Events in Sport
- Jan 1 15th Rose Bowl: Georgia Tech beats California, 8-7 (Roy Riegels runs 60 yds the wrong way with fumble recovery)
Event of Interest
Jan 3 Australian cricket icon Don Bradman follows up a 1st innings of 79 to score 112 in 3rd Test v England in Melbourne; his 1st of 29 Test centuries
Donald Bradman
- Jan 19 Clas Thunberg skates world record 500m in 42.8 sec
- Jan 25 Future Australian cricket captain Don Bradman scores an unbeaten 340 for NSW v Victoria (488 mins, 38 fours); then highest individual score in a Sheffield Shield match
- Jan 28 Australian Championships Women's Tennis, Adelaide: Daphne Akhurst retains title; beats Louise Bickerton 6-1, 5-7, 6-2
- Jan 28 Australian Championships Men's Tennis: Englishman Colin Gregory wins his only Grad Slam title, beating Richard Schlesinger of Australia 6-2, 6-2, 5-7, 7-5
- Feb 4 Archie Jackson scores 164 in Test Cricket debut v England at Adelaide
- Feb 20 Boston Red Sox announce they will play Sunday MLB games at Braves Field; Fenway Park located too close to a church
- Feb 28 Chic Black Hawks lose record NHL 15th straight game at home
Event of Interest
Mar 2 George Hainsworth becomes first NHL goaltender to record 20 shutouts in one season when the Montreal Canadiens beat the visiting Boston Bruins, 3-0; ends season with 22
George Hainsworth
- Mar 13 20 year old Australian cricket super-batsman Don Bradman scores 123 in 5th Test vs England at MCG; his second Test century
- Mar 22 88th Grand National: Robert W. H. Everett wins aboard 100/1 outsider Gregalach
- Mar 27 US Ladies' Figure Skating championship won by Maribel Vinson
- Mar 27 US Men's Figure Skating championship won by Roger Turner
- Mar 29 Stanley Cup Final, Madison Square Garden: Boston Bruins beat New York Rangers, 2-1 for a 2-0 series sweep; Boston's first Championship
- Apr 15 33rd Boston Marathon won by Canadian Johnny Miles in 2:33:08.6; his second win in the event
- Apr 16 New York Yankees become first MLB team to permanently feature numbers on backs of uniforms; numbers correspond to position in batting order
- Apr 27 Ryder Cup Golf, Moortown GC: Great Britain beats US, 7-5 in bitterly cold and snowy conditions
Baseball Record
May 4 Lou Gehrig hits 3 consecutive HRs, Yankees 11, Tigers 9
Lou Gehrig
Event of Interest
May 8 NY Giant Carl Hubbell no-hits Pittsburgh Pirates, 11-0
Carl Hubbell
- May 10 54th Preakness: Louis Schaefer aboard Dr Freeland wins in 2:01.6
British Golf Open
May 10 British Open Men's Golf, Muirfield: Walter Hagen wins 4th Open title, by 6 strokes from fellow American Johnny Farrell
Walter Hagen
- May 18 55th Kentucky Derby: Linus McAtee on Clyde Van Dusen wins in 2:10.8
- May 18 Dodgers beat Phillies 20-16 & lost 8-6 in 2nd game (record 50 runs)
- May 19 Cloudburst causes stampede in Yankee Stadium, crushes 2 people to death
- May 24 Detroit Tigers beats Chicago White Sox, 6-5, in 21 innings
- May 30 Indianapolis 500: Ray Keech wins in 5:07:25.458 (157.048 km/h)
- Jun 3 French Championships Men's Tennis: René Lacoste wins his 3rd French title, beating fellow Frenchman Jean Borotra 6-3, 2-6, 6-0, 2-6, 8-6
French Open Women's Tennis
Jun 3 French Championship Women's Tennis: Defending champion Helen Wills Moody beats Simonne Mathieu 6-3, 6-4
