THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY: 1/26

1913 – Jim Thorpe relinquishes his Olympic gold medals won in 1912 after it is discovered he played professional baseball.

1951 – Mel Ott and Jimmie Foxx are elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

1960 – The Oakland Raiders join the AFL.

1960 – Pete Rozelle is elected as commissioner of the NFL.

1985 – Wayne Gretzky, then with the Edmonton Oilers, scores his 50th goal of the season in just his 49th game.

1986 – The Bears defeat the Patriots 46-10 to win Super Bowl XX. Chicago defensive end Richard Dent is named the game’s MVP.

1991 – Houston Rockets guard Vernon Maxwell becomes the fifth player in NBA history to score 30 points in a quarter.

1991 – Jan Stenerud becomes the first football player who only played kicker to make the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 

1995 – With over 1.2 million fan votes to his name, Grant Hill becomes the first NBA rookie to lead all players in All-Star voting. 

1997 – The Packers defeat the New England Patriots 35-21 to win Super Bowl XXXI. Kick returner Desmond Howard is named MVP after returning a kick for a touchdown.

1997 – Pittsburgh Penguins center Mario Lemieux ties an NHL record with four goals in the third period. Its his 39th career hat trick and 13th four goal game, tying him with Wayne Gretzky and Mike Bossy for the most in NHL history.

2003 – The Tampa Bay Buccaneers rout the Oakland Raiders 48-21 to win Super Bowl XXXVII.

2020 – Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant is killed in a helicopter crash in southern California.