1980 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: Andreas Wenzel, Liechtenstein ** Women's overall season champion: Hanni Wenzel, Liechtenstein * January 12 – Canada's Ken Read, the leader of the " Crazy Canucks" ski team, wins the Hahnenkamm downhill in

Kitzbühel Kitzbühel (, also: ; ) is a medieval town situated in the Kitzbühel Alps along the river Kitzbüheler Ache in Tyrol, Austria, about east of the state capital Innsbruck and is the administrative centre of the Kitzbühel district (). Kitzbühel ...

, Austria, becoming the second North American to ever win the classic race.

American football

* January 20 −

Super Bowl XIV Super Bowl XIV was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Los Angeles Rams and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champi ...

: the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...

(AFC) won 31–19 over the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...

(NFC) ** Location: Rose Bowl ** Attendance: 103,985 ** MVP: Terry Bradshaw, QB (Pittsburgh) *

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 ...

(1979 season): ** The Alabama Crimson Tide won 24–9 over the Arkansas Razorbacks to claim the college football national championship * December 21: The New Orleans Saints became the NFL's first ever 1-15 team

Association football

* European Championship – West Germany 2–1 Belgium *

European Cup The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...

– Nottingham Forest 1–0 Hamburg * UEFA Cup – 2 legs,

Borussia Mönchengladbach Borussia Verein für Leibesübungen 1900 e. V. Mönchengladbach, commonly known as Borussia Mönchengladbach (), Mönchengladbach () or Gladbach (; abbreviated as Borussia MG, BMG), is a professional Association football, football club based in ...

3–2 Eintracht Frankfurt; Eintracht Frankfurt 1–0 Borussia Mönchengladbach, 3–3 on aggregate, Frankfurt win on away goals * Cup Winners' Cup – Valencia 0–0

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

(AET), Valencia won 5–4 on

penalties Penalty or The Penalty may refer to: Sports * Penalty (golf) * Penalty (gridiron football) * Penalty (ice hockey) * Penalty (rugby) * Penalty (rugby union) * Penalty kick (association football) * Penalty shoot-out (association football) * Penalty ...

* England – FA Cup – West Ham United won 1–0 over

Newport County AFC Newport County Association Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Cymdeithas Sir Casnewydd) is a professional football club in the city of Newport, South Wales. The team compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club ...

win Welsh Cup for first time.

Athletics

* March 31 – death of Jesse Owens, American sprinter who won four gold medals at the Berlin Olympics in 1936 * June 12 – Soviet Union's

Nadiya Olizarenko Nadezhda Fyodorovna Olizarenko (Russian: Надежда Фёдоровна Олизаренко, Ukrainian: Надія Федорівна Олізаренко; née Mushta; 28 November 1953 – 18 February 2017) was a Soviet middle-distance runner ...

sets the world record in the women's 800 metres, clocking 1:54.85 at Moscow * July 27 –

betters her own world record in the women's 800 metres at the

1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (russian: Летние Олимпийские игры 1980, Letniye Olimpiyskiye igry 1980), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad (russian: Игры XXII Олимпиады, Igry XXII Olimpiady) and commo ...

in Moscow, clocking 1:53.43.

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 **

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

wins the 84th VFL Premiership (Richmond 23.21 (159) d Collingwood 9.24 (78)) ** Brownlow Medal awarded to Kelvin Templeton ( Footscray)

Baseball

* September 18 – Outfielder Gary Ward become the sixth

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 ...

player to hit for the

cycle Cycle, cycles, or cyclic may refer to: Anthropology and social sciences * Cyclic history, a theory of history * Cyclical theory, a theory of American political history associated with Arthur Schlesinger, Sr. * Social cycle, various cycles in soc ...

. The Twins lose 9–8 to the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

, wasting Ward's effort. On May 26,

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

his son, Daryle Ward, will repeat the feat guiding the

Pirates Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

' 11–8 victory over the Cardinals. Ward joined his father to become the first father-son combination in major league history to hit for the cycle. *

Rollie Fingers Roland Glen Fingers (born August 25, 1946) is an American former right-handed relief pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for three teams between 1968 and 1985, when his effectiveness helped to redefine the value of relievers within baseba ...

breaks Hoyt Wilhelm's major league record of 250 saves *

1980 World Series The 1980 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) season. The 77th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the National League (NL) champion 1980 Philadelphia Phill ...

– The

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

of the National League end 97 years of frustration by defeating the American League champion

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

four games to two, for the Phillies' first-ever World Championship. * Japan's Sadaharu Oh retires from the Yomiuri Giants as the all time professional baseball home run king.

