1981 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.

Alpine skiing Alpine skiing, or downhill skiing, is the pastime of sliding down snow-covered slopes on skis with fixed-heel bindings, unlike other types of skiing ( cross-country, Telemark, or ski jumping), which use skis with free-heel bindings. Whether for ...

* Alpine Skiing World Cup – ** Men's overall season champion: Phil Mahre, USA ** Women's overall season champion: Marie-Theres Nadig, Switzerland

American football

* January 25 –

Super Bowl XV Super Bowl XV was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Oakland Raiders and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Philadelphia Eagles to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for ...

: the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...

(AFC) won 27−10 over the Philadelphia Eagles (NFC) ** Location: Superdome ** Attendance: 76,135 ** MVP: Jim Plunkett, QB (Oakland) *

Sugar Bowl The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed onl ...

(1980 season): ** The

Georgia Bulldogs The Georgia Bulldogs are the athletic teams that represent the University of Georgia. The female athletic teams are sometimes referred to as Lady Bulldogs. The Bulldogs compete in NCAA Division I and are members of the Southeastern Conference ( ...

won 17-10 over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish to win the college football national championship * October 11 - LeRoy Irvin sets NFL record for most punt return yards in a game (207).

Artistic gymnastics

* World Artistic Gymnastics Championships – ** Men's all-around champion:

Yuri Korolev Yuri Nikolayevich Korolyov (russian: Юрий Николаевич Королёв; born 25 August 1962 in Vladimir) is a Soviet artistic gymnast who competed during the 1980s, winning many World and European Medals. Part of a deep Soviet team t ...

, USSR ** Women's all-around champion: Olga Bicherova, USSR ** Men's team competition champion: USSR ** Women's team competition champion: USSR

Association football

* UEFA Champions League – Liverpool FC 1-0

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...

* UEFA Cup – two leg final: 1st leg

Ipswich Town F.C. Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in EFL League One, League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in 1878 but did not ...

3-0 AZ '67 (Alkmaar); 2nd leg AZ '67 4-2 Ipswich Town. Ipswich Town win 5-4 on aggregate * Cup Winners' Cup –

Dynamo Tbilisi FC Dinamo Tbilisi ( ka, დინამო თბილისი, ) is a Georgian professional football club based in Tbilisi, Georgia, that competes in the Erovnuli Liga, the top flight of Georgian football. Dinamo Tbilisi was one of the mo ...

2-1 Carl Zeiss Jena *

Copa Libertadores de América The CONMEBOL Libertadores, also known as the Copa Libertadores de América ( pt, Copa Libertadores da América), is an annual international club association football, football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1960. It is the highest level ...

–

Flamengo Clube de Regatas do Flamengo (; English: ''Flamengo Rowing Club''), more commonly referred to as simply Flamengo, is a Brazilian sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, in the neighborhood of Gávea, best known for their professional football t ...

2-0

Cobreloa Club de Deportes Cobreloa S.A.D.P. (), commonly referred to as Cobreloa, is a Chilean football professional club based in Calama, Región de Antofagasta, Chile. That competes in the Primera B. The club's home ground is the Estadio Zorros del ...

* World Club Championship –

3-0 Liverpool FC *

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...

win English League Championship * FA Cup – Tottenham Hotspur win 3-2 over

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

* Victorian Football League ** May 23 – A protest by Richmond against the eligibility of defender Doug Cox to play for St. Kilda led to the Saints temporarily losing the points for their first two wins. They were reinstated later due to changes in the relevant rules, but a fine of $5000 remained. ** June 6 – ’s Kevin Bartlett became the first to play 350 VFL games. **

Carlton Carlton may refer to: People * Carlton (name), a list of those with the given name or surname * Carlton (singer), English soul singer Carlton McCarthy * Carlton, a pen name used by Joseph Caldwell (1773–1835), American educator, Presbyterian ...

win the 85th VFL Premiership, beating Collingwood 12.20 (92) to 10.12 (72) ** Brownlow Medal awarded to

Barry Round Barry James Round (26 January 1950 – 24 December 2022) was an Australian rules footballer. He played for and South Melbourne/Sydney in the Victorian Football League (VFL) between 1969 and 1985. He played 328 games (135 for Footscray and 19 ...

( South Melbourne) and Bernie Quinlan (

Fitzroy Fitzroy or FitzRoy may refer to: People As a given name *Several members of the Somerset family (Dukes of Beaufort) have this as a middle-name: **FitzRoy Somerset, 1st Baron Raglan (1788–1855) ** Henry Charles FitzRoy Somerset, 8th Duke of Beau ...

