1920 Sports

Sports Section

The decade of the 1920's is often referred to as the Golden Age of Sports. This was a time when America and the world wanted to put the memory of the Great War behind them and enjoy life.

Man of War on his way to another Victory

We start the things off with perhaps the most impressive athlete of the Decade. Like Babe Ruth is to baseball so is Man O' War is to horse racing. He was so good that it was hard to find anyone to race him. Although he did not win the Triple Crown it was only because he did not race in the Kentucky Derby. He won the other two legs of the crown by a large margin. His final race of his career was in a match race against the first ever Triple Crown winner Sir Barton.

Red Grange: All American Football Player

When you mention football in the 20's the first name to come to mind has to be Red Grange. He is one of those players that most of us probably have known his name as long as we have known football. Red Grange became a household name when he scored 5 touchdowns against Michigan. However his biggest accomplishment was probably establishing the pro game. He signed with the Bears and the team went on a 12 day a 8 game tour. When they got to New York 72,000 fans showed up to see Grange and the Bears take on the Giants.

Bill Tilden: Tennis Pro

Tilden is probably the first nationally known tennis star in the US. Big Bill as he was known won 10 majors, including Wimbledon at the age of 37. When you mention the sports stars of the decade Tilden name is always there. He had powerful game, with hard serves and ground strokes. He preferred to play at the baseline. Although he won at Wimbledon 3 times and won seven US titles. He never was able to win the French.