How a Major Winter Weather Event Led to the Invention of Basketball

When you settle in to watch this weekend's Final Four, be sure to give thanks to Mother Nature. New information is revealing how a blizzard led to the invention of the sport of basketball. Read on for the details about how a monster winter storm inspired what is now one of the most popular sports in the world.

A Classic East Coast Winter Storm Led to the Invention of Basketball

Despite it being the beginning of April, March Madness is still in full swing. The much-anticipated NCAA men's basketball Final Four will be contested on Saturday, April 4. The winners of these two semifinals will then go head-to-head on Monday night for the national championship.

A recent discovery is shedding light on how the invention of the basketball came about.  Much has been documented about how Dr. James Naismith first invented the game while working as a physical education instructor at Springfield College in Massachusetts. Naismith later famously brought the game to the University of Kansas, the current home of the original rules of basketball.

Dr. Michael Zogry, a professor with the University of Kansas Religious Studies Department, has spent a considerable amount of time looking into Naismith's history. When conducting his research, Zogry discovered that nobody had ever uncovered audio recordings of Naismith. While there have been plenty of film clips showing Naismith in the early days of the sport, none of these videos have sound.

Zogry took it upon himself to look for audio clips of Naismith, leading him to learn that the legendary coach once appeared on a popular national radio program in 1939. Zogry recently detailed how he worked with his research assistant to try to find the radio recording. While the radio station that originally aired the broadcast no longer had the recording, Zogry found the clips at the U.S. Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.

The recording featured a detail about the first basketball game that had gone largely unnoticed. Keep in mind that prior to the invention of basketball, the only sports played during the winter were gymnastics, calisthenics, and similar recreational activities.

As an educator and athlete himself, Naismith understood the importance of staying active during the winter months, particularly in a cold-weather state such as Massachusetts. Naismith ended up coming up with a new sport that would keep his students occupied as a classic New England blizzard raged outside in December of 1891.