Helen Wills Moody
US Golf Open
Jun 30 US Open Men's Golf, Winged Foot CC: Bobby Jones wins his third US Open title in a 36-hole playoff, dominating Al Espinosa by 23 strokes on the West Course
Bobby Jones
- Jul 5 Wimbledon Women's Tennis: In the first all-American final Helen Wills Moody beats Helen Jacobs 6-1, 6-2
- Jul 6 Wimbledon Men's Tennis: Henri Cochet beats fellow Frenchman Jean Borotra 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 for his 2nd Wimbledon singles crown
- Jul 6 St. Louis Cardinals set MLB run record with 28 runs on 28 hits (28-6 v Phillies)
- Jul 10 In game between Pirates and Phillies 9 HRs hit 1 in each inning
- Jul 28 Chicago Cardinals become 1st NFL team to train out of state (Michigan)
- Jul 28 24th Davis Cup: France beats USA in Paris (3-2)
- Jul 28 23rd Tour de France won by Maurice De Waele of Belgium
- Jul 28 International Lawn Tennis Challenge, Paris, France: Home team wins 3 straight titles as Henri Cochet beats American George Lott 6-1, 3-6, 6-0, 6-3 for a 3-2 victory
- Aug 2 Philadelphia 1st baseman Don Hurst sets NL record of 6 consecutive games with a HR in Phillies' 2-0 win v Pittsburgh Pirates
- Aug 4 Cleveland Indians, trailing 6-5 in 9th with 2 outs score AL record tying 9 runs, beat NY Yankees 14-6
- Aug 11 Babe Ruth becomes 1st professional baseball player to hit 500 homers (off Willis Hudlin of Cleveland Indians)
- Aug 24 US National Championship Women's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: Helen Wills Moody beats England's Phoebe Holcroft Watson 6-4, 6-2 for her 3rd straight and 6th overall US singles title
- Aug 28 English cricketer Frank Woolley scores his 100th first-class hundred
- Sep 14 A's clinch AL pennant with a 5-0 win over White Sox
- Sep 14 US National Championship Men's Tennis, Forest Hills NY: Bill Tilden wins 7th US title; beats Francis Hunter 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 6-2, 6-4
- Sep 18 Pirates loss to Braves & clinch NL pennant for the Cubs
- Sep 24 New York Yankee pitcher Tom Zachary ends season 12-0, record for most pitching wins without a loss in one season
- Oct 8 A's Howard Ehmke (7-2) sets World Series record striking out 13 Cubs
- Oct 12 Cubs blow 8-0 World Series lead, A's score 10 in 1 inning
- Oct 14 Philadelphia A's beat Chicago Cubs, 4 games to 1 in 26th World Series
- Oct 14 Philadelphia A's set World Series record of 10 runs in an inning
- Nov 6 Providence Steam Roller become first NFL team to host a game at night under floodlights; lose 16-0 against the Chicago Cardinals at the Cycledrome, Providence, RI
- Nov 28 Chicago fullback Ernie Nevers sets NFL record for most points scored in a single game with all 40 in the Cardinals' 40–6 rout of Chicago Bears; Nevers has NFL record 6 touchdowns and 4 extra points
- Nov 30 CFL Grey Cup, AAA Grounds, Hamilton: Hamilton Tigers take their 4th title; beat Regina Roughriders, 14-3
- Dec 3 Boston Bruins beat the Montreal Canadiens 3-1, the first win of an NHL record 14-game winning streak, and a 22-game home winning streak
PGA Championship
Dec 7 PGA Championship Men's Golf, Hillcrest CC: Defending champion Leo Diegel defeats Johnny Farrell, 6 & 4 in the final
Leo Diegel
