1971 in sports

Years in sports:	1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974
Centuries:	19th century · 20th century · 21st century
Decades:	1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s
Years:	1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974

Athletics

Marathon

• August 5 — Pan American Games Marathon, Cali, Colombia
  • Men's Winner: Frank Shorter (USA) 2:22:47

• August 15 — European Championships Marathon, Helsinki, Finland
  • Men's Winner: Karel Lismont (BEL) 2:13:09

• September 4 — Enschede Marathon, Netherlands
  • Men's Winner: Bernie Allen (ENG) 2:16:54

• October 17 — Mediterranean Games Marathon, İzmir, Turkey
  • Men's Winner: Gianbattista Bassi (ITA) 2:23:33

• December 5 — Fukuoka Marathon, Japan
  • Men's Winner: Frank Shorter (USA) 2:12:51

Auto Racing

• Stock car racing:
  • Richard Petty won the Daytona 500
  • NASCAR Championship - Richard Petty
• Indianapolis 500 - Al Unser, Sr
• USAC Racing - Joe Leonard
• Formula One Championship - Jackie Stewart of Great Britain
• 24 hours of Le Mans: the team of Helmut Marko / Gijs van Lennep won, driving a Porsche 917
• Rally racing - the team of Ove Andersson / David Stone won the Monte Carlo Rally driving an Alpine-Renault A110
• Drag racing:
  • The NHRA announces the first "Grandnational" in Canada at Sanair International Drag Strip, near Montreal, Quebec.
  • Hank Johnson won Top Fuel at the NHRA Supernationals.

Baseball

• World Series: Pittsburgh Pirates won 4 games to 3 over the Baltimore Orioles. Game four was the first night game in World Series history.

Basketball

• NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship:
  • UCLA wins 68-62 over Villanova

• NBA Finals:
  • Milwaukee Bucks win 4 games to 0 over the Baltimore Bullets

Boxing

• March 8 - Joe Frazier defeats Muhammad Ali in the first of three epic bouts. Frazier defends the World Heavyweight Championship in a star-studded Madison Square Garden.

Cricket

• 5 January, Melbourne - First one-day international, played bion after a Test match abandoned because of rain. Australia won by 5 wickets.

Cycling

• Giro d'Italia won by Gosta Pettersson of Sweden
• Tour de France - Eddy Merckx of Belgium
• World Cycling Championship: Eddy Merckx of Belgium

Field Hockey

• Men's World Cup in Barcelona, Spain
  • Gold Medal: Pakistan
  • Silver Medal: Spain
  • Bronze Medal: India

• Pan American Games (Men's Competition) in Cali, Colombia
  • Gold Medal: Argentina
  • Silver Medal: Mexico
  • Bronze Medal: Canada

Figure skating

• World Figure Skating Championships:
  • Men's champion: Ondrej Nepela, Czechoslovakia
  • Ladies' champion: Beatrix Schuba, Austria
  • Pair skating champions: Irina Rodnina & Alexei Ulyanov, Soviet Union
  • Ice dancing champions: Lyudmila Pakhomova & Alexandr Gorshkov, Soviet Union

Football (American)

• Super Bowl V: Baltimore Colts won 16-13 over the Dallas Cowboys

• December 25 - The Miami Dolphins defeat the Kansas City Chiefs in a divisional playoff game. The double-overtime contest is the longest game in NFL history, and the Chiefs' last-ever home game at Municipal Stadium.

• 1970 NCAA Division I-A national football championship: The Nebraska Cornhuskers win 17-12 over the LSU Tigers on January 1 ,1971.

