1971 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.
| Centuries: | 19th century · 20th century · 21st century |
| Decades: | 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s |
| Years: | 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 |
Alpine skiing
- Alpine Skiing World Cup
- Men's overall season champion: Gustav Thöni, Italy
- Women's overall season champion: Annemarie Pröll, Austria
American football
- October 24 – death of Chuck Hughes, Detroit Lions wide receiver
- Super Bowl V – Baltimore Colts won 16-13 over the Dallas Cowboys
- December 25 - The Miami Dolphins defeat the Kansas City Chiefs in a divisional playoff game. The double-overtime contest is the longest game in NFL history, and the Chiefs' last-ever home game at