Birthdays in Sport
- Jan 7 Kenneth Henry, American 500m speed skater (Olympic gold 1952)
- Jan 7 Ken Henry, American speed skater (Olympic gold 500m 1952), born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 2009)
- Jan 7 Mario Bergamaschi, Italian soccer midfielder (5 caps; Calcio Como, A.C. Milan, U.C. Sampdoria), born in Crema, Italy (d. 2020)
- Jan 17 Jacques "Jake the Snake" Plante, Canadian NHL goaltender (#1) who was the first to wear a goaltender mask, born in Notre-Dame-du-Mont-Carmel, Quebec (d. 1986)
- Jan 20 Fireball Roberts, American racing driver (Daytona 500 1962), born in Tavares, Florida (d. 1964)
- Jan 23 Ian Thomson, English cricketer (England seam bowler v South Africa 1964-65), born in Walsall, United Kingdom
- Jan 28 Richard Clement Charles Thomas, rugby international/journalist
- Jan 29 William McMillan, American sports shooter (Olympic gold 25m rapid fire pistol 1960; World C'ship gold 1952), born in Frostburg, Maryland (d. 2000)
- Jan 30 Hugh Tayfield, South African cricketer (celebrated South African off-spinner 1949-60), born in Durban, South Africa (d. 1994)
- Feb 3 Ken Shipp, American football coach
- Feb 3 Pedro Nájera, Mexican soccer midfielder (FIFA World Cup 1954, 62; Club América), born in Mexico City, Mexico (d. 2020)
- Feb 5 Al Worthington, baseball player
- Feb 6 Sixten Jernberg, Swedish skier (Olympic gold 1956/60/64), born in Lima, Sweden (d. 2012)
- Feb 8 Roger Byrne, English soccer fullback (33 caps; Manchester United 245 games; died Munich air disaster), born in Manchester, Lancashire (d. 1958)
- Feb 9 Lennox Butler, cricketer (1 Test WI v Aust 1955, 16 & 2-151)
- Feb 10 Hallgeir Brenden, Norwegian cross country skier (Olympic gold 1952, 56), born in Trysil, Norway (d. 2007)
Graham Hill
Feb 15 Graham Hill, British auto racer (Formula One World Champion, 1962 & 1968) born in Hampstead, London (d. 1975)
Graham Hill
- Feb 16 Gerhard Hanappi, Austrian footballer (d. 1980)
- Feb 17 Paul Meger, Canadian ice hockey player
- Feb 18 Lou Gorman, American baseball executive (general manager Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox), born in Providence, Rhode Island (d. 2011)
- Feb 22 Ryne Duren, American near-sighted pitcher (NY Yankees), born in Cazenovia, Wisconsin (d. 2011)
- Feb 23 Elston Howard, American baseball catcher (12 × MLB All-Star; 6 × World Series; AL MVP 1963; first African-American NY Yankee), born in St. Louis, Missouri (d. 1980)
- Feb 27 Djalma Santos, Brazilian footballer, (d. 2013)
- Feb 27 Jack Gibson, Australian rugby league footballer and coach (d. 2008)
- Feb 28 Hayden Fry, American College Football Hall of Fame coach (SMU 1962-72, North Texas State University 1973-78, University of Iowa 1979-98), born in Eastland, Texas (d. 2019)
- Mar 5 Erik Carlsson, Swedish rally driver
- Mar 6 David Sheppard, bishop (Liverpool)/cricketer (England batsman)
- Mar 10 Pat Patrick, American auto racing team owner (Patrick Racing; Indianapolis 500 1973, 82, 89; Emerson Fittipaldi IndyCar title 1989), born in Kentucky (d. 2021)
- Mar 11 Jackie McGlew, cricketer (dour South African opening bat of the 50')
- Mar 12 Bernard Costello, American double sculls (Olympic silver 1956)