Football (Australian rules football)

• Victorian Football League
  • Hawthorn wins the 75th VFL Premiership (Hawthorn 12.10 (82) d St Kilda 11.9 (75))
  • Brownlow Medal awarded to Ian Stewart (Richmond)

Football (Canadian)

• Grey Cup: Calgary Stampeders won 14-11 over the Toronto Argonauts
• Vanier Cup: Western Ontario Mustangs won 15-14 over the Alberta Golden Bears

Football (Soccer)

For an extensive coverage see 1971 in football (soccer)

• Atlético Mineiro wins the first Campeonato Brasileiro

• Arsenal are the English First Division champions

• England - FA Cup: Arsenal won 2-1 over Liverpool to win The Double

• European Championship Cup Final: Ajax - Panathinaikos 2-0

• January 2 - At the end of a Rangers-Celtic match at Ibrox Park in Glasgow, Scotland, barriers at Stairway 13 give way under a mass of fans, killing 66 and injuring over 200 others.

Golf

Men's Golf

• Grand Slam of golf results:
  1. May - The Masters - Charles Coody
  2. June - US Open - Lee Trevino
  3. July - British Open - Lee Trevino
  4. August - PGA Championship - Jack Nicklaus

• PGA Tour leading money winner for the year: Jack Nicklaus - $244,491

• Ryder Cup: United States won 18 1/2 to 13 1/2 over Britain in world team golf

Women's Golf

• US Women's Open - JoAnne Carner. This win made her the first person ever to win three different USGA individual championship events.
• LPGA Championship - Kathy Whitworth
• Kathy Whitworth: leading money winner on the LPGA tour, earning $41,181

Thoroughbred Horse Racing

• Australia - Melbourne Cup - Silver Knight
• Canada - Queen's Plate - Kennedy Road
• France - Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe - Mill Reef
• Ireland - Irish Derby Stakes - Irish Ball

• English Triple Crown Races:
  1. Two Thousand Guineas Stakes - Brigadier Gerard
  2. Epsom Derby - Mill Reef
  3. St. Leger Stakes - Athens Wood

• United States Triple Crown Races:
  1. Kentucky Derby - Canonero II
  2. Preakness Stakes - Canonero II
  3. Belmont Stakes - Pass catcher

Harness Racing

• United States Pacing Triple Crown races:
  1. Cane Pace - Albatross
  2. Little Brown Jug - Nansemond
  3. Messenger Stakes - Albatross

• United States Trotting Triple Crown races:
  1. Hambletonian - Speedy Crown
  2. Yonkers Trot - Quick Pride
  3. Kentucky Futurity - Savoir

• Australian Inter Dominion Harness Racing Championship:
  • Pacers: Stella Frost
  • Trotters: Geffini

Ice Hockey

• Art Ross Memorial Trophy as the NHL's leading scorer during the regular season: Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins

• Hart Memorial Trophy for the NHL's Most Valuable Player: Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins

• Stanley Cup: Montreal Canadiens win 4 games to 3 over the Chicago Blackhawks

• World Hockey Championship
  • Men's champion: Soviet Union defeated Czechoslovakia
• NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship: Boston University Terriers defeat University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Golden Gophers 4-2 in Syracuse, NY

Lacrosse

• Cornell beats Maryland 12-6 to win the first NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship.
• The Brantford­ Warriors win the Mann Cup.
• The Richmond Roadrunners win the Minto Cup.
• The Victoria McDonalds win the Castrol Cup.

Radiosport

• Sixth Amateur Radio Direction Finding European Championship held in Duisburg, Federal Republic of Germany.

Skiing

• Alpine Skiing
  • The men's overall season champion: Gustav Thöni, Italy
  • The women's overall season champion: Annemarie Pröll, Austria

Snooker

• World Snooker Championship: John Spencer beats Warren Simpson 37-29

Swimming

Records

• August 27 — US swimmer Mark Spitz recaptures the world record in the men's 200m butterfly (long course), clocking 2:03.9 at a meet in Houston, Texas.

• August 31 — Four days after Mark Spitz broke the world record in the men's 200m butterfly (long course), West Germany's Hans-Joachim Fassnacht betters the time to 2:03.3 at a meet in Landskrona, Sweden.