) ** At the end of the season, South Melbourne relocate to Sydney and are renamed the Sydney Swans.

Baseball

* For a Venezuelans baseball player's strike the

Caribbean World Series The Caribbean Series (''Spanish'': ''Serie del Caribe''), also called Caribbean World Series, is the highest tournament for professional baseball teams in Latin America. The tournament location is rotated annually among the countries and is norma ...

of this year is cancelled. * January 15 - In his first year of eligibility, former Cardinals pitcher Bob Gibson is the only player elected to the

Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-r ...

. Gibson won 20 games five times, struck out 3,117 batters, and captured the

Cy Young Award The Cy Young Award is given annually to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball (MLB), one each for the American League (AL) and National League (NL). The award was first introduced in 1956 by Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick in honor of Hall ...

and MVP in 1968 with a 1.12

ERA An era is a span of time defined for the purposes of chronology or historiography, as in the regnal eras in the history of a given monarchy, a calendar era used for a given calendar, or the geological eras defined for the history of Earth. Compa ...

. Players falling short of the 301 votes needed for election include

Don Drysdale Donald Scott Drysdale (July 23, 1936 – July 3, 1993) was an American professional baseball player and television sports commentator. A right-handed pitcher for the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers for his entire career in Major League Baseball, D ...

(243), Gil Hodges (241), Harmon Killebrew (239), Hoyt Wilhelm (238), and Juan Marichal (233). All except Hodges would subsequently gain election. * April 18 - An

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball ...

game between the Pawtucket Red Sox and the visiting

Rochester Red Wings The Rochester Red Wings are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Rochester, New York, and play their home games at Innovative Field ...

set the record for the most

innings An innings is one of the divisions of a cricket match during which one team takes its turn to bat. Innings also means the period in which an individual player bats (acts as either striker or nonstriker). Innings, in cricket, and rounders, is bot ...

ever played in a single professional baseball game, at 33 innings (24 extra innings). The game was suspended after 32 innings on the morning of April 19, and was concluded on June 23 with a 3-2 Pawtucket victory. * June 12 - Major League Baseball players begin a 49-day strike over the issue of free-agent compensation. * World Series – Los Angeles Dodgers win 4 games to 2 over the New York Yankees. The Series MVP is a tie between

Ron Cey Ronald Charles Cey (; born February 15, 1948), nicknamed "Penguin", is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a third baseman from through , most notably as an integral member of the Los Angeles Do ...

, Pedro Guerrero and Steve Yeager, Los Angeles

Basketball

NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship The NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, branded as NCAA March Madness and commonly called March Madness, is a single-elimination tournament played each spring in the United States, currently featuring 68 college basketball teams from ...

– ** Indiana wins 63-50 over North Carolina *

NBA Finals The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The team that wins the series is awa ...

– **

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...

won 4 games to 2 over the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its ho ...

National Basketball League (Australia) The National Basketball League (NBL) is a men's Professional sports#Basketball, professional basketball list of basketball leagues, league in Australasia, currently composed of 10 teams: 9 in Australia and 1 in New Zealand. It is the premier ...

Finals: **

Launceston Casino City The Launceston Casino City is a defunct Australian professional basketball team that competed in the National Basketball League (NBL). Formed in 1980, the club was based in Launceston, Tasmania. It lasted only three seasons before folding, b ...

defeated the Nunawading Spectres 75-54 in the final.

Boxing

* April 11 – Larry Holmes defeats Trevor Berbick by a unanimous decision to retain the WBC heavyweight title. * August 21 –

Salvador Sánchez Salvador "Sal" Sánchez Narváez (January 26, 1959 – August 12, 1982) was a Mexican professional boxer born in the town of Santiago Tianguistenco, Estado de México. Sanchez was the WBC and ''The Ring featherweight champion from 1980 to 19 ...

defeats Wilfredo Gómez by knockout in round eight to retain boxing's

WBC WBC may stand for: Business *Westinghouse Broadcasting Company, a former large India broadcaster now folded into CBS *Westpac (New Delhi Exchange code: WBC), a multinational Financial services company *Wholesale Broadband Connect, BT Wholesale's ...

world Featherweight title.(see:

The Battle of the Little Giants ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in E ...

