30 January 1933, Germany. Adolf Hitler, the leader of the Nazi Party, is appointed chancellor of Germany and aims to lead the German “master race” to victory in the “racial struggle” against those deemed as “inferior” peoples, especially the Jews. The German medical profession plays a central role in shaping and implementing many Nazi policies, …
The 12th of March, 1938. German troops cross the border with Austria and invade the country without firing a single shot. They are not met with armed resistance, but with cheers and flowers. While thousands of Austrians turn out to greet Adolf Hitler as he travels first to Linz and then on to Vienna, terrified…
18 September 1931. Japan, seeking raw materials to fuel its growing industries, invades Manchuria – an industrial area located in Northeastern China known for its rich mineral and coal reserves. In the following years, there will be various “incidents”, or armed clashes of a limited nature between the Empire of the Rising Sun and the…
The early hours of 15 March 1939. German troops begin crossing the borders of the Czech lands, advancing into Bohemia and Moravia without meeting organised resistance. Columns of Wehrmacht – the German Army- move along main roads toward key cities, while armoured vehicles and motorised formations enter Prague before dawn. The occupation follows directly from…
Berlin, January 30th, 1933. A sunset chillingly silent. As Adolf Hitler set pen to paper to sign the document appointing him chancellor, the German sky was draped in a strange serenity. Every omen of impending conflict was absent. Yet within that silence of ink and paper, the era of human rights had become clinically dead….
Imagine witnessing a crime live on national television where before the eyes of millions, the most dangerous man on the planet drops dead. Yet not a single camera, none of the thousands of spectators in the arena, nor even the killer himself can find the murder weapon. We are not at Madison Square Garden or…
October 26th, 1970. Muhammad Ali returned to boxing after three and a half years in exile, banned for refusing to go to Vietnam. His opponent that night was Jerry Quarry, a tough Irishamean fighter from California. Ali destroyed Quarry in three rounds, cutting his face so badly the referee had to stop the fight. 26…
On October 30th, 1974, at exactly 4:00 in the morning, in the stuffy, humidity soaked locker room of a stadium in Kenshasa, Zire, something was happening that was destined to remain forever behind the scenes of Sports Chronicles. In this room, the air did not smell of warming ointment or leather gloves, but of a…
The microphone crackled as Big Bill Henderson’s hand gripped it like a weapon. February 14th, 1975, Madison Square Garden was packed with 300 boxing legends for the ABC Sports Awards. But Big Bill Henderson, the heavyweight champion of the 1950s, had other plans. Ladies and gentlemen, Bill’s voice boomed through the speakers. I’ve been asked…
Evander Holyfield had beaten every heavyweight alive and was preparing to become undisputed champion of the world. When he told Muhammad Ali in a 1990 Atlanta charity event that Ali’s era was over and his had begun, every person in that room expected Ali to respond with the wit that had defined his career. Instead,…
End of content
End of content