Tennis

• Grand Slam in tennis men's results:
  1. Australian Open - Ken Rosewall
  2. French Open - Jan Kodeš
  3. Wimbledon championships - John Newcombe
  4. US Open - Stan Smith

• Grand Slam in tennis women's results:
  1. Australian Open - Margaret Smith Court
  2. French Open - Evonne Goolagong
  3. Wimbledon championships - Evonne Goolagong
  4. US Open - Billie Jean King

• Davis Cup: United States wins 3-2 over Romania in world tennis.

• Sixteen year old Chris Evert makes her US Open debut reaching the semifinals where she is defeated by eventual champion Billie Jean King.
• First time in 16 years that Americans won both the men's and women's title at the US Open.

General sporting events

• Sixth Pan American Games held in Cali, Colombia

• Sixth Mediterranean Games held in İzmir, Turkey

Awards

• Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year: Lee Trevino, PGA golf
• Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year: Evonne Goolagong, Tennis

Births

January

• January 2 — Markus Baur, German handball player
• January 4 — Melanie Cremer, German field hockey player
• January 7 — Vladislav Kulikov, Russian butterfly swimmer
• January 11 — Gregg Clark, South African field hockey player
• January 14 — Bert Konterman, Dutch football player
• January 16 — Sergi Bruguera, Spanish tennis player
• January 16 — Ulrich van Gobbel, Dutch football player
• January 16 — Scott Williams, US field hockey defender
• January 18 — Josep Guardiola, Spanish football player
• January 19 — Begoña Larzabal, Spanish field hockey midfielder
• January 20 — Henry "Donald" Martinez, Salvadoran bantamweight boxer
• January 22 — Ellen Elzerman, Dutch swimmer
• January 22 — Joaquín Fernández, Spanish swimmer
• January 26 — Karin Kienhuis, Dutch judoka
• January 26 — Lee Naylor, Australian track and field athlete
• January 28 — Orhan Delibas, Dutch-Turkish boxer
• January 29 — Sonja Pfeilschifter, German shooter
• January 30 — Hong Qian, Chinese butterfly swimmer

February

• February 1 — Zlatko Zahovič, Slovenian football player
• February 13 — Emese Antal, Romania-born ice speed skater from Austria
• February 19 — Martin van der Spoel, Dutch swimmer
• February 20 — Jari Litmanen, Finnish football player
• February 20 — Margaret "Peggy" Storrar, American field hockey goalkeeper
• February 23 — Cornelia Pfohl, German archer
• February 24 — Pedro de la Rosa, Spanish Formula 1-driver
• February 25 — Nelson Dieppa, Puerto Rican boxer
• February 25 — Nova Peris-Kneebone, Australian athlete and field hockey player
• February 28 — Koos Issard, Dutch waterpolo player

March

• March 1 — Atif Bashir, Pakistani field hockey player
• March 1 — Tyler Hamilton, American road bicycle racer
• March 1 — Dick Norman, Belgian tennis player
• March 4 — Adriana Fernández, Mexican long-distance runner
• March 5 — Karina Masotta, Argentine field hockey player
• March 5 — Filip Meirhaeghe, Belgian cyclist
• March 6 — Servais Knaven, Dutch cyclist
• March 15 — Ralf Bißdorf, German fencer
• March 18 — Jerzy Brzęczek, Polish football (soccer) player
• March 18 — Mariaan de Swardt, South African tennis player
• March 19 — Sébastien Godefroid, Belgian sailor
• March 19 — Whitney Hedgepeth, American backstroke swimmer
• March 19 — Zé Marco de Melo, Brazilian beach volleyball player
• March 20 — Dmitriy Gaag, Kazakhstani triathlete
• March 27 — David Coulthard, Scottish Formula 1-driver
• March 29 — Arjen Teeuwissen, Dutch equestrian
• March 29 — Milton Wynants, Uruguayan cyclist
• March 30 — Carlton Myers, Italian basketball player
• March 31 — Pavel Bure, Russian ice hockey player
• March 31 — Ramón Garbey, Cuban boxer