) * September 16 – Sugar Ray Leonard defeats Thomas Hearns by knockout in round 14 to unify boxing's world Welterweight title. * October 3 – Mike Weaver defeats James (Quick) Tillis by a unanimous decision to retain the WBA heavyweight title. Marvin Hagler defeats Mustafa Hamsho by eleventh-round technical knockout to retain his undisputed world Middleweight title as Weaver-Tillis' show's main event.

Canadian football

Grey Cup The Grey Cup (french: Coupe Grey) is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested be ...

–

Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at the Brick Field at Commo ...

win 26–23 over the

Ottawa Rough Riders The Ottawa Rough Riders were a Canadian Football League team based in Ottawa, Ontario, founded in 1876. Formerly one of the oldest and longest-lived professional sports teams in North America, the Rough Riders won the Grey Cup championship nine ...

* Vanier Cup – Acadia Axemen win 18–12 over the Alberta Golden Bears

Cycling

* Giro d'Italia won by Giovanni Battaglin of Italy * Tour de France won by Bernard Hinault of France

Dogsled racing

* Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Champion – ** Rick Swenson won with lead dogs: ''Andy'' & ''Slick''

Field hockey

* Men's Champions Trophy held in Karachi won by the Netherlands * Women's World Cup held in Buenos Aires won by West Germany

Figure skating

World Figure Skating Championship The World Figure Skating Championships (''"Worlds"'') is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union. Medals are awarded in the categories of men's singles, women's singles, pair skating, and ice dance. Gen ...

– ** Men's champion: Scott Hamilton, United States ** Ladies' champion:

Denise Biellmann Denise Biellmann (born 11 December 1962) is a Swiss professional figure skater. She was the European and World Champion in 1981 and won the Swiss Championships three times. Career Amateur career Born in Zurich, Biellmann won her first in ...

, Switzerland ** Pair skating champions:

Irina Vorobeva Irina Nikolayevna Vorobieva (russian: Ирина Николаевна Воробьёва; 30 June 1958 – 12 April 2022) was a Russian pair skater who competed for the Soviet Union. With her then-husband Igor Lisovsky, she was the 1981 World c ...

Igor Lisovski Igor Olegovich Lisovsky (russian: Игорь Олегович Лисовский; born on 25 June 1954) is a former Soviet pair skater. With his then-wife Irina Vorobieva, he is the 1981 World champion and the 1981 European champion. They were ...

, Soviet Union ** Ice dancing champions:

Jayne Torvill Jayne Torvill, OBE (born 7 October 1957) is a British professional ice dancer and former competitor. With Christopher Dean, she won a gold medal at the 1984 Winter Olympics and a bronze medal at the 1994 Winter Olympics, becoming one of the ...

Christopher Dean Christopher Colin Dean, OBE (born 27 July 1958) is a British ice dancer who won a gold medal at the 1984 Winter Olympics with his skating partner Jayne Torvill. They also won a bronze medal at the 1994 Winter Olympics. Early life Dean grew u ...

, Great Britain

Gaelic Athletic Association

Camogie Camogie ( ; ga, camógaíocht ) is an Irish stick-and-ball team sport played by women. Camogie is played by 100,000 women in Ireland and worldwide, largely among Irish communities. A variant of the game of hurling (which is played by men onl ...

** All-Ireland Camogie Champion:

Kilkenny Kilkenny (). is a city in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region and in the province of Leinster. It is built on both banks of the River Nore. The 2016 census gave the total population of Kilkenny as 26,512. Kilken ...

** National Camogie League: Dublin *

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...

** All-Ireland Senior Football Championship – Kerry 1-12 died Offaly 0-8 ** National Football League – Galway 1-11 died Roscommon 1-3 * Ladies' Gaelic football ** All-Ireland Senior Football Champion: Kerry 1-12 died Offaly 0-8 ** National Football League: Galway 1-11 died Roscommon 1-3 *

Hurling Hurling ( ga, iománaíocht, ') is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goals, the number of p ...

All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship The GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship, known simply as the All-Ireland Championship, is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest inter-county hurling competition i ...

– Offaly 2-12 died Galway 0-15 **

National Hurling League The National Hurling League is an annual Inter county, inter-county hurling competition featuring teams from Ireland and England. Founded in 1925 by the Gaelic Athletic Association, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation within the l ...

–

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

3-11 died Offaly 2-8

Golf

Men's professional *

Masters Tournament The Masters Tournament (usually referred to as simply The Masters, or the U.S. Masters outside North America) is one of the four major championships in professional golf. Scheduled for the first full week of April, the Masters is the first maj ...