- Mar 14 Bob Goalby, American golfer (US Masters 1968), born in Belleville, Illinois
- Mar 21 Maurice Catarcio, wrestler
Roger Bannister
Mar 23 Roger Bannister CH CBE, English athlete (first sub-4-minute mile, 3:59.4 at Iffley Road Track, Oxford 1954), born in Harrow, England (d. 2018)
Roger Bannister
- Mar 24 Cuan McCarthy, cricketer (36 Test wkts for South Africa, 1 career no-ball)
- Mar 28 Paul England, Australian racing driver, born in Melbourne, Australia (d. 2014)
- Mar 29 Olga Tass, Hungarian gymnast (Olympic gold, team portable apparatus 1956), born in Pécs, Hungary (d. 2020)
- Apr 1 Bo Schembechler Jr., American College Football Hall of Fame tackle (Miami U), coach (Miami U 1963-68, University of Michigan 1969-89; career record 234–65–8), and administrator (Michigan), born in Barberton, Ohio (d. 2006)
- Apr 10 Mike Hawthorn, English auto racer (F1 world champion 1958), born in Mexborough, England (d. 1959)
- Apr 10 Duje Bonačić, Croatian rower (Olympic gold coxless four 1952), born in Split, Croatia (d. 2020)
- Apr 13 Marilynn Smith, American golfer (Titleholders Championship 1963-64), born in Topeka, Kansas (d. 2019)
- Apr 19 Edward Crook Jr., American middleweight boxer (Olympic gold 1960), born in Detroit, Michigan (d. 2005)
- Apr 25 Yvette Williams, New Zealand long jumper (Olympic gold 1952), born in Dunedin, New Zealand
- Apr 27 Nina Ponomareva Romaschkova, Soviet discus thrower (Olympic gold 1952, 60), involved shoplift scandal, born in Smychka (d. 2016)
- Apr 29 Mickey McDermott, American baseball player (d. 2003)
- May 1 Sonny Ramadhin, West Indian cricket spin bowler (43 Tests, 158 wickets), born in St.Charles Village, Trinidad
- May 2 Graham Gedye, New Zealand cricketer (opening batsman in four Tests for NZ 1964), born in Otahuhu, Auckland (d. 2014)
- May 7 Dick Williams, American Baseball Hall of Fame utility (Brooklyn Dodgers) and manager (World Series 1972, 73; Oakland A's), born in St. Louis, Missouri (d. 2011)
- May 7 Babe Parilli, American football player, born in Rochester, Pennsylvania (d. 2017)
- May 12 Dollard St. Laurent, Canadian ice hockey player
- May 14 Vladimir Antoshin, USSR, International Chess Grandmaster (1964)
- May 14 Gump Worsley, Canadian ice hockey player, born in Montreal, Quebec (d. 2007)
- May 15 Jack Flavell, cricketer (England pace bowler in 4 Tests 1961-64)
- May 17 John Davies, Australian swimmer (Olympic gold 200m breaststroke 1952; WR 200m breaststroke 2:34.4 1952), born in Sydney, Australia (d. 2020)
- May 21 Paul Winslow, cricketer (big-hitter for South Africa, 108 v England 1955)
- May 28 Leslie Wight, cricketer (one Test WI v India 1953, scored 21)
- May 30 Don Laws, American figure skater and coach (Scott Hamilton, Patrick Chan, Tiffany Chin), born in Washington, D.C.. (d. 2014)
- Jun 2 Ken McGregor, Australian tennis player (Australian C'ship 1952), born in Adelaide, South Australia (d. 2007)
- Jun 8 V. M. Muddiah, Indian cricket spin bowler (2 Tests, 3 wickets), born in Bangalore, Mysore (d. 2009)
- Jun 9 Keith Gardner, Jamaican athlete (Olympic bronze 1960)
- Jun 14 Alan Davidson, Australian cricketer (mighty Australian lefty quick all-rounder), born in Lisarow, New South Wales, Australia