April

• April 1 — Vladimir Selkov, Russian swimmer
• April 1 — Daniel Vacek, Czech tennis player
• April 2 — Conrad Leinemann, Canadian beach volleyball player
• April 2 — Todd Woodbridge, Australian tennis player
• April 3 — Picabo Street, American alpine skier
• April 6 — Tom Sorensen, American volleyball player
• April 8 — Ellen Kuipers, Dutch field hockey player
• April 9 — Rafał Szukała, Polish butterfly swimmer
• April 9 — Jacques Villeneuve, Canadian Formula 1-driver
• April 10 — Marcus Baur, German sailor
• April 10 — Helen Clarke, New Zealand field hockey goalkeeper
• April 12 — Fernando Meligeni, Brazilian tennis player
• April 12 — Christophe Moreau, French cyclist
• April 12 — Gregory Russ, New Zealand field hockey player
• April 13 — Franck Esposito, French swimmer
• April 14 — Danja Müsch, German beachvolleyball player
• April 15 — Finidi George, Nigerian football player
• April 15 — Guivi Sissaouri, Georgia-born Canadian freestyle wrestler
• April 20 — Carla Geurts, Dutch swimmer
• April 21 — Rachel Petrie, New Zealand field hockey defender
• April 21 — Indrek Pertelson, Estonian judoka
• April 22 — Nicklas Kulti, Swedish tennis player
• April 24 — Mike Fenner, German athlete
• April 24 — Phil Rogers, Australian swimmer
• April 28 — Markus Beyer, German boxer

May

• May 1 — Damon Diletti, Australian field hockey player
• May 8 — James Elmer, Australian field hockey player
• May 10 — Ådne Søndrål, Norwegian speed skater
• May 12 — Ingrid van Lubek, Dutch triathlete
• May 14 — Martin Reim, Estonian football (soccer) player
• May 15 — Phil Pfister, American strength athlete
• May 18 — Janel Jorgensen, American butterfly swimmer
• May 21 — Tom Nanne, Dutch baseball player
• May 25 — Stefano Baldini, Italian track and field athlete
• May 25 — Georg Totschnig, Austrian cyclist
• May 27 — Grant Stafford, South African tennis player
• May 28 — Manuel Beltrán, Spanish cyclist
• May 30 — Kyle Vander Kuyp, Australian indigenous athlete
• May 31 — Irene Dalby, Norwegian swimmer
• May 31 — Nicole Struse, German table tennis player

June

• June 2 — Dion Gosling, New Zealand field hockey defender
• June 9 — Jean Galfione, French athlete
• June 12 — Florencia Labat, Argentine tennis player
• June 12 — Adam Vella, Australian target shooter
• June 13 — Stefano Pescosolido, Italian tennis player
• June 16 — Christian Mayerhöfer, German field hockey player
• June 17 — Tripp Schwenk, American backstroke swimmer
• June 21 — Irene Van Dyk, New Zealand netball player
• June 24 — Thomas Helveg, Danish football (soccer) player
• June 24 — Nicole Livingstone, Australian swimmer and television sports commentator
• June 26 — Max Biaggi, Italian motorcyclist
• June 26 — Edward Parenti, Canadian swimmer
• June 28 — Fabien Barthez, French football (soccer) goalkeeper
• June 29 — Iván Pérez, Cuba-born water polo player from Spain

July

• July 6 — Jessica Gal, Dutch judoka
• July 9 — Hilary Rose, British field hockey goalkeeper
• July 12 — Joel Casamayor, Cuban boxer
• July 13 — Richard Groenendaal, Dutch cyclist
• July 14 — Bernardo Mota, Portuguese tennis player
• July 17 — Wilma van Hofwegen, Dutch swimmer
• July 17 — Nico Mattan, Belgian cyclist
• July 19 — Erik Jazet, Dutch field hockey player
• July 19 — Vitali Klitschko, Ukrainian heavyweight boxing champion
• July 23 — Kristin Wagner, German sailor
• July 26 — Mladen Rudonja, Slovenian footballer
• July 30 — Mzukisi Sikali, South African boxer (d. 2005)

