Happy birthday, Colorado — and Colorado sports.

Leading into the state’s 150th birthday Aug. 1, The Denver Gazette has partnered with the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame to publicize the definitive list of Colorado’s top 150 sports moments.

Colorado Sports Hall of Fame historian Dave Plati and a committee of 10 compiled and will release the list every week until the No. 1 moment on July 31. Plati and Broncos icon Jim Saccomano will unveil the list weekly on a Colorado Sports Hall of Fame podcast at coloradosports.org/podcast/.

Today’s top moment in Colorado sports history:

No. 130

Jan. 29, 1906

The National Western Stock Show was born out of a few stock fairs and exhibits. It was originally called the Western Live Stock Show and was held in the stock yards in North Denver. Three local businessmen were credited for organizing the initial gathering of no less than six associations: Elias Ammons and George Ballantine of the Denver Union Stock Yard Company and Fred P. Johnson (publisher of the Record-Stockman). When all was said and done, 351 cattle, sheep and hogs were shown over the six-day event. One of the early precursors to the National Western was on June 30, 1874, when The Denver Blood Stock Association’s Blood Stock Fair opened. It was five days of showing thoroughbred cattle divided into five groupings of purebred cattle: Shorthorns, Herefords, Devons, Jerseys & Ayrshires and Galloways. A purse offered $15,000 in prizes.

—Dave Plati, Colorado Sports Hall of Fame historian