- Jun 17 Tigran Petrosian, Soviet Armenian world chess champion (1963-69), born in Tiflis, Georgian SSR, Soviet Union (d. 1984)
- Jun 21 Agha Saadat Ali, Pakistani cricketer (Paki bat in Test v NZ 1956, scored 8*), born in Lahore, Punjab (d. 1995)
- Jun 29 Pete George, American weightlifter (Olympic gold/2 silver-48, 52), born in Akron, Ohio
- Jul 4 Bill Tuttle, American baseball player (Detroit Tigers), born in Cramer, Illinois (d. 1998)
- Jul 4 Chuck Tanner, American baseball player (Pittsburgh Pirates), born in New Castle, Pennsylvania (d. 2011)
- Jul 5 Tony Lock, English cricketer and left-arm spinner who took 174 wickets for England, born in Limpsfield, Surrey (d. 1995)
- Jul 10 Moe Norman, Canadian golfer (Canadian Golf Hall of Fame), born in Kitchener, Ontario (d. 2004)
- Jul 17 Roy McMillan, American baseball infielder, coach and manager (MLB All Star 1956-57; Gold Glove 1957-59; Cincinnati Reds), born in Bonham, Texas (d. 1997)
- Jul 18 Dick Button, American figure skater (Olympic gold 1948, 52), born in Englewood, New Jersey
Sofia Muratova
Jul 19 Sofia Muratova, Russian gymnast (1952-60 Olympics: 6 gold, 3 silver & 4 bronze), born in Leningrad, Russia (d. 2006)
Sofia Muratova
Mike Ilitch
Jul 20 Mike Ilitch, American businessman (founded Little Caesars Pizza, owner Detroit Red Wings, Tigers), born in Detroit, Michigan (d. 2017)
Mike Ilitch
- Jul 21 Bob Orton, American wrestler (d. 2006)
- Jul 22 John Barber, British racing driver
- Jul 24 Alfred Binns, West Indian cricket wicket-keeper (1953-56), born in KIngston, Jamaica (d. 2017)
- Jul 25 Eddie Mazur, Canadian ice hockey player (Montreal Canadiens), born in Winnipeg, Mnaitoba, Canada (d. 1995)
- Jul 31 José Santamaría, Uruguayan soccer defender (Uruguay 20, Spain 16 caps; Real Madrid), born in Montevideo, Uruguay
- Aug 6 Anneliese Kuppers, German FR, equestrian dressage (Olympic silver 1956)
- Aug 7 Don Larsen, American MLB pitcher (only perfect game in World Series history, Game 5 1956; World Series MVP 1956; NY Yankees), born in Michigan City, Indiana (d. 2020)
- Aug 12 Charles Moore, Coatsville Pa, 400m hurdler (Olympic gold/silver-52)
- Aug 14 Dick Tiger, Nigerian professional boxer, born in Amaigbo, Nigeria (d. 1971)
- Aug 15 Jerry Groom, American College Football Hall of fame center (Notre Dame; NFL Pro Bowl 1954; Chicago Cardinals), born in Des Moines, Iowa (d. 2008)
- Aug 16 Helmut Rahn, German footballer (d. 2003)
- Aug 23 Peter Thomson, Australian golfer (British Open 1954-56, 58, 65), born in Brunswick, Victoria (d. 2018)
- Aug 27 Elizabeta Bagrintseve, USSR, discus thrower (Olympic silver 1952)
- Sep 3 Carlo Clerici, Swiss road cyclist (Giro d'Italia 1954), born in Vaiano, Italy (d. 2007)
- Sep 6 Dow Finsterwald, American golfer (PGA Championship 1958), born in Athens, Ohio
Arnold Palmer
Sep 10 Arnold Palmer, American golfer (7 major titles; US Masters 1958, 60, 62, 64), born in Latrobe, Pennsylvania (d. 2016)
Arnold Palmer
Stirling Moss
Sep 17 Stirling Moss, British auto racer (16 x F1 Grands Prix; World F1 Drivers C'ship runner-up 1955-58; 12 Hours of Sebring 1954) and broadcaster (ABC F1, NASCAR), born in London, England (d. 2020)
Stirling Moss
- Sep 21 Sándor Kocsis, Hungarian footballer (Budapest Honvéd), born in Budapest, Hungary (d. 1979)