August

• August 1 — Lisa Flood, Canadian breaststroke swimmer
• August 4 — Jeff Gordon, American NASCAR driver
• August 4 — Christophe Mendy, Senegal-born French boxer
• August 5 — Darren Lange, Australian freestyle swimmer
• August 5 — Jude Menezes, Indian field hockey goalkeeper
• August 6 — Angela Postma, Dutch freestyle swimmer
• August 7 — Stephan Volkert, German rower
• August 8 — Johnny Balentina, Dutch baseball player
• August 8 — Ramón Sala, Spanish field hockey player
• August 8 — Ramandeep Singh, Indian field hockey midfielder
• August 9 — Davide Rebellin, Italian cyclist
• August 10 — Roy Keane, Irish footballer
• August 10 — Mario César Kindelán Mesa, Cuban amateur boxer
• August 12 — Svetlana Bondarenko, Ukrainian swimmer
• August 12 — Diana van der Plaats, Dutch swimmer
• August 12 — Pete Sampras, American tennis player
• August 14 — Andrea Peron, Italian cyclist
• August 15 — Umesh Parag, New Zealand field hockey player
• August 16 — Rulon Gardner, American wrestler
• August 18 — Jonathan Winter, New Zealand backstroke swimmer
• August 19 — Mary Joe Fernandez, American-Dominican tennis player
• August 21 — Jan Hempel, German diver
• August 23 — Demetrio Albertini, Italian footballer
• August 24 — Antoaneta Frenkeva, Bulgarian breaststroke swimmer
• August 25 — Andrew Baildon, Australian freestyle swimmer
• August 25 — Gilberto Simoni, Italian cyclist
• August 26 — Jeroen van Dijk, Dutch badminton player
• August 26 — Charles Friedek, German athlete
• August 26 — Lisa Keightley, Australian cricketer
• August 27 — Ernest Faber, Dutch footballer
• August 28 — Janet Evans, American Olympic swimming champion
• August 29 — Marco Sandy, Bolivian football (soccer) defender
• August 30 — Marianne Kriel, South African swimmer

September

• September 1 — Hakan Şükür, Turkish footballer
• September 2 — Kjetil André Aamodt, Norwegian alpine skier
• September 2 — Gregory Corbitt, Australian field hockey striker
• September 2 — Tom Steels, Belgian cyclist
• September 3 — Paolo Montero, Uruguay football player
• September 4 — Bas van de Goor, Dutch volleyball player
• September 4 — Mark Knowles, Bahamian tennis player
• September 7 — Shane Mosley, American boxer
• September 8 — Daniel Petrov, Bulgarian boxer
• September 9 — Glen Housman, Australian long-distance swimmer
• September 9 — Serge Kats, Dutch sailor
• September 9 — Magali Messmer, Swiss triathlete
• September 12 — Chandra Sturrup, Bahamian sprint athlete
• September 12 — Perry Ubeda, Dutch martial artist
• September 13 — Goran Ivanišević, Croatian tennis player
• September 13 — Katrin Kauschke, German field hockey player
• September 15 — Annamarie Thomas, Dutch speed skater
• September 16 — Karsten Kobs, German athlete
• September 17 — Jens Voigt, German cyclist
• September 18 — Lance Armstrong, American cyclist
• September 18 — Kate Starre, Australian field hockey midfielder
• September 19 — Mirnawan Nawawi, Malaysian field hockey player
• September 20 — Henrik Larsson, Swedish footballer
• September 22 — Trinko Keen, Dutch table tennis player
• September 24 — Linda Moes, Dutch swimmer
• September 26 — Anke Feller, German athlete
• September 27 — Clarisse Rasoarizay, Malagasy long-distance runner
• September 28 — Sven Meinhardt, German field hockey player

