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Get ready for 2016 with these 10 can't-miss sporting events.
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Mark your calendars, Pittsburgh: Top 10 can't-miss sporting events in 2016

Post-Gazette

Mark your calendars, Pittsburgh: Top 10 can't-miss sporting events in 2016

We did it, Pittsburgh.

We made it through another year of sports fandom in the City of Champions. We’ve had our ups (another Pirates postseason berth), our downs (Pitt missing the NCAA basketball tournament), our bumps (Penguins losing in the first round of the playoffs) and our bruises (Ben Roethlisberger injuries).

But you know what? This city prides itself on overcoming adversity and building toward the future.

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That’s why, in lieu of the usual end-of-year list, the Post-Gazette sports department is embracing that optimism and looking ahead to the year to come. There’s plenty to look forward to in the Pittsburgh sporting world in the next 366 days (leap year!), but we’ll stick with 10. The list: 

Penguins center Evgeni Malkin is congratulated by teammate Patric Hornqvist  after his goal during the third period of their victory Thursday night over the the Red Wings in Detroit. The Penguins defeated the Red Wings, 5-2. (AP Photo/)
James Hawkins
Penguins rally to beat the Red Wings, 5-2


Jamie Dixon (Matt Freed/Post-Gazette)

No. 10: Selection Sunday (March 13)

Will Pitt coach Jamie Dixon be on the hot seat if the Panthers fail to make the NCAA basketball tournament again? Will Pittsburgh’s own darling coaches Archie (Dayton) and Sean (Arizona) Miller be dancing yet again? Or better yet, will Andy Toole guide Robert Morris back to the tourney -- and maybe pull an upset this time? Whatever the storylines, it’s sure to be another March full of madness.

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T-shirt promoting boxing on the Clemente Bridge (Post-Gazette)

No. 9: Boxing on the Bridge (July 30)

The biggest question here was whether this event will actually happen, and it seems to be moving in the right direction for a July 30 showcase. The idea: have a boxing match and baseball game between Pittsburghers and Cubans on and around the Roberto Clemente Bridge to promote and grow relations between the U.S. and Cuba. As Roberto Clemente Jr. said: “The bridge will connect Pittsburgh to the globe.” Setting politics aside, how cool would it be to have a boxing match on the Clemente Bridge? It would likely look something like this, but with more violence and fewer giant inflatable pickles.


The 2015 Pittsburgh Marathon begins (Bob Donaldson/Post-Gazette)

No. 8: Pittsburgh Marathon (May 1)

Lace up your running shoes and prepare for the eighth Pittsburgh Marathon, set for May 1. The 2016 course hasn’t been set yet, but it should be similar to the 2015 course, which can be seen in the official 2015 Pittsburgh Marathon program here (PDF). The Post-Gazette will be there in full force yet again, covering the race from every angle.


Tom Brady hoists the Lombardi Trophy after the Patriots won Super Bowl XLIX last season (Brian Snyder/Reuters)

No. 7: Super Bowl 50 (Feb. 7)

As Gene Collier wrote in Monday’s Post-Gazette, it’s looking more and more like the Steelers won’t be in the playoffs, much less playing for the Vince Lombardi Trophy this year in Santa Clara, Calif., but that doesn’t mean the big game isn’t worth watching. Will Cam Newton and the Panthers (14-1 right now) finish a strong season as NFL champions? Will Coldplay provide enough halftime entertainment or will it be a snooze? Tune in Feb. 7 for all that Super Bowl 50 (they ditched the Roman Numerals this season) has to offer.


The Olympic rings are illuminated with pyrotechnics as they are raised above the stadium during the Opening Ceremony at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. (Jae C. Hong/Associated Press)

No. 6: Olympics in Rio de Janeiro (Aug. 5-21)

As is the case with most Olympics, the Rio de Janeiro games have some controversy hanging over them. This time, it’s Brazil’s filthy, sewage-filled water that open-water swimmers and sailors will have to traverse. This year’s list of Pittsburgh-area Olympians isn’t known yet (see the 2012 Olympians here), but Women’s World Cup star and Pine-Richland alumna Meghan Klingenberg is a safe bet to make the trip. Klingenberg was an alternate at the 2012 London Olympics but figures to contribute much more this year. The Rio games run from Aug. 5-21.


