1961 in sports

yearbox
in?=in sports
cp=19th century
c=20th century
cf=21st century
yp1=1958
yp2=1959
yp3=1960
year=1961
ya1=1962
ya2=1963
ya3=1964
dp3=1930s
dp2=1940s
dp1=1950s
d=1960s
da=0
dn1=1970s
dn2=1980s
dn3=1990s|

Athletics

Marathon

* August 12 — flagicon|NED Enschede Marathon, Netherlands
**Men's Winner: Peter Wilkinson (GBR) 2:24:12

* December 3 — flagicon|JPN Fukuoka Marathon, Japan
**Men's Winner: Pavel Kantorek (CZE) 2:22:05

=Auto Racing=

*Stock car racing:
**Marvin Panch won the Daytona 500
**NASCAR Championship - Ned Jarrett
*Indianapolis 500 - A.J. Foyt
*USAC Racing - A.J. Foyt won the driving championship
*Formula One Championship - Phil Hill of the United States
*24 hours of Le Mans: the team of Olivier Gendebien / Phil Hill win, driving a Ferrari TR61
*Rally racing - the team of Maurice Martin / Roger Bateau won the Monte Carlo Rally driving a Panhard PL17
*Drag racing - Pete Robinson won Top Eliminator at the NHRA Nationals

Baseball

* January 16: Mickey Mantle becomes the highest paid player in Major League Baseball by signing a contract that will pay him $75,000 per season.

* April 11: The former Washington Senators play their first home game in Metropolitan Stadium as the Minnesota Twins

* July 13: In his majors debut, Milwaukee Braves outfielder Mack Jones tied a post-1900 National League record by collecting three singles and a double in his first game.

* Roger Maris hits 61 home runs during the regular season, breaking Babe Ruth's mark of 60 that had stood since 1927

* October - World Series: New York Yankees win 4 games to 1 over the Cincinnati Reds. The series MVP is Whitey Ford of the Yankees.

Basketball

*NCAA Men's Basketball Championship:
**Cincinnati wins 70-65 over Ohio St.

* NBA Finals|NBA Finals:
**Boston Celtics won 4 games to 1 over the St. Louis Hawks

Billiards

*Maureen Baynton won the Women's World Amateur Billiards Championships

Boxing

*June 3 in Los Angeles, California - Emile Griffith knocked out Gaspar Ortega in the 12th round to retain the Welterweight Championship

Cycling

*Giro d'Italia won by Ercole Baldini of Italy
*Tour de France - Jacques Anquetil of France
*World Cycling Championship: Rik Van Looy of Belgium

Figure Skating

*The World Figure Skating Championships in Prague, Czechoslovakia were canceled after the entire United States team of skaters, officials, leaders and chaperones all died on February 15 in a plane crash just outside of Belgium while traveling to the competition.

=Football (American)=

*AFL Championship: Houston Oilers won 10-3 over the San Diego Chargers
*NFL Championship: Green Bay Packers won 37-0 over the New York Giants
*NCAA I-A Championship:
**University of Alabama (AP)(UPI)
**Ohio State (FWAA)

Football (Australian rules football)

Hawthorn 13.16 (94) d Footscray 7.9 (51))

=Football (Canadian)=

* Grey Cup: Winnipeg Blue Bombers win 21-14 over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats

Football (Soccer)

::"For an extensive coverage see 1961 in football (soccer)"
*England - FA Cup: Tottenham Hotspur won 2-0 over Leicester City

Golf

Men's professional
*April 6-10 - Masters Tournament - Gary Player becomes the first international golfer to win the Masters.
*June 15-17 - U.S. Open - Gene Littler
*July 11-14 - British Open - Arnold Palmer
*July 28-31 - PGA Championship - Jerry Barber
*PGA Tour money leader - Gary Player - $64,540
*Ryder Cup - United States wins 14 1/2 to 9 1/2 over Britain in team golf.Men's amateur
*British Amateur - Michael Bonallack
*U.S. Amateur - Jack NicklausWomen's professional
*Women's Western Open - Mary Lena Faulk
*LPGA Championship - Mickey Wright
*June 28-July 1 - U.S. Women's Open - Mickey Wright
*Titleholders Championship - Mickey Wright
*LPGA Tour money leader - Mickey Wright - $22,236