- Tom Watson * U.S. Open - David Graham * British Open - Bill Rogers * PGA Championship - Larry Nelson * PGA Tour money leader - Tom Kite - $375,699 *

Senior PGA Tour PGA Tour Champions (formerly the Senior PGA Tour and the Champions Tour) is a men's professional senior golf tour, administered as a branch of the PGA Tour. History and format The Senior PGA Championship, founded in 1937, was for many years ...

money leader -

Miller Barber Miller Westford Barber, Jr. (March 31, 1931 – June 11, 2013) was an American professional golfer who enjoyed significant success on the PGA Tour in the 1960s and 1970s, and a greater degree of success on the Senior PGA Tour (now the Champions T ...

- $83,136 *

Ryder Cup The Ryder Cup is a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is contested every two years with the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe. The Ryder Cup is named af ...

- United States win 18½ to 9½ over Europe in team golf. Men's amateur * British Amateur -

Philippe Ploujoux Philippe is a masculine sometimes feminin given name, cognate to Philip. It may refer to: * Philippe of Belgium (born 1960), King of the Belgians (2013–present) * Philippe (footballer) (born 2000), Brazilian footballer * Prince Philippe, Coun ...

* U.S. Amateur - Nathaniel Crosby Women's professional *

LPGA Championship The Women's PGA Championship (branded as the KPMG Women's PGA Championship for sponsorship reasons) is a women's professional golf tournament. First held in 1955, it is one of five majors on the LPGA Tour. It is not recognized as a major by the ...

- Donna Caponi *

U.S. Women's Open The U.S. Women's Open, one of 15 national golf championships conducted by the United States Golf Association (USGA), is the oldest of the LPGA Tour's five major championships, which includes the Chevron Championship, Women's PGA Championship, W ...

- Pat Bradley * Classique Peter Jackson Classic - Jan Stephenson * LPGA Tour money leader - Beth Daniel - $206,998

Harness racing Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait (a trot or a pace). They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, or spider, or chariot occupied by a driver. In Europe, and less frequently in Australi ...

* United States Pacing Triple Crown races – *# Cane Pace -

Wildwood Jeb Wildwood and Wild Wood may refer to: Populated places Australia *Wildwood, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne Canada *Wildwood, Alberta, a hamlet * Wildwood, Calgary, Alberta, a neighborhood *Wildwood, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan * Wildwood Park, Winni ...

*# Little Brown Jug - Fan Hanover (Filly) *#

Messenger Stakes The Messenger Stakes is an American harness racing event for 3-year-old pacing horses. It was organized in 1956 at Roosevelt Raceway in Westbury, New York (on suburban Long Island) to join with the Cane Pace and the Little Brown Jug to create ...

Seahawk Hanover Sea Hawk or Seahawk may refer to: Birds * Osprey, a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey * Skua, a group of seabirds comprising seven species Aircraft * Curtiss F7C Seahawk, a carrier-capable biplane fighter aircraft of the United States Navy in t ...

* United States Trotting Triple Crown races – *# Hambletonian - Shiaway St. Pat *# Yonkers Trot -

Mo Bandy Mo or MO may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Mo, a girl in the ''Horrible Histories'' TV series * Mo, also known as Mortimer, in the novel ''Inkheart'' by Cornelia Funke * Mo, in the webcomic '' Jesus and Mo'' * Mo, the ...

Kentucky Futurity The Kentucky Futurity is a stakes race for three-year-old trotters, held annually at The Red Mile in Lexington, Kentucky since 1893. It is part of the Triple Crown of Harness Racing for Trotters. In the 2007 race, Donato Hanover's winning time ...

Filet of Sole Filet may refer to: *Filet, Switzerland * Fillet (cut), a piece of meat or fish *Filet lace Filet lace is the general word used for all the different techniques of embroidery on knotted net (or in French broderie sur filet noué). It is a hand m ...

Australian Inter Dominion Harness Racing Championship :''for winners of the Inter Dominion see: Inter Dominion Pacing Championship and Inter Dominion Trotting Championship'' The Inter Dominion is a harness racing competition that has been contested since 1936 in Australia and New Zealand. It is of ...

– **Pacers: San Simeon

Horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic p ...