Clairton celebrates its 2015 WPIAL football championship. The Bears are slated to remain in Class A in 2016, but they could play up a classification or two in order to increase competition. (Matt Freed/Post-Gazette)

No. 5: Six WPIAL championships

This one will take some getting used to. The PIAA voted to expand to six classifications (from four) in football, boys and girls basketball, baseball and softball in November, meaning there will be six WPIAL football championships. A few other sports also have expanded classifications for next year. This raises the question of where and when the football championships will be played. Will they be split between two days? Will all of the games still be played at Heinz Field? One potential alternate site if Heinz Field is out of the question for all six games is Highmark Stadium at Station Square. Another one that would add plenty of intrigue and fanfare? PNC Park.


Starling Marte celebrates a walk-off home run against the Reds in October. (Peter Diana/Post-Gazette)

No. 4: Pirates opening day (April 3)

Sure, the Pirates’ 2015 season ended on a sour note, but a strong overall year that included a 98-64 regular-season record. Their reward in the 2016 season is playing host to the MLB’s opening game, against the division-rival St. Louis Cardinals at 1:05 p.m. April 3 at PNC Park. The Pirates will be able to soak up the spotlight that comes with kicking off the season and then again May 30 and 31 against the Miami Marlins at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Yes, the National League Central Division should be ultra-competitive again this season, and yes, Pittsburgh’s own Neil Walker is no longer on the team, but relax and enjoy the beginning of the season with two cool events.


Sidney Crosby raises the world hockey championships trophy in May after Canada defeated Russia for the title. (Jonathan Nackstrand/Getty Images)

No. 3: World Cup of Hockey (Sept. 17-Oct. 1)

Pittsburgh lost a bid to play host to the 2018 junior hockey world championships earlier this month, but it got a nice consolation prize less than two weeks later when it was announced Consol Energy Center will be the site of two 2016 World Cup of Hockey exhibition games Sept. 14. The second game of the day? Sidney Crosby and Canada against Evgeni Malkin and Russia. The teams competing in the two-week tournament from Sept. 17 through Oct. 1 are Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, Russia, Sweden, USA, Team Europe and Team North America. Team North America will consist of players from the United States and Canada who will be age 23 or younger as of Oct. 1 -- and the same goes for Team Europe.


Pitt and Penn State, which last played a football game in 2000 in Three Rivers Stadium, will play each other each year from 2016 through 2019. (Post-Gazette)

No. 2: Pitt-Penn State rivalry (Sept. 10)

Way back in 2011, Pitt and Penn State announced they would renew a rivalry dormant since 2000 when they will face off Saturday, Sept. 10, at Heinz Field. And with Pitt losing in the Military Bowl Monday and Penn State set to play Jan. 2 in the TaxSlayer Bowl against Georgia, there’s not much left to do but wait for the highly anticipated non-conference clash, which will run through at least 2019. Start saving for tickets, talking smack and preparing for what should be a pretty fun renewed rivalry.


Angel Cabrera tips his cap to the crowd on the 18th hole in the U.S. Open June 17, 2007, at Oakmont Country Club (John Heller/Post-Gazette)

No. 1: U.S. Open (June 13-19)

From June 13-19, the U.S. Open will bring the world’s best golfers to Oakmont Country Club for the first time since 2007, when Angel Cabrera won the event by one stroke over Jim Furyk and Tiger Woods. Tickets have been on sale since June, so make sure to snag one and wade through the crowds to catch a glimpse of Jordan Spieth, Jason Day and Rory McIlroy, who are all members of golf’s new wave of stars who have helped lift the sport out of the post-Tiger Woods rut it had been in. Not a fan of the new stars? Check out the honorary co-chairmen of the event: Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus. Oakmont removed about 4,000 trees on the course to improve visibility on holes farther from the clubhouse, but otherwise the course remains much the same as in 2007. Spieth took home $1.8 million for winning the 2015 U.S. Open so this year’s event figures to pay out at least that much. Anything with that much money on the line is appointment viewing.

Do you agree with our list? Vote for your most-anticipated events in the poll below:

Alex Iniguez is the Post-Gazette's Associate Sports Editor for Digital. Follow him on Twitter @alexiniguez.

First Published: December 29, 2015, 6:29 p.m.

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