=Thoroughbred Horse Racing=

*Australia - Melbourne Cup - Lord Fury
*Canada - Queen's Plate - Blue Light
*France - Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe - Molvedo
*Ireland - Irish Derby Stakes - Your Highness

*English Triple Crown Races:
*#2,000 Guineas Stakes - Rockavon
*#Epsom Derby - Psidium
*#St. Leger Stakes - Aurelius

*United States Triple Crown Races:
*#May 6 - Kentucky Derby - Carry Back
*#Preakness Stakes - Carry Back
*#Belmont Stakes - Sherluck

=Harness Racing=

*United States Pacing Triple Crown races:
*#Cane Pace - Cold Front
*#Little Brown Jug - Henry T. Adios
*#Messenger Stakes - Adios Don

*United States Trotting Triple Crown races:
*#Hambletonian - Harlan Dean
*#Yonkers Trot - Duke Rodney
*#Kentucky Futurity - Duke Rodney

*Australian Inter Dominion Harness Racing Championship:
**Pacers: Massacre

Ice Hockey

*Art Ross Memorial Trophy as the NHL's leading scorer during the regular season: Bernie "Boom-Boom" Geoffrion, Montreal Canadiens

*Hart Memorial Trophy for the NHL's Most Valuable Player: Bernie "Boom-Boom" Geoffrion, Montreal Canadiens

*Stanley Cup: Chicago Black Hawks win 4 games to 2 over the Detroit Red Wings

*World Hockey Championship:
** Men's champion: Trail Smokeaters from Canada

*NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship - University of Denver Pioneers defeat St. Lawrence University Saints 12-2 in Denver, CO

Radiosport

* First European Amateur Radio Direction Finding Championships held in Stockholm, Sweden. This event was the first organized international competition in the sport.

Swimming

* August 13 — USA's Becky Collins breaks the world record in the women's 200m butterfly (long course) during a meet in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: 2:32.8.

* August 19 — US swimmer Carl Robie takes over the world record in the men's 200m butterfly (long course) from his compatriot Michael Troy at a meet in Los Angeles, California, clocking 2:12.6.

Tennis

*Grand Slam in tennis men's results:
*#Australian Open - Roy Emerson
*#French Open - Manuel Santana
*#Wimbledon championships - Rod Laver
*#US Open - Roy Emerson

*Grand Slam in tennis women's results:
*#Australian Open - Margaret Smith
*#French Open - Ann Haydon
*#Wimbledon championships - Angela Mortimer
*#US Open - Darlene Hard

*Davis Cup: Australia won 5-0 over Italy in world tennis.

Multi-sport events

* Pan Arab Games held in Casablanca, Morocco

* Second Summer Universiade held in Sofia, Bulgaria

Awards

*Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year: Roger Maris, Major League Baseball
*Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year: Wilma Rudolph, Track and field

Births

January

* January 1 — Maurits Hendriks, Dutch field hockey coach
* January 1 — Albin Killat, German diver
* January 2 — Alberto Mercado, Puerto Rican boxer
* January 2 — Carole Teffri, French field hockey player
* January 4 — John Brenner, American shot putter
* January 6 — Harriet van Ettekoven, Dutch rower
* January 7 — Enrique Campos, Venezuelan road bicycle racer
* January 11 — Graham Welbourn, Canadian swimmer
* January 13 — Joaquim Silva, Portuguese long-distance runner
* January 15 — Jerry Page, American boxer
* January 17 — Adriana Barbu, Romanian long-distance runner
* January 22 — Dan Frost, Danish track cyclist
* January 23 — Jörg Müller, Swiss track cyclist and road bicycle racer
* January 26 — Francisco Centelles, Cuban high jumper
* January 26 — Wayne Gretzky, Canadian ice hockey player
* January 31 — Miguel de Paz, Spanish field hockey player