* August 30 – John Henry becomes the first horse to win a million dollar race, the inaugural Arlington Million, at Arlington Park in the Chicago suburb of Arlington Heights, Illinois. * November – inaugural running of the Japan Cup, the most prestigious horse race in Japan, at Tokyo Racecourse in Fuchu, Tokyo. Its distance is about 1½ miles on turf and it is the world's richest turf race. Steeplechases * Cheltenham Gold Cup –

Little Owl The little owl (''Athene noctua''), also known as the owl of Athena or owl of Minerva, is a bird that inhabits much of the temperate and warmer parts of Europe, the Palearctic east to Korea, and North Africa. It was introduced into Britain at ...

* Grand National –

Aldaniti Aldaniti (25 June 1970 - 28 March 1997) was a racehorse who won the Grand National on 4 April 1981. His jockey on that day, Bob Champion, had recovered from cancer, while Aldaniti had recovered after suffering a career-threatening injury. The ...

Flat races * Australia – Melbourne Cup won by Just A Dash * Canada – Queen's Plate won by

Fiddle Dancer Boy Fiddle Dancer Boy (1978–1991) was a Canadian Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1981 Queen's Plate, Canada's most prestigious race and North America's oldest annually run stakes race. Bred by prominent Ontario owner/breeder Warren Beasley, he ...

* France –

1981 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The 1981 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe was a horse race held at Longchamp on Sunday 4 October 1981. It was the 60th running of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. The winner was Gold River, a four-year-old filly trained in France by Alec Head and ridden ...

won by Gold River * Ireland –

Irish Derby Stakes The Irish Derby (Irish: Dearbaí na hÉireann) is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 ...

won by Shergar * Japan – Japan Cup won by

Mairzy Doates Mairzy Doates (foaled 1976 in Kentucky) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. She was owned by New York City art dealer Arno D. Schefler who bought her as a weanling from breeder Preston W. Madden. Schefler named her for the novelty song "Mai ...

English Triple Crown Races The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, often shortened to Triple Crown, is a series of horse races for Thoroughbreds, often restricted to three-year-olds. Winning all three of these Thoroughbred horse races is considered the greatest accomplis ...

: *#

2,000 Guineas Stakes The 2000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres) and scheduled to take place each year at ...

–

To-Agori-Mou To-Agori-Mou (22 April 1978 – 1990) was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire who won the classic 2000 Guineas in 1981. He was the best British-trained two-year-old of 1980 when he won the Solario Stakes and was ...

*# The Derby – Shergar *# St. Leger Stakes –

Cut Above Cut Above (19 April 1978 – ca. 1991) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire best known for his upset win in the 1981 St Leger Stakes. As a two-year-old he showed useful form despite being beaten in both of his races and won the Wh ...

* United States Triple Crown Races: *#

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, almost always on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The competition is a Grade I stakes race for three-year ...

– Pleasant Colony *# Preakness Stakes – Pleasant Colony *#

Belmont Stakes The Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds run at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is run over 1.5 miles (2,400 m). Colts and geldings carry a weight of ; fillies carry . The race, nicknamed Th ...

–

Summing Summing (April 16, 1978 – October 10, 2008) was an American thoroughbred racehorse and sire. Background Summing was a bay horse bred in Kentucky by his owner Charles T. Wilson Jr. He was sired by Verbatim, a leading dirt performer whose wi ...

Quarter Horse Racing * Triple Crown of Quarter Horse Racing *

Special Effort Special Effort (April 9, 1979 – March 11, 2006) was an American Quarter Horse stallion who won the 1981 All American Futurity. He was inducted into the American Quarter Horse Association's (or AQHA) Hall of Fame in 2008.Staff "Hall of Fame ...

Ice hockey

* May 10 - Cornwall Royals defeat the Kitchener Rangers to win the

1981 Memorial Cup Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offens ...

* May 21 -

New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ( ...

defeat the Minnesota North Stars to win the

1981 Stanley Cup The 1981 Stanley Cup Finals was the championship series of the National Hockey League's (NHL) 1980–81 season, and the culmination of the 1981 Stanley Cup playoffs. It was contested by the Minnesota North Stars, making their first Finals appea ...

* Ice Hockey World Championships: ** Men's champion: Soviet Union defeated Sweden ** Junior Men's champion: Sweden defeated Finland * August 27 – death of Valeri Kharlamov (33), Russian player, in a car crash

Motorsport Motorsport, motorsports or motor sport is a global term used to encompass the group of competitive sporting events which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles. The terminology can also be used to describe forms of competition of two ...