Basketball

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 ...

win four games to two over the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eas ...

National Basketball League (Australia) Finals * St. Kilda Saints defeated the West Adelaide Bearcats 113–88 in the final.

Boxing

* March 14–22 members of the United States Olympic boxing team died in a plane crash near

Warsaw, Poland Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-cen ...

* June 20- Roberto Durán defeats Sugar Ray Leonard by a 15-round decision to win 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 Welterweight title. * August 2- Thomas Hearns defeats José "Pipino" Cuevas by a knockout in round 2 to win boxing's WBA world Welterweight title and Yasutsune Uehara knocks out Samuel Serrano in round six to win the WBA's world Jr. Lightweight title in Detroit * In Cincinnati, Aaron Pryor defeats Antonio Cervantes by a knockout in round four to win the WBA's world Jr. Welterweight title. * October 2- Larry Holmes defeats

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, a ...

by a knockout in round eleven to retain boxing's WBC world Heavyweight title, in what would be Ali's last world title bout. * November 25- In '' The No Más Fight'', in New Orleans, Louisiana, Sugar Ray Leonard recovers the WBC's world Welterweight championship with an eight-round technical knockout of Roberto Durán.

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 48–10 over the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Tim Hortons Fiel ...

* Vanier Cup – Alberta Golden Bears win 40–21 over the Ottawa Gee-Gees

Cycling

* Giro d'Italia won by Bernard Hinault of France * Tour de France – Joop Zoetemelk of the Netherlands * UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race – Bernard Hinault of France

Disc sports

* Disc ultimate league play begins in Toronto with the formation of the Toronto Ultimate League

Dog sledding

* Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Champion – ** Joe May won with lead dogs: ''Wilbur'' & ''Cora Gray''

Field hockey

* Men's Champions Trophy held in Karachi and won by Pakistan * Olympic Games (Men's Competition) won by India * Olympic Games (Women's Competition) won by Zimbabwe

Figure skating

* World Figure Skating Championships – ** Men's champion: Jan Hoffmann, Germany ** Ladies' champion: Anett Pötzsch, Germany ** Pair skating champions:

Marina Cherkasova Marina Evgenievna Cherkasova (russian: Марина Евгеньевна Черкасова; born 17 November 1964) is a Russian retired pair skater. With Sergei Shakhrai, she won the 1979 European title at the age of 14. At 15, she was the 1 ...

Sergei Shakhrai Sergei Semyonovich Shakhrai (russian: Серге́й Семёнович Шахрай; born 28 June 1958) is a Russian retired pair skater. With partner Marina Cherkasova, he is the 1980 Olympic silver medalist, 1980 World champion, and 1979 ...

, Soviet Union ** Ice dancing champions: Krisztina Regőczy & András Sallay, Hungary

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:

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 ...

** 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 – Kerry 1–9 died Roscommon 1–6 ** National Football League –

0–11 died Kerry 0–10 * Ladies' Gaelic football ** All-Ireland Senior Football Champion: Tipperary ** 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 2–15 died Limerick 3–9 **

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 ...

–

2–10 4–15 beat Limerick 2–10 4–6

Golf

Men's professional * The

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 ...

(now called Champions Tour) is founded. *

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 ...

–

Seve Ballesteros Severiano Ballesteros Sota (; 9 April 1957 – 7 May 2011) was a Spanish professional golfer, a World No. 1 who was one of the sport's leading figures from the mid-1970s to the mid-1990s. A member of a gifted golfing family, he won 90 inte ...

* U.S. Open –

Jack Nicklaus Jack William Nicklaus (born January 21, 1940), nicknamed The Golden Bear, is a retired American professional golfer and List of golf courses designed by Jack Nicklaus, golf course designer. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest go ...

* British Open – Tom Watson * PGA Championship –

* PGA Tour money leader – Tom Watson – $530,808 *

– money leader – Don January – $44,100 Men's amateur * British Amateur –

Duncan Evans Duncan Evans (born January 1959 in Crewe, Cheshire, England) is a Welsh amateur golfer who won The Amateur Championship at the Royal Porthcawl Golf Club in 1980. Evans was the first Welshman to win the championship and that year his achievement ...

* U.S. Amateur –

Hal Sutton Hal Evan Sutton (born April 28, 1958) is an American professional golfer, currently playing on the PGA Tour Champions, who achieved 14 victories on the PGA Tour, including a major championship, the 1983 PGA Championship, and the 1983 Tournament ...