February

* February 1 — Stan van Belkum, Dutch water polo player
* February 1 — Volker Fried, German field hockey player
* February 6 — Bernd Dittert, German cyclist
* February 11 — Mary Docter, American speed skater
* February 14 — Iginia Boccalandro, Venezuelan luger
* February 15 — Marc Benninga, Dutch field hockey player
* February 18 — Harold Arroyo, Puerto Rican boxer
* February 20 — Steve Lundquist, American swimmer
* February 21 — Davey Allison, American automobile racer (d. 1993)
* February 21 — Marívi González, Spanish field hockey player
* February 23 — Sylvie Ruegger, Canadian long-distance runner
* February 24 — Tyke Peacock, American high jumper
* February 28 — János Váradi, Hungarian boxer
* February 28 — Biljana Petrović, Croatian high jumper

March

* March 2 — Ken Goodwin, Canadian field hockey goalkeeper
* March 4 — René Klaassen, Dutch field hockey defender
* March 4 — Ray Mancini, Italian-American boxer
* March 8 — Federico Moreira, Uruguayan road bicycle racer and track cyclist
* March 10 — Mitch Gaylord, American gymnast
* March 10 — Bobby Petrino, American college football coach
* March 10 — Ben Spijkers, Dutch judoka
* March 12 — Mary Nevill, British field hockey player
* March 21 — Daniel Castellani, Argentine volleyball player
* March 21 — Lothar Matthäus, German football player
* March 24 — Maureen O’Toole, American water polo player
* March 24 — Pat Turner, Canadian rower

April

* April 5 — Jan Tops, Dutch equestrian
* April 6 — Brenda Stauffer, American field hockey player
* April 15 — Tiina Lillak, Finnish javelin thrower
* April 19 — Kirsten Emmelmann, East German track and field athlete
* April 20 — Yelena Didilenko-Korban, Soviet track and field sprinter
* April 21 — Ronald Florijn, Dutch rower
* April 23 — Bryan Carbis, British ice speed skater
* April 23 — Gilberto Passani, Italian volleyball player
* April 30 — Irina Bogachova, Kyrgyz long-distance runner

May

* May 2 — Ronnie Baxter, English darts player
* May 2 — Peter Doohan, Australian tennis player
* May 4 — Luis Herrera, Colombian cyclist
* May 7 — Diana Elliott, British high jumper
* May 8 — Andrea Pollack, East German butterfly swimmer
* May 10 — Viktor Deputatov, Soviet field hockey player
* May 13 — Dennis Rodman, American NBA player
* May 15 — Isidro Rico, Mexican marathon runner
* May 20 — Adauto Domingues, Brazilian middle-distance runner
* May 21 — Viktor Kuznetsov, Soviet backstroke swimmer
* May 24 — Trevor Porritt, Canadian field hockey player
* May 27 — Jill Sterkel, American freestyle swimmer

June

* June 1 — Werner Günthör, Swiss track and field athlete
* June 3 — Peter Vidmar, American gymnast
* June 5 — Ramesh Krishnan, Indian tennis player
* June 9 — Andreas Berger, Austrian track and field sprinter
* June 14 — Mihai Cioc, Romanian judoka
* June 16 — Marjolein Eijsvogel, Dutch field hockey forward
* June 16 — Stuart Grimshaw, New Zealand field hockey player
* June 23 — Stanley Floyd, American track and field sprinter
* June 24 — Juan Arnoldo Cayasso, Costa Rican soccer player
* June 26 — Greg LeMond, American cyclist, three-time Tour de France winner

July

* July 1 — Carl Lewis, American athletics legend, nine-time Olympic gold medalist
* July 7 — Steve Brace, Welsh long-distance runner
* July 7 — Chun Chil-Sung, South Korean boxer
* July 17 — Blair Horn, Canadian rower
* July 20 — Ria Visser, Dutch ice speed skater
* July 22 — Patrick McDonough, American track cyclist
* July 24 — Brian McMahon, Canadian coxswain
* July 26 — Danie Visser, South African tennis player
* July 28 — Alexander Kurlovitch, Soviet weightlifter
* July 28 — Yannick Dalmas, French Formula One driver

