Events in Sport
- May 1 French runner Chantal Langlacé sets female world marathon record (2:35:15.4) in Oyarzun, Spain
- May 1 American golfer Debbie Austin wins the Birmingham Classic, the first of 5 LPGA Tour victories in a 4-month span
- May 1 American golfer Gene Littler wins the Houston Open, his 29th and final PGA title
- May 3 1977 NFL Draft: Ricky Bell from USC first pick by Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- May 7 103rd Kentucky Derby: Jean Cruguet on Seattle Slew wins in 2:02.2
Event of Interest
May 11 Ted Turner manages an Atlanta Braves game
Ted Turner
Boxing Title Fight
May 16 Muhammad Ali beats Alfredo Evangelist in 15 for heavyweight boxing title
Muhammad Ali
Event of Interest
May 29 Indianapolis 500: A. J. Foyt wins for a record 4th time
A. J. Foyt
Birthdays in Sport
- May 2 Amy D'Entremont, American figure skater (1995 NE Jr champ), born in Stoneham, Massachusetts
- May 2 Luke Hudson, American baseball player, born in Fountain Valley, California
- May 3 Ryan Dempster, Canadian baseball player, born in Gibsons, British Columbia, Canada
- May 3 Tyronn Lue, American basketball coach (NBA Championship 2016 Cleveland), born in Mexico, Missouri
- May 4 Mariano Pernía, Argentine-Spanish footballer, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina
- May 5 Tiffany Roberts, soccer midfielder (Olympics 1996), born in Petaluma, California
- May 6 Shannon Shakespeare, Canadian 100m swimmer (Olympics 1996), born in Mission, British Columbia
- May 6 Trent Steed, Australian swimmer (Olympics 1996), born in Sydney, New South Wales
- May 6 Christophe Brandt, Belgian cyclist
- May 7 Marko Milic, NBA guard (Phoenix Suns)
- May 9 Maggie Dixon, American college basketball coach (d. 2006)
- May 9 Iñigo Landaluze, Spanish cyclist
- May 10 Amanda Borden, gymnast (World silver 94, Olympic gold 1996), born in Cincinnati, Ohio
- May 10 Henri Camara, Senegalese footballer
- May 10 Nick Heidfeld, German Formula 1 driver
- May 11 Janne Ahonen, Finnish ski jumper
- May 11 Gonzalo Colsa, Spanish footballer
- May 11 Pablo García, Uruguayan footballer
- May 11 Victor Matfield, South African rugby union footballer
- May 12 Monique de Bruin, American fencer-foil (Olympics 1996), born in Portland, Oregon
- May 12 Graeme Dott, British snooker player
- May 13 Diane Halber, figure skater (1996 National Collegiate champ), born in Torrance, California
- May 13 Sara DeCosta, ice hockey goalie (USA, Olympics 1998)
- May 13 Robby Hammock, baseball player
- May 14 Anca Barna, Cluj Romania, tennis star (semifinals 1995 ITF Poland)
- May 14 Jayna Hefford, ice hockey forward (Canada, Olympics 1998)
- May 14 Roy Halladay, American baseball player
- May 16 Jean-Sébastien Giguère, Canadian ice hockey player
- May 17 Jere Michael, Aspen Colo, figure skater (1994 National Jr champ)
- May 18 Lee Hendrie, English footballer
- May 18 Danny Mills, English footballer
- May 19 Manuel Almúnia, Spanish footballer
- May 19 Brandon Inge, American baseball player
- May 20 Leonardo Noeren Franco, Argentine footballer
- May 20 Chad Muska, American Skateboarder for Element Skateboards
- May 21 Quinton Fortune, South African footballer
- May 21 Ricky Williams, American football player
- May 22 Dre Bly, American Football Player
- May 26 Luca Toni, Italian footballer
- May 27 Abderrahmane Hammad, Algerian athlete
- May 27 Mahela Jayawardene, Sri Lankan cricketer
- May 29 Brent Roberts, Leesville La, diver (Olympics 1996)
- May 29 Massimo Ambrosini, Italian footballer
- May 29 Antonio Lebo-Lebo, Angolan footballer
- May 30 Akwá, Angolan footballer
- May 31 Joachim Olsen, Danish athlete
- May 31 Moses Sichone, Zambian footballer
- May 31 Theodoros Baev, Bulgarian-born Greek volleyball player
- May 31 Phil Devey, Canadian baseball player
- May 31 Domenico Fioravanti, Italian swimmer
- May 31 Greg Leeb, Canadian ice hockey player