October

• October 5 — Carlos Espínola, Argentine sailor
• October 6 — Jorgelina Rimoldi, Argentine field hockey player
• October 13 — André Bergdølmo, Norwegian football player
• October 13 — Pyrros Dimas, Greek weightlifter
• October 20 — Kamiel Maase, Dutch long-distance runner
• October 22 — Amanda Coetzer, South African tennis player
• October 23 — Oliver Kurtz, German field hockey player
• October 23 — Suzanne Plesman, Dutch field hockey player
• October 25 — Pedro Martínez, Major League Baseball player
• October 25 — Geoffrey Prommayon, Dutch football player
• October 26 — Didier Martel, French football player
• October 30 — Suzan van der Wielen, Dutch field hockey player

November

• November 1 — Jorge Lombi, Argentinian field hockey player
• November 4 — Marco Büchel, Liechtensteiner alpine skier
• November 4 — Fred Mutuweta, Ugandan boxer
• November 6 — Laura Flessel-Colovic, French épée fencer
• November 12 — Linley Frame, Australian swimmer
• November 12 — Gert Thys, South African long-distance runner
• November 16 — Alexander Popov, Russian swimming champion
• November 18 — Danny Heister, Dutch table tennis player
• November 18 — Bobby Julich, American cyclist
• November 19 — Michelle Andrews, Australian field hockey midfielder
• November 22 — Davidson and Osmond Ezinwa, Nigerian twins and sprinters
• November 23 — Christoph Bechmann, German field hockey player
• November 27 — Ingo Euler, German rower
• November 27 — Sam Smith, British tennis player
• November 30 — György Mizsei, Hungarian boxer
• November 30 — Gerard van Velde, Dutch speed skater

December

• December 3 — Henk Timmer, Dutch football player
• December 4 — Inge van den Broek, Dutch field hockey player
• December 6 — Richard Krajicek, Dutch tennis player who won Wimbledon (1996)
• December 6 — Carole Thate, Dutch field hockey player
• December 7 — Spira Grujic, Serbian football player
• December 12 — Philip Boit, Kenyan cross-county skier
• December 12 — Sammy Korir, Kenyan long-distance runner
• December 12 — Khassaraporn Suta, Thai weightlifter
• December 17 — Beth Barr, American backstroke swimmer
• December 17 — Antoine Rigaudeau, French basketball player
• December 18 — Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario, Spanish tennis player
• December 19 — Karen Pickering, British swimmer
• December 26 — Mika Nurmela, Finnish footbal player
• December 27 — Jonah Birir, Kenyan middle distance runner
• December 27 — Sabine Spitz, German mountainbiker
• December 27 — Falko Zandstra, Dutch speed skater
• December 28 — Sergi Barjuán, Spanish football player
• December 29 — Jeroen Blijlevens, Dutch cyclist
• December 30 — Kylie Foy, New Zealand field hockey striker
• December 31 — Jody Murphy, Port Stephens Pythons Cricket player

Deaths

• March 15 — Jean-Pierre Monser (22), Flemish cyclist
• April 4 — Carl Mays, Major League Baseball pitcher (1915-1929)
• April 13 — Michel Briere (21), star rookie ice-hockey player, Pittsburgh Penguins
• April 7 — Charles Pahud de Mortanges, Dutch two time Olympic equestrian gold medalist
• May 12 — Heinie Manush, Major League Baseball player (1923-1939)
• May 15 — Goose Goslin, Major League Baseball player (1921-1938)
• June 5 — Clare Dennis (55), Australian breaststroke swimmer (b. 1916)
• June 17 — Christopher Morris, American cricketer
• June 30 — Georgi Asparuhov (28), Bulgarian football (soccer) player, in a car crash
• October 24 — Chuck Hughes, Detroit Lions wide receiver, collapsed during a game
• December 14 — Dick Tiger, Nigerian boxer (b. 1929)