August

* August 1 — Peter Evans, Australian breaststroke swimmer
* August 3 — Ken Wark, Australian field hockey player
* August 12 — Peter Szmidt, Canadian swimmer
* August 16 — Sandy Lister, British field hockey player
* August 19 — Danuta Bartoszek, Polish-Canadian long-distance runner
* August 20 — Lizanne Bussieres, Canadian long-distance runner
* August 23 — Eloína Echevarría, Cuban long jumper
* August 24 — Ingrid Berghmans, Belgian judoka
* August 29 — Carsten Fischer, German field hockey player
* August 29 — Armando Martínez, Cuban boxer
* August 30 — Salvatore Todisco, Italian boxer

eptember

* September 1 — Karen Smyers, American triathlete
* September 2 — Carlos Valderrama, Colombian football player
* September 3 — Nick Brown, British tennis player
* September 6 — Akira Kuroiwa, Japanese ice speed skater
* September 7 — Deb Covey, Canadian field hockey player
* September 7 — Donald Curry, American boxer
* September 10 — Jörg and Uwe Freimuth, East German track and field athletes
* September 15 — Dan Marino, American football player
* September 18 — Denis Lambert, Canadian boxer
* September 20 — Juan de la Garza, Mexican javelin thrower
* September 24 — Nancy Garapick, Canadian backstroke swimmer
* September 25 — Eduardo Martínez, Argentine beach volleyball player
* September 25 — Frankie Randall, American boxer
* September 28 — Yordanka Donkova, Bulgarian hurdling athlete
* September 28 — Shannon Smith, Canadian freestyle swimmer
* September 30 — Hidde Kruize, Dutch field hockey striker

October

* October 2 — Nico Verhoeven, Dutch cyclist
* October 9 — Osmiro de Souza Silva, Brazilian long-distance runner
* October 10 — Ferdinando De Giorgi, Italian volleyball player and coach
* October 10 — Gary Hurring, New Zealand swimmer
* October 10 — Michael Omondi, Kenyan field hockey midfielder (d. 2008)
* October 11 — Steve Young, American football player
* October 12 — Diego García, Spanish long-distance runner
* October 15 — Jon Uriarte, Argentine volleyball player
* October 17 — Vaclavas Kidykas, Lithuanian discus thrower
* October 21 — Pablo Arraya, Peruvian tennis player
* October 21 — Douglas Partie, American volleyball player
* October 21 — Manuel Vilchez, Venezuelan boxer
* October 22 — Barbara Potter, American tennis player
* October 25 — Alison Webb, Canadian judoka
* October 26 — Manuel Estiarte, Spanish water polo player
* October 28 — Biaggio Chianese, Italian boxer

November

* November 4 — Catharina Neelissen, Dutch rower
* November 10 — Rob Smith, Australia-born Canadian field hockey player
* November 12 — Nadia Comaneci, Romanian-born gymnast
* November 12 — Enzo Francéscoli, Uruguayan football (soccer) player
* November 28 — Salvatore Bettiol, Italian long-distance runner
* November 30 — Nicolette Hellemans, Dutch rower

December

* December 2 — Kim Hagger, English track and field athlete
* December 8 — Stephane Bonneau, Canadian tennis player
* December 9 — Kerstin Brandt, East German high jumper
* December 10 — Mark McKoy, Canadian hurdler
* December 13 — Ranza Clark, Canadian middle distance runner
* December 19 — Reggie White, American football player
* December 19 — Juan Martin Coggi, Argentine boxer
* December 20 — Freddie Spencer, American motorcycle racer
* December 27 — Tomi Poikolainen, Finnish archer
* December 27 — Harbhajan Rai, Indian-born Canadian field hockey player
* December 31 — Shelley Fruin, New Zealand cricketer

Deaths

*February 15 — Bradley Lord, U.S. men's figure skating champion
* February 15 — Maribel Vinson-Owen, U.S. figure skating champion & coach
* February 15 — Maribel Yerxa Owen, U.S. figure skating champion
* February 15 — Laurence Richon Owen, U.S. figure skating champion
* June 23 — Richard Gunn (90), English boxer (b. 1871)
*July 17 — Ty Cobb, American Major League Baseball player
* August 1 — Adrie Voorting (30), Dutch road bicycle and track cyclist (b. 1931)
* November 25 — Hubert van Innis (95), Belgian archer (b. 1866)
* December 3 — Pat O'Hara Wood (70), Australian tennis player (b. 1891)