2018 was a year of firsts in the sports world
Championship droughts, unprecedented upsets among major moments
Every year has its share of unbelievable sports moments, but 2018 will go down as a year filled with unique firsts that changed many sporting landscapes.
These events will have lasting effects on franchises, athletes and fans' expectations for years to come.
Here are some of the momentous firsts from 2018.
Eagles capture 1st Super Bowl
How could anyone forget Nick Foles's unlikely MVP performance that brought the city of Philadelphia its first Super Bowl in franchise history?
Matching up against the intimidating New England Patriots and arguably the greatest quarterback of all time in Tom Brady, the Eagles captured an improbable victory — complete with the now-iconic "Philly Special" — that left football fans everywhere stunned.
Watch highlights from Philadelphia's historic win:
The ultimate bracket-busting upset
They don't call it March Madness for no reason and this year fans finally got the upset they've been waiting for.
This year will forever be known as the first time a No. 1 team was upset by a No. 16 seed in the NCAA men's Division I basketball tournament.
Few brackets had the University of Maryland, Baltimore County Retrievers beating the Virginia Cavaliers, but did anyone really think the final score would be 74-54?
Watch highlights from the biggest upset in NCAA tournament history
Inaugural women's Ballon d'Or
Not only did this year's Ballon d'Or ceremony announce a winner not named Messi or Ronaldo, it also featured the inaugural women's award.
Norway's Ada Hegerberg received the first Ballon d'Or Féminin, but her moment was unfortunately sidetracked when she was asked if she knew how to twerk by host DJ Martin Solveig.
Watch Canada's Ashley Lawrence discuss the 'twerking' incident:
Dual sport gold medallist
During the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Ester Ledecka won gold in parallel giant slalom snowboarding. What's even more impressive is she also won super-G skiing gold just seven days later.
The Czech athlete became the first woman to earn two golds in different sports at a single Winter Games. When she was asked about what people should take from her Olympic journey Ledecka said "do whatever you want."
Watch Ledecka ski to an improbable gold medal:
Olympic mixed doubles curling
Mixed doubles curling was contested as an Olympic event for the first time at the 2018 Winter Olympics. Canada's Kaitlyn Lawes and John Morris won the inaugural gold medal in the event after defeating the reigning world champions from Switzerland 10-3.
Lawes and Morris both became two-time Olympic gold medallists, having won women's and men's events respectively at previous Games. They also won Canada's only curling gold in Pyeongchang.
Watch highlights from Lawes and Morris's golden run:
Ovechkin leads Capitals to 1st Stanley Cup
Alex Ovechkin's outstanding playoff run — during which he scored a franchise-record 15 goals — ended the Washington Capitals' Stanley Cup drought that dated back to the team's debut in 1974.
Ovechkin became the first Russian captain to win the Stanley Cup in NHL history and he can also add Conn Smythe Trophy winner to his legendary resumé.
Watch Ovi hoist the Cup for the first time:
