1987 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:
Pirmin Zurbriggen, Switzerland
** Women's overall season champion:
Maria Walliser, Switzerland
American football
*
Super Bowl XXI
Super Bowl XXI was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion New York Giants to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the ...
– the
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
(NFC) won 39–20 over the
Denver Broncos (AFC)
**Location:
Rose Bowl
**Attendance: 101,063
**MVP:
Phil Simms, QB (New York)
* January 2 –
Fiesta Bowl (1986 season):
** The
Penn State Nittany Lions
The Penn State Nittany Lions are the athletic teams of Pennsylvania State University, except for the women's basketball team, known as the Lady Lions. The school colors are navy blue and white. The school mascot is the Nittany Lion. The interco ...
won 14-10 over the
Miami Hurricanes to win the
national championship
*
Arena football has its demonstration season—its first season— played with four teams.
*February 25 – The
Southern Methodist University Mustangs football team becomes the first college football program to be given the
death penalty
Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...
by the NCAA Committee on Rules Infractions
Artistic gymnastics
*
World Artistic Gymnastics Championships –
** Men's all-around champion:
Dmitry Bilozerchev
Dmitry Vladimirovich Bilozerchev (russian: Дмитрий Владимирович Билозерчев, born 22 December 1966 in Moscow) is a Russian gymnastics coach and retired gymnast who represented the Soviet Union. One of the most accompl ...
,
USSR
** Women's all-around champion:
Aurelia Dobre
Aurelia Dobre (born 16 November 1972) is a former artistic gymnast and the 1987 world all-around champion. She is the 1987 world champion on the balance beam and the bronze medalist on the vault and floor exercise, as well, and scored five pe ...
,
Romania
** Men's team competition champion:
USSR
** Women's team competition champion:
Romania
Association football
*
FA Cup final – Coventry City defeated Tottenham Hotspur 3-2
* Automatic relegation is introduced from the
Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
, with
Lincoln City F.C. relegated
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
** The
West Coast Eagles and the
Brisbane Bears join the league.
**
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 ...
wins the 91st
VFL Premiership (Carlton 15.14 (104) d
Hawthorn
Hawthorn or Hawthorns may refer to:
Plants
* '' Crataegus'' (hawthorn), a large genus of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae
* ''Rhaphiolepis'' (hawthorn), a genus of about 15 species of evergreen shrubs and small trees in the family Rosace ...
9.17 (71))
**
Brownlow Medal awarded to
Tony Lockett
Anthony Howard Lockett (born 9 March 1966) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the St Kilda Football Club and Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League (AFL). Nicknamed "Plugger", he is considered one of the greatest f ...
(
St Kilda) and
John Platten
John Patrick Platten (born 17 March 1963) is a retired Australian rules footballer.
Platten's career began in the SANFL, where he won a Magarey Medal with Central District, and also with Hawthorn, where he played in four premierships as we ...
(Hawthorn)
Athletics
* August–September –
1987 World Championships in Athletics
The 2nd World Championships in Athletics under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations were held in the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Italy between August 28 and September 6, 1987.
Men's results
Track
1983 , 1987 ...
held in Rome
Baseball
* January 14 –
Catfish Hunter and
Billy Williams
Billy Leo Williams (born June 15, 1938) is a former left fielder and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played from 1959 to 1976, almost entirely for the Chicago Cubs. A six-time All-Star, Williams was named the 1961 National League (NL) ...
are 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 ...
. Hunter made his name as the ace of the
Oakland A
The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...
's staff in their championship years and made his fortune as one of the first free agents. Williams set a
National League record by playing in 1,117 consecutive games and accumulating 426
home runs and a
batting title.
* August 3 –
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...
pitcher
Joe Niekro is suspended for 10 days for possessing a nail file on the pitcher's mound. Niekro claimed he had been filing his nails in the dugout and put the file in his back pocket when the inning started.
*
World Series –
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...
won 4 games to 3 over the
St. Louis Cardinals. The Series MVP was
Frank Viola, Minnesota
** Lowest regular-season record of any World Series champion (85-77, .525) until 2006 (Cardinals 83-78, .516)
** First World Series game played indoors (Game 1 at the
Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome
The Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome (commonly called the Metrodome) was a domed sports stadium located in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. It opened in 1982 as a replacement for Metropolitan Stadium, the former home of the National Football League ...
)
** First World Series where the home team won every game
Basketball
*
NCAA Men's 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 won 74-73 over
Syracuse
Syracuse may refer to:
Places Italy
*Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa''
*Province of Syracuse
United States
*Syracuse, New York
**East Syracuse, New York
**North Syracuse, New York
*Syracuse, Indiana
* Syracuse, Kansas
*Syracuse, Miss ...
*
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 ...
–
**
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...
won 4 games to 2 over the
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 ...
*
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:
**
Brisbane Bullets defeated the
Perth Wildcats 2-0 in the best-of-three final series.
Boxing
* March 7 in
Las Vegas, Nevada,
Mike Tyson
Michael Gerard Tyson (born June 30, 1966) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1985 to 2005. Nicknamed "Iron Mike" and "Kid Dynamite" in his early career, and later known as "The Baddest Man on the Planet", Tyson is cons ...
adds the
WBA heavyweight title to his
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 ...
belt when he beats
James Smith in a 12-round decision.
* April 6 –
Sugar Ray Leonard beats
Marvin Hagler for boxing's world Middleweight championship.
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 ...
won 38–36 over the
Toronto Argonauts
*
Vanier Cup –
McGill Redmen won 47–11 over the
UBC Thunderbirds
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...
*
1987 Cricket World Cup
The 1987 Cricket World Cup (officially known as the Reliance Cup 1987 for sponsorship reasons) was the fourth Cricket World Cup. It was held from 8 October to 8 November 1987 in India and Pakistan – the first such tournament to be held outsid ...
–
Final: Australia beat England by 7 runs
Cycling
*
Giro d'Italia won by
Stephen Roche of Ireland
*
Tour de France –
Stephen Roche of Ireland
*
UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race –
Stephen Roche of Ireland
Dogsled racing
*
Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Champion –
**
Susan Butcher won with lead dogs: ''Granite'' & ''Mattie''
Field hockey
*
Men's Champions Trophy won by West Germany
*
Women's Champions Trophy won by the Netherlands
*
Men's European Nations Cup won by the Netherlands
*
Women's European Nations Cup won by the Netherlands
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:
Brian Orser, Canada
** Ladies' champion:
Katarina Witt, Germany
** Pair skating champions:
Ekaterina Gordeeva /
Sergei Grinkov, Soviet Union
** Ice dancing champions:
Natalia Bestemianova
Natalia Filimonovna Bestemianova or Bestemyanova (russian: Наталья Филимоновна Бестемьянова, born 6 January 1960) is a Soviet and Russian former competitive ice dancer who competed for the Soviet Union. With her part ...
/
Andrei Bukin
Andrei Anatolyevich Bukin (russian: Андрей Анатольевич Букин, born 10 June 1957) is a Soviet and Russian former ice dancer who represented the Soviet Union in his competitive career. With his partner Natalia Bestemianova, he ...
, Soviet Union
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:
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 ...
*
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 –
Meath 1-14 died
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 ...
0-11
**
National Football League –
Dublin 1-11 died
Kerry 0-11
*
Ladies' Gaelic football
** All-Ireland Senior Football Champion:
Kerry
** National Football League:
Kerry
*
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 ...
–
Galway 1-12 died
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 ...
0-9
**
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 ...
–
Galway 3–12 beat
Clare Clare may refer to:
Places Antarctica
* Clare Range, a mountain range in Victoria Land
Australia
* Clare, South Australia, a town in the Clare Valley
* Clare Valley, South Australia
Canada
* Clare (electoral district), an electoral district
* Cl ...
3–10
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 ...
–
Larry Mize
*
U.S. Open –
Scott Simpson
*
British Open –
Nick Faldo
Sir Nicholas Alexander Faldo, (born 18 July 1957) is an English retired professional golfer and television commentator. A top player of his era, renowned for his dedication to the game, he was ranked No. 1 on the Official World Golf Ranking for ...
*
PGA Championship –
Larry Nelson
*
PGA Tour money leader –
Curtis Strange – $925,941
*
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 –
Chi Chi Rodriguez – $509,145
*
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 ...
– Europe won 15-13 over the United States in team golf.
Men's amateur
*
British Amateur –
Paul Mayo
Paul Mayo (born 13 October 1981) is an English former professional footballer, who played as a defender.
He started his professional career with Lincoln City in 1999, and in 2004 after impressing in the clubs recent play-off campaigns he made ...
*
U.S. Amateur –
Billy Mayfair
Women's professional
*
Nabisco Dinah Shore
The Chevron Championship is a professional women's golf tournament. An event on the LPGA Tour, it is one of the tour's five major championships, and has traditionally been the first of the season since its elevation to major status in 1983. Fou ...
–
Betsy King
*
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 ...
–
Jane Geddes
*
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 ...
–
Laura Davies
*
Classique du Maurier Classic –
Jody Rosenthal
Jody Anschutz (born October 18, 1962) is an American professional golfer. She competed as Jody Rosenthal prior to marrying Fred Anschutz on October 14, 1989.
Career
Rosenthal was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She attended the University of ...
*
LPGA Tour money leader –
Ayako Okamoto – $466,034
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 ...
* The
North America Cup
The North America Cup is an annual harness racing event for 3-year-old standardbred pacing horses which is held at Woodbine Mohawk Park in Campbellville, Ontario, Canada. The race replaced the Queen City Pace run from 1964 to 1983. From 1984 to ...
–
Runnymede Lobell
Runnymede is a water-meadow alongside the River Thames in the English county of Surrey, and just over west of central London. It is notable for its association with the sealing of Magna Carta, and as a consequence is, with its adjoining hil ...
*
United States Pacing Triple Crown races –
** –
Cane Pace –
Righteous Bucks
** –
Little Brown Jug –
Jaguar Spur
** –
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 ...
–
Redskin
Redskin is a slang term for Native Americans in the United States and First Nations in Canada. The term ''redskin'' underwent pejoration through the 19th to early 20th centuries and in contemporary dictionaries of American English it is labe ...
*
United States Trotting Triple Crown races –
** –
Hambletonian –
Mack Lobell
** –
Yonkers Trot –
Mack Lobell
** –
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 ...
–
Napoletano
*
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:
Lightning Blue
** Trotters:
Tussle
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 ...
Steeplechases
*
Cheltenham Gold Cup –
The Thinker
*
Grand National –
Maori Venture
Maori Venture (1976–2000) was a thoroughbred racehorse noted for winning the 1987 Grand National. The horse was so-named because breeder Dai Morgan had played rugby in New Zealand, home to the Māori.
An eleven-year-old owned by Jim Joel, tr ...
Flat races
* Australia –
Melbourne Cup won by Kensei
* Canada –
Queen's Plate won by
Market Control
A regulated market (RM) or coordinated market is an idealized system where the government or other organizations oversee the market, control the forces of supply and demand, and to some extent regulate the market actions. This can include tasks s ...
* France –
Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe won by
Trempolino
* 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
Sir Harry Lewis
Sir Harry Lewis (24 January 1984 – 14 April 2009) was an American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and sire best known for his win in the 1987 Irish Derby. After finishing second on his only appearance as a two-year-old he won his first two rac ...
* Japan –
Japan Cup won by
Le Glorieux
Le Glorieux (18 February 1984 – 19 Aug 2010) was a British-bred Thoroughbred racehorse. In 1987 he achieved the extraordinary feat of winning three Group one races on three different continents when he won the Grosser Preis von Berlin in Eu ...
*
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 ...
–
Don't Forget Me
*#
The Derby –
Reference Point
Reference point or similar may refer to:
Mathematics and science
* Reference point (physics), used to define a frame of reference
*Reference point, a point within a reference range or reference interval, which is a range of values found in healthy ...
*#
St. Leger Stakes –
Reference Point
Reference point or similar may refer to:
Mathematics and science
* Reference point (physics), used to define a frame of reference
*Reference point, a point within a reference range or reference interval, which is a range of values found in healthy ...
*
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 ...
–
Alysheba
*#
Preakness Stakes –
Alysheba
*#
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 ...
–
Bet Twice
Bet Twice (April 20, 1984 – March 5, 1999) was a multi-millionaire American thoroughbred racehorse and sire. Foaled in Kentucky, he was out of the marGolden Dustand was sired bSportin' Life who in turn was the son of the British Triple Cro ...
*
Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships:
*#
Breeders' Cup Classic –
Ferdinand
*#
Breeders' Cup Distaff
The Breeders' Cup Distaff is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race for fillies and mares, 3 years old and up. Known as the Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic between 2008 and 2012, it is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or ...
–
Sacahuista
{{Infobox racehorse
, horsename = Sacahuista
, image =
, caption =
, sire = Raja Baba
, grandsire = Bold Ruler
, dam = Nalees Flying Flag
, damsire = Hoist The Flag
, sex = Filly
, foaled = 1984
, country = United States
, colour = ...
*#
Breeders' Cup Juvenile –
Success Express
Success Express (foaled February 25, 1985 in Kentucky – 24 April 2015) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse.
Background
Success Express was a bay horse bred by Tri Star Stable. During his racing career he was owned by Eugene V. Klein a ...
*#
Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies
The Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies is a -mile thoroughbred horse race on dirt (although the distance has varied, depending on the configuration of the host track) for two-year-old fillies run annually since 1984 at a different racetrack in the Uni ...
–
Epitome
An epitome (; gr, ἐπιτομή, from ἐπιτέμνειν ''epitemnein'' meaning "to cut short") is a summary or miniature form, or an instance that represents a larger reality, also used as a synonym for embodiment. Epitomacy represents "t ...
*#
Breeders' Cup Mile –
Miesque
*#
Breeders' Cup Sprint –
Very Subtle
*#
Breeders' Cup Turf
The Breeders' Cup Turf is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race on turf for three-year-olds and up. It is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships. The race's current ...
–
Theatrical
Ice hockey
*
Art Ross Trophy
The Art Ross Trophy is awarded to the National Hockey League (NHL) player who leads the league in points at the end of the regular season. It was presented to the league by former player, General Manager, and head coach Art Ross. The trophy has ...
as the
NHL
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
's leading scorer during the regular season:
Wayne Gretzky,
Edmonton Oilers
*
Hart Memorial Trophy for the
NHL
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
's Most Valuable Player:
Wayne Gretzky,
Edmonton Oilers
*
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...
–
Edmonton Oilers won 4 games to 3 over the
Philadelphia Flyers
*
World Hockey Championship
The Ice Hockey World Championships are an annual international men's ice hockey tournament organized by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). First officially held at the 1920 Summer Olympics, it is the sport's highest profile annua ...
–
** Men's champion: Sweden defeated the Soviet Union
**
Junior Men's champion: Finland defeated
Czechoslovakia after a bench clearing brawl occurred between Canada and the Soviet Union
Lacrosse
*
Inaugural season of the ''Eagle Pro Box Lacrosse League'' (later the
National Lacrosse League)
** Championship won by the
Baltimore Thunder
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
*
1987 National Panasonic Cup
The 1987 National Panasonic Cup was the 14th edition of the Amco Cup, NSWRL Midweek Cup, a New South Wales Rugby League, NSWRL-organised national club Rugby League tournament between the leading clubs from the New South Wales Rugby League, NSWRL ...
*
1987 NSWRL season
The 1987 NSWRL season was the 80th season of professional rugby league football in Australia. Thirteen clubs competed for the New South Wales Rugby League premiership's J J Giltinan Shield and Winfield Cup during the season, which culminated in ...
*
1987 New Zealand rugby league season
The 1987 New Zealand rugby league season was the 80th season of rugby league that had been played in New Zealand. The main feature of the year was the Interdistricts Series competition that was run by the New Zealand Rugby League. Auckland won t ...
*
1986–87 Rugby Football League season
The 1986–87 Rugby Football League season was the 92nd season of rugby league football. Sixteen clubs competed for the Championship which was determined by League position.
Season summary
The Silk Cut Challenge Cup Winners were Halifax who bea ...
/
1987–88 Rugby Football League season
The 1987–88 Rugby Football League season was the 93rd season of rugby league football in Britain.
Season summary
During the season, defending champions Wigan hosted NSWRL champions, the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles in the 1987 World Club Chall ...
*
1987 State of Origin series
The 1987 State of Origin series saw the sixth time the annual three-match series between the New South Wales and Queensland representative rugby league football teams was contested entirely under 'State of Origin' selection rules. It saw the em ...
*
1987 World Club Challenge
The 1987 World Club Challenge (also known as the 1987 Foster's World Club Challenge due to sponsorship by brewers, Foster's) was the second game of its kind to be played between Britain's and Australia's domestic rugby league champion clubs. Ch ...
*
1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup
The 1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup (sometimes shortened to 1988 Rugby League World Cup) was the ninth Rugby League World Cup tournament held and saw yet another change of format with competition stretched to cover almost three years (1985 t ...
Rugby union
* 93rd
Five Nations Championship series is won by
France who complete the
Grand Slam
* Inaugural
Rugby Union World Cup is held in Australia and New Zealand. The winners are
New Zealand.
Snooker
Snooker (pronounced , ) is a cue sports, cue sport played on a Billiard table#Snooker and English billiards tables, rectangular table covered with a green cloth called baize, with six Billiard table#Pockets 2, pockets, one at each corner and o ...
*
World Snooker Championship –
Steve Davis beats
Joe Johnson 18-14
*
World rankings
A ranking is a relationship between a set of items such that, for any two items, the first is either "ranked higher than", "ranked lower than" or "ranked equal to" the second.
In mathematics, this is known as a weak order or total preorder of o ...
–
Steve Davis remains
world number one for 1987/88
Swimming
* Tenth
Pan American Games
The Pan American Games (also known colloquially as the Pan Am Games) is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is held ...
held in
Indianapolis
Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
, United States (August 9 – August 15)
* Second
Pan Pacific Championships held in
Brisbane, Australia (August 13 – August 16)
* August 13 –
Tom Jager
Thomas Michael Jager (born October 6, 1964) is an American former competition swimmer. He is five-time Olympic gold medalist in relay events, a two-time World Championship individual gold medalist for the 50-meter freestyle, and a former world ...
regains the world record from fellow American
Matt Biondi
Matt may refer to:
*Matt (name), people with the given name ''Matt'' or Matthew, meaning "gift from God", or the surname Matt
*In British English, of a surface: having a non-glossy finish, see gloss (material appearance)
*Matt, Switzerland, a mu ...
(22.33) in the 50m freestyle (long course) at the
1987 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships
The second edition of the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships, a long course (50 m) event, was held in 1987 at the Chandler Aquatic Centre in Brisbane, Australia
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian stat ...
in Brisbane, Australia, clocking 22.32.
Taekwondo
*
World Championships held in
Barcelona, Spain
Tennis
*
Grand Slam in tennis men's results:
** –
Australian Open
The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
–
Stefan Edberg
Stefan Bengt Edberg (; born 19 January 1966) is a Swedish former professional tennis player. A major proponent of the serve-and-volley style of tennis, he won six Grand Slam singles titles and three Grand Slam men's doubles titles between 1985 ...
** –
French Open
The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ven ...
–
Ivan Lendl
** –
Wimbledon championships –
Pat Cash
** –
U.S. Open –
Ivan Lendl
*
Grand Slam in tennis women's results:
** –
Australian Open
The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
–
Hana Mandlíková
Hana Mandlíková (born 19 February 1962) is a former professional tennis player from Czechoslovakia who later obtained Australian citizenship. During her career she won four Grand Slam singles titles - the 1980 Australian Open, 1981 French Op ...
** –
French Open
The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ven ...
–
Steffi Graf
Stefanie Maria Graf ( , ; born 14 June 1969) is a German former professional tennis player. Widely regarded as one of the greatest tennis players of all time, she was ranked world No. 1 for a record 377 weeks and won 22 major singles titles, ...
** –
Wimbledon championships –
Martina Navratilova
Martina Navratilova ( cs, Martina Navrátilová ; ; born October 18, 1956) is a Czech–American, former professional tennis player. Widely considered among the greatest tennis players of all time, Navratilova won 18 major singles titles, 31 maj ...
** –
U.S. Open –
Martina Navratilova
Martina Navratilova ( cs, Martina Navrátilová ; ; born October 18, 1956) is a Czech–American, former professional tennis player. Widely considered among the greatest tennis players of all time, Navratilova won 18 major singles titles, 31 maj ...
*
Davis Cup
The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organis ...
** Sweden defeats India (5-0) in the final
Volleyball
* Asia Volleyball Championships won by Japan (
men) and China (
women)
* European Volleyball Championships in
Ghent, Belgium won by USSR (
men) and DDR (
women)
*
Pan American Games Volleyball in Indianapolis won by USA (men) and Cuba (women)
Water polo
*
Men's World Cup held in Thesaloniki won by Yugoslavia
*
Men's event at Pan American Games held in Indianapolis won by USA
* Men's European Championship held in Strasbourg won by USSR
* Women's European Championship held in Strasbourg won by the Netherlands
Yacht racing
* The
America's Cup
The America's Cup, informally known as the Auld Mug, is a trophy awarded in the sport of sailing. It is the oldest international competition still operating in any sport. America's Cup match races are held between two sailing yachts: one f ...
returns to the United States as challenger ''
Stars & Stripes 87
''Stars & Stripes 87'' (US 55) was the 12 Meter challenge boat sailed by Dennis Conner in his bid to reclaim the America’s Cup from the Royal Perth Yacht Club of Australia in 1987.
Design and development
''Stars & Stripes 87'' was built in ...
'', of the
San Diego Yacht Club, beats Australian defender ''Kookaburra III'', from the
Royal Perth Yacht Club,
4 races to 0.
Multi-sport events
* Tenth
Pan American Games
The Pan American Games (also known colloquially as the Pan Am Games) is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is held ...
held in
Indianapolis
Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
, United States
* Fourth
All-Africa Games
The African Games, formally known as the All-Africa Games or the Pan African Games, are a continental multi-sport event held every four years, organized by the African Union (AU) with the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (AN ...
held in
Nairobi, Kenya
* Tenth
Mediterranean Games
The Mediterranean Games is a multi-sport event organised by the International Committee of Mediterranean Games (CIJM). It is held every four years among athletes from countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea in Africa, Asia and Europe. The fir ...
held in
Latakia
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,
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
* Fourteenth
Summer Universiade held in
Zagreb,
Yugoslavia
* Thirteenth
Winter Universiade held in
Štrbské Pleso,
Czechoslovakia
Awards
*
Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year –
Ben Johnson,
Track and field
*
Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year –
Jackie Joyner-Kersee,
Track and field
References
{{Sports by year 1951 – 2000
Sports by year