Memorable Olympic Highlight of the Day. Day 2

Rulon Gardner vs. Alexander Karelin at the 2000 Games in Sydney. Karelin hadn't lost a competition match in 13 years prior to this match. He hadn't even allowed his opponent to score a single point in a match for 6 years. He is generally considered to be the best and most feared Greco-Roman Wrestler in the history of the sport.

In their only previous match, Karelin had dominated Gardner, winning 5-0 at the 1997 World Championships. It was such a huge upset that if you listen to the match commentary in the video they actually compare Gardner winning to the 1980 "Miracle on Ice" Hockey upset.

Let's be honest. It's a pretty boring match. For the most part they just stand there and jostle back and forth. But everyone likes to root for the underdog and Gardner was as big an underdog as you'll ever come across.

I think my favorite part of this clip is towards the end you hear a woman (Gardner's wife perhaps?) shouting into a cell phone "He won, he won, call everybody". That part totally gives me goosebumps even 8 years later.

To me this is what the Olympics are all about. Most of us had never seen a Greco-Roman Wrestling match in our lives prior to this event and Rulon Gardner was just another farmer from Idaho. But in 5 minutes time he captured our imagination and created a memory we can all share. That's why it's fun to watch the little events. You never know when history is going to happen.