammad Ali, Arnold Palmer and Joe McKnight. In sporting parlance, as great as the year was, our losses outweighed the victories.