- Sep 22 Carlo Ubbiali, Italian motorcycle racer (World Champion 125cc 1951, 55, 56, 58-60; 250cc 1956, 59, 60), born in Bergamo, Italy (d. 2020)
- Sep 25 John Rutherford, Australian cricketer (one Test for Australia 1956), born in Bruce Rock, Western Australia
- Sep 26 Meredith Gourdine, American long jumper (Olympic silver 1952), born in Newark, New Jersey (d. 1998)
- Sep 27 Ken McCaffery, Australian rugby league centre (12 Tests; North Sydney; Queensland), broadcaster (9 Network) and administrator (North Sydney DRLFC), born in Sydney, Australia (d. 2021)
- Oct 1 Ken Arthurson, Australian rugby league halfback, coach, administrator (NSWRL, ARL, Manly-Warringah chairman), born in Sydney, New South Wales
- Oct 3 Andy Hebenton, Canadian NHL right wing (record 630 consecutive games; NY Rangers, Boston Bruins), born in Winnipeg, Manitoba (d. 2019)
- Oct 6 Les Favell, cricketer (stoic Australian batsman late 50's)
- Oct 6 Phil Krueger, American football quarterback (Southeast Missouri State), college coach (Fresno State, Utah State) and NFL executive (GM TB Buccaneers), born in LaSalle, Illinois (d. 2020)
- Oct 8 Didi (Waldyr Pereira), Brazilian soccer midfielder (68 caps; Fluminense), born in Campos dos Goytacazes, Brazil (d. 2001)
- Oct 16 Walt Michaels, American NFL linebacker, coach (5-time Pro Bowl; Cleveland Browns; head coach NY Jets 1977-82), born in Swoyersville, Pennsylvania (d. 2019)
Weddings in Sport
Deaths in Sport
- Jan 6 Tex Rickard, American boxing promoter and entrepreneur (founder NHL New York Rangers; builder third incarnation of Madison Square Garden, NYC), dies of complications from an appendectomy at 59
- Jan 24 Wilfred Baddeley, English tennis player (Wimbledon 1891-2, 95), dies at 57
- Feb 14 Tom Burke, American athlete (Olympic gold 100m, 400m 1896), dies at 53
- Feb 17 John Read, English cricketer (batted in 17 Tests for Eng for 463 runs), dies
- May 21 V P F A Royle, cricketer (one Test England v Australia 1879), dies
- Jun 2 Charles Coventry, cricketer (13 runs in 2 Tests Eng v S Af 1889), dies
- Jun 4 Harry Frazee, American MLB team owner (Boston Red Sox), dies of kidney failure at 48
- Jul 11 Billy Mosforth, English footballer (b. 1857)
- Aug 1 Syd Gregory, Australian cricketer (Australian captain pre-WWI), dies at 59
- Aug 25 Frederick Burton, Australian cricketer (Australian wicketkeeper 1886-87), dies at 63
- Sep 25 Miller Huggins, American Baseball Hall of Fame 2nd baseman, manager (NY Yankees WS 1923, 27-28), dies of pyaemia at 51
- Oct 1 Lee Richmond, American baseball pitcher (first ever MLB perfect game, 1880), dies at 72
- Oct 21 Owen Dunell, cricketer (two Tests for South Africa in 1889), dies
- Oct 25 James Lillywhite Jr, cricketer (two Tests for England 1877), dies
- Nov 9 Nicolaas Theunissen, South African cricket break bowler (2nd Test 1889), dies
- Nov 14 Joe McGinnity, American Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher (World Series 1905; 5 × NL wins leader; NL ERA leader 1904; Baltimore Orioles, NY Giants), dies at 58
- Nov 17 Dick Lilley, English cricket wicket-keepe (92 dismissals in 35 Tests 1896-1909), dies at 62
- Dec 9 Willis Cuttell, cricketer (two Tests England v South Africa 1899), dies