1908 in sports

23 September — the Merkle incident, which finally costs New York Giants the NL pennant
Major League Baseball's lowest scoring season including the current record for fewest runs scored in a season by one team: 372 by St. Louis Cardinals
Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) founded

Boxing

Events

4 July — Battling Nelson recovers his World Lightweight Championship from Joe Gans with a 17th-round knockout at Colma, California
World Middleweight Champion Stanley Ketchel loses his title on 7 September to Billy Papke by a 12th-round technical knockout at Vernon, California, but regains it on 26 November at Colma, California, where he knocks out Papke in the 11th round
October – Mike "Twin" Sullivan vacates the World Welterweight Championship which remains unresolved until 1914
26 December — Jack Johnson becomes the first African American World Heavyweight Champion by defeating Tommy Burns at Sydney, Australia. Johnson holds the title until 1915.

Lineal world champions^[2]

World Heavyweight Championship – Tommy Burns → Jack Johnson
World Light Heavyweight Championship – vacant
World Middleweight Championship – Stanley Ketchel → Billy Papke → Stanley Ketchel
World Welterweight Championship – Mike "Twin" Sullivan → vacant
World Lightweight Championship – Joe Gans → Battling Nelson
World Featherweight Championship – Abe Attell
World Bantamweight Championship – Jimmy Walsh

Canadian Football

Goals during play are reduced to 3 points
Interprovincial Rugby Football Union - Hamilton Tigers
Ontario Rugby Football Union - Toronto Athletic Club
Manitoba Rugby Football Union - St John's
Intercollegiate Rugby Football Union - University of Toronto
Saskatchewan Rugby Football Union - Regina YMCA
Edmonton defeats Calgary to win the Alberta Rugby Football League
Dominion Championship - Hamilton defeats Toronto Varsity 21-17

Cricket

England

County Championship – Yorkshire
Minor Counties Championship – Staffordshire
Most runs – Tom Hayward 2337 @ 45.82 (HS 175)
Most wickets – Colin Blythe 197 @ 16.88 (BB 8–83)
Wisden Cricketers of the Year^[3] – Walter Brearley, Lord Hawke, Jack Hobbs, Alan Marshal, John Newstead

Australia

Sheffield Shield – Victoria
Most runs – Joe Hardstaff senior 1360 @ 52.30 (HS 135)
Most wickets – Jack Saunders and Jack Crawford 66 apiece

India

Bombay Triangular – Parsees

New Zealand

Plunket Shield – Auckland

South Africa

Currie Cup – Western Province

West Indies

Inter-Colonial Tournament – not contested

Cycling

Tour de France

Lucien Petit-Breton (France) wins the 6th Tour de France^[4]

Field hockey

Olympic Games (Men's Competition)

Gold Medal – England
Silver Medal – Ireland
Bronze Medals – Scotland & Wales

Figure skating

Events

Inaugural International Skating Union (ISU) Championships for pair skating is held at Saint Petersburg
Figure skating is held at the 1908 Summer Olympics and is the first winter sport to feature at the Olympics — 16 years before the inaugural Winter Games is held

World Figure Skating Championships

World Men's Champion – Ulrich Salchow (Sweden)
World Women's Champion – Lily Kronberger (Hungary)
World Pairs Champions – Anna Hübler and Heinrich Burger (Germany)

1908 Summer Olympics

Men's individual – Ulrich Salchow (Sweden)
Men's special figures – Nikolai Panin (Russia)
Women's individual – Madge Syers (Great Britain)
Pairs – Anna Hübler and Heinrich Burger (Germany)

Golf

Major tournaments

British Open – James Braid^[5]
US Open – Fred McLeod

Other tournaments

British Amateur – Edward Lassen
US Amateur – Jerome Travers

Horse racing

England

Australia

Melbourne Cup – Lord Nolan

Canada

King's Plate – Seismic

Ireland

Irish Grand National – Lord Rivers
Irish Derby Stakes – Wild Bouquet

USA

Ice hockey

Events

January 2 — The first All-Star game in ice hockey history is held at Montreal to benefit the widow of Hod Stuart, killed in an off-season swimming accident.

Stanley Cup

January 9–13 – Montreal Wanderers defeat the Ottawa Victorias 9–3, 13–1 (22–4) in a two-game challenge to retain the Stanley Cup.
March 7 — Montreal Wanderers win the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association (ECAHA) championship for the third year in a row and successfully defend the Stanley Cup.
March 10–12 – Montreal Wanderers defeat Winnipeg Maple Leafs 11–5, 9–3 (20–8) in a two-game challenge.
March 14 – Montreal Wanderers defeat Toronto Professionals 6–4 in a one-game challenge to retain the Stanley Cup.

Lacrosse

Events

Lacrosse is played as an Olympic sport for the second and last time (the first having been in 1904). Canada defeats Great Britain: they are the only two teams to compete.

Motorsport

Olympic Games

1908 Summer Olympics

The 1908 Summer Olympics takes place in London
Great Britain wins the most medals (145) and the most gold medals (56)

Rowing

The Boat Race

4 April — Cambridge wins the 65th Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race

Rugby league

Events

Hunslet becomes the first team to achieve the celebrated "All Four Cups" feat

England

Championship – Hunslet
Challenge Cup final – Hunslet 14–0 Hull F.C. at Fartown Ground, Huddersfield
Lancashire League Championship – Oldham
Yorkshire League Championship – Hunslet
Lancashire County Cup – Oldham 16–9 Broughton Rangers
Yorkshire County Cup – Hunslet 17–0 Halifax

Australia

Professional rugby league begins in Australia with the formation of the New South Wales Rugby League
South Sydney wins the first Australian championship, defeating Eastern Suburbs 14–12 in the final
First Australian national rugby league team embarks on the inaugural 1908–09 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain

Rugby union

Home Nations Championship

26th Home Nations Championship series is won by Wales
As Wales also defeats France in a 1908 non-championship match, its team is retrospectively regarded as a Grand Slam winner