Rugby league

1981 European Rugby League Championship The 1981 European Rugby League Championship was the 22nd edition of the Rugby League European Championship, an rugby league tournament that took place in Europe. The tournament saw the same three teams that competed in the 1980 European Rugby Le ...

1981 New Zealand rugby league season The 1981 New Zealand rugby league season was the 74th season of rugby league that had been played in New Zealand. International competitions New Zealand defeated France twice. New Zealand included; Fred Ah Kuoi, Ray Baxendale, Mark Broadhurst ...

1981 NSWRFL season The 1981 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the 74th season of Sydney's professional rugby league football competition, Australia's first. Twelve clubs, including six of 1908's foundation teams and another six from around Sydney ...

**1981

Craven Mild Cup Craven may refer to: * Craven in the Domesday Book, an area of Yorkshire, England, larger area than the district ** Craven District, a local government district of North Yorkshire formed in 1974 Places * Craven, New South Wales, Australia, see ...

1981 Tooth Cup The 1981 Tooth Cup was the 8th edition of the NSWRFL Midweek Cup, a NSWRFL-organised national club Rugby League tournament between the leading clubs and representative teams from the NSWRFL, the BRL, the CRL, the QRL and the NZRL. A total ...

1980–81 Rugby Football League season The 1980–81 Rugby Football League season was the 86th season of professional rugby league football in Britain. Sixteen teams competed from August 1980 until May 1981 for the Slalom Lager Championship. Season summary *Slalom Lager League Champi ...

1981–82 Rugby Football League season The 1981–82 Rugby Football League season was the 87th ever season of professional rugby league football in Britain. Sixteen teams competed from August, 1981 until May, 1982 for the Championship. Season summary *Slalom Lager League Champions: Le ...

1981 State of Origin game The 1981 State of Origin game was the second such match between arch rivals Queensland and New South Wales to be played under State of Origin selection rules. Again it was played as the third game of an already-decided 3-game series. New South Wal ...

Rugby union

* 87th 1981 Five Nations Championship, Five Nations Championship series is won by France national rugby union team, France who complete the Grand Slam (rugby union), Grand Slam * The 1981 Springbok Tour causes major controversy and riots in New Zealand

Snooker

* 1981 World Snooker Championship, World Snooker Championship – Steve Davis beats Doug Mountjoy 18-12 * Snooker world rankings, World rankings – Cliff Thorburn becomes Snooker world number ones, world number one for 1981/82

swimming (sport), Swimming

* August 15 – USA's Robin Leamy (swimmer), Robin Leamy of UCLA sets a world record time of 22.54 in the 50m freestyle (long course) at Brown Deer, Wisconsin, Brown Deer, Wisconsin, shaving 0.17 off the previous record (22.71) set by Joseph Bottom exactly one year ago in Honolulu, Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii

Tennis

* Grand Slam in tennis men's results: *# 1981 Australian Open – Men's singles, Australian Open - Johan Kriek *# 1981 French Open – Men's singles, French Open - Björn Borg *# 1981 Wimbledon Championships – Men's singles, Wimbledon championships - John McEnroe *# 1981 US Open – Men's singles, U.S. Open - John McEnroe * Grand Slam in tennis women's results: *# 1981 Australian Open – Women's singles, Australian Open - Martina Navratilova *# 1981 French Open – Women's singles, French Open - Hana Mandlíková *# 1981 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles, Wimbledon championships - Chris Evert *# 1981 US Open – Women's singles, U.S. Open - Tracy Austin * 1981 Davis Cup, Davis Cup – United States wins 3-1 over Argentina in world tennis.

Volleyball

* 1981 Men's European Volleyball Championship, Men and 1981 Women's European Volleyball Championship, Women's European Volleyball Championships held in Bulgaria and won by USSR (men) and Bulgaria (women)

Water polo

* 1981 FINA Men's Water Polo World Cup in Long Beach, California, Long Beach, California won by USSR * 1981 FINA Women's Water Polo World Cup in Brisbane, Australia, Brisbane, Australia won by Canada

Multi-sport events

* First 1981 World Games, World Games held in Santa Clara, California, Santa Clara, United States * Eleventh 1981 Summer Universiade, Summer Universiade held in Bucharest, Romania * Tenth 1981 Winter Universiade, Winter Universiade held in Jaca, Spain

Awards

* Associated Press Athlete of the Year#List of award winners, Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year – John McEnroe, Tennis * Associated Press Athlete of the Year#List of award winners, Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year – Tracy Austin, Tennis

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1981 In Sports 1981 in sports, Sports by year