Women's professional * LPGA Championship – Sally Little * U.S. Women's Open – Amy Alcott * Classique Peter Jackson Classic – Pat Bradley * LPGA Tour money leader – Beth Daniel – $231,000

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 ...

* Superhorse,

Niatross Niatross (1977–1999) was an American champion standardbred race horse that many believe was the greatest harness horse of all time. Background The son of Albatross out of the mare Niagara Dream, Niatross was foaled on March 30, 1977. He wa ...

wins the United States Pacing Triple Crown races – *# Cane Pace –

*# Little Brown Jug –

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 th ...

–

* United States Trotting Triple Crown races – *# Hambletonian – Burgomeister *# Yonkers Trot – Nevele Impulse *# Kentucky Futurity – Final Score *

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: Koala King ** Trotters: Hano Direct

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 –

Master Smudge Master or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles * Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans *Grandmaster (chess), National Master ...

* Grand National – Ben Nevis Flat races * Australia – Melbourne Cup won by

Beldale Ball Beldale Ball (1976−2004) was a brown Thoroughbred racehorse stallion by Nashua out of the mare San Cat (by Barbizon). Trained by Colin Hayes and owned by the Swettenham Stud Syndicate (Robert Sangster) his best win came in the 1980 VRC Melbour ...

* Canada – Queen's Plate won by Driving Home * France – Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe won by Detroit * Ireland – Irish Derby Stakes won by Tyrnavos * English Triple Crown Races: *#

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 ...

–

Known Fact Known Fact (17 March 1977 – 12 July 2000) was a Kentucky-bred British-trained racehorse and sire. He was the leading British miler of 1980, being awarded the 2000 Guineas on the disqualification of Nureyev and defeating Kris to win the Queen ...

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

Light Cavalry Light cavalry comprised lightly armed and armored cavalry troops mounted on fast horses, as opposed to heavy cavalry, where the mounted riders (and sometimes the warhorses) were heavily armored. The purpose of light cavalry was primarily rai ...

* 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 ...

–

Genuine Risk Genuine Risk (February 15, 1977 – August 18, 2008) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare best known for winning the 1980 Kentucky Derby. Background Genuine Risk was a chestnut filly bred in Kentucky by Sally Humphrey. Sh ...

*# Preakness Stakes –

Codex The codex (plural codices ) was the historical ancestor of the modern book. Instead of being composed of sheets of paper, it used sheets of vellum, papyrus, or other materials. The term ''codex'' is often used for ancient manuscript books, with ...

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 ...

–

Temperance Hill Temperance may refer to: Moderation *Temperance movement, movement to reduce the amount of alcohol consumed *Temperance (virtue), habitual moderation in the indulgence of a natural appetite or passion Culture *Temperance (group), Canadian danc ...

Ice hockey

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 ( ...

win

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 ...

Bobby Nystrom Robert Thore Nystrom (born October 10, 1952) is a Swedish-Canadian former professional ice hockey right winger. He played for the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1972– 86. He is best remembered as having scored the ...

's overtime goal in Game 6 of the Finals over the Philadelphia Flyers. *The

United States men's ice hockey team The United States men's national ice hockey team is based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, with its U18 and U17 development program in Plymouth, Michigan. The team is controlled by USA Hockey, the governing body for organized ice hockey in the U ...

defeats the Soviet Union en route to the gold medal in what is known as the

Miracle on Ice The "Miracle on Ice" was an ice hockey game during the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York. It was played between the hosting United States and the Soviet Union on February 22, 1980, during the medal round of the men's hockey tourna ...

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 ...

Olympic Games

takes place in Moscow, USSR (July 19 - August 3) ** USSR wins the most medals (195), and the most gold medals (80). *

1980 Winter Olympics The 1980 Winter Olympics, officially the XIII Olympic Winter Games and also known as Lake Placid 1980, were an international multi-sport event held from February 13 to 24, 1980, in Lake Placid, New York, United States. Lake Placid was elected ...

takes place in Lake Placid, United States (February 13 - February 24) **

GDR East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

wins the most medals (23), and the USSR wins the most gold medals (10).

Radiosport Radiosport (or radio sport) is formal competition among amateur radio operators in any of three amateur radio activities, ARDF, DXing, and Contesting. The Friendship Radiosport Games is an international multi-sport event that includes all thre ...

* First Amateur Radio Direction Finding World Championships held in Cetniewo, Poland.

Rugby league

* 8 July – The inaugural

1980 State of Origin game The 1980 Rugby League State of Origin, State of Origin game was the first game between the Queensland Maroons and the New South Wales Rugby League team, New South Wales Blues rugby league teams to be played under "state of origin" selection rules. ...

is won by Queensland who defeat New South Wales 20–10 at

Lang Park Lang Park, also known as Brisbane Football Stadium, by the sponsored name Suncorp Stadium, and nicknamed: 'The Cauldron', is a multi-purpose stadium in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, located in the suburb of Milton. The current facility co ...

1980 European Rugby League Championship The 1980 European Rugby League Championship was the 21st 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 1979 European Rugby Lea ...

1980 New Zealand rugby league season The 1980 New Zealand rugby league season was the 73rd season of rugby league that had been played in New Zealand. International competitions New Zealand lost a series against the touring Australian side 0–2. Coached by Ces Mountford, New Zea ...

* 1979–80 Northern Rugby Football League season *

1980 NSWRFL season The 1980 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the 73rd 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 ...

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 ...

1980 Tooth Cup The 1980 Tooth Cup was the 7th 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 ...

Rugby union

* 86th Five Nations Championship series is won by England who complete the Grand Slam

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 – Cliff Thorburn beats Alex Higgins 18–16, becoming the first non-UK player to win the title *

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 ...

– Ray Reardon remains world number one for 1980/81

Speed skating

February 19 Events Pre-1600 * 197 – Emperor Septimius Severus defeats usurper Clodius Albinus in the Battle of Lugdunum, the bloodiest battle between Roman armies. * 356 – The anti-paganism policy of Constantius II forbids the worship of pagan ...

- Eric Heiden skates

Olympics The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

record 1000 meter in 1 15.18

Swimming

* XXII Olympic Games, held in Moscow, Soviet Union (July 20 – July 27) * February 2 – USA's Chris Cavanaugh sets a world record in the 50m freestyle (long course) at a swimming meet in Amersfoort, Netherlands, shaving off 0.04 of the previous record (23.70) set by Germany's Klaus Steinbach nearly a year ago: 23.66. * April 10 – Chris Cavanaugh betters his own world record in the 50m freestyle (long course) at a swimming meet in

Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

, Texas (USA): 23.12. At the same event (and on the same day), two other swimmers from the United States, Rowdy Gaines and

Bruce Stahl The English language name Bruce arrived in Scotland with the Normans, from the place name Brix, Manche in Normandy, France, meaning "the willowlands". Initially promulgated via the descendants of king Robert the Bruce (1274−1329), it has been a ...

, go under his time, clocking 22.96 and 22.83 respectively. * August 15 – USA's Joe Bottom betters the world record in the 50m freestyle (long course) at a meet in Honolulu, Hawaii, shaving off 0.12 of the previous record (22.83) set by

four months earlier: 22.71.

Tennis

* April 16 - Arthur Ashe retires from professional 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 ...

– Brian Teacher *#

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 ...

–

Björn Borg Björn Rune Borg (; born 6 June 1956) is a Swedish former world No. 1 tennis player. Between 1974 and 1981, he became the first man in the Open Era to win 11 Grand Slam singles titles with six at the French Open and five consecutively at Wimb ...

*# Wimbledon championships –

*# U.S. Open – John McEnroe * Grand Slam in tennis women's results: *#

–

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 ...

–

Chris Evert Christine Marie Evert (born December 21, 1954), known as Chris Evert Lloyd from 1979 to 1987, is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. Evert won 18 major singles titles, including a record seven French Open titles and a joint-record ...

*# Wimbledon championships – Evonne Goolagong Cawley *# U.S. Open –

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 ...

World tennis – Czechoslovakia defeated Italy 4–1.

Water polo

* Water polo at the 1980 Summer Olympics won by USSR

Yacht racing

* The New York Yacht Club retains 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 ...

as ''

Freedom Freedom is understood as either having the ability to act or change without constraint or to possess the power and resources to fulfill one's purposes unhindered. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving on ...

'' defeats challenger ''Australia'', of the Royal Perth Yacht Club, 4 races to 1

Awards

* ABC's Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year: U.S. Olympic Hockey Team * Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year – U.S. Olympic hockey team,

Amateur Ice Hockey An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, self-taught, user-generated, DIY, and hobbyist. History Hist ...

Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year The first Athlete of the Year award in the United States was initiated by the Associated Press (AP) in 1931. At a time when women in sports were not given the same recognition as men, the AP offered a male and a female athlete of the year award ...

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, Tennis

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1980 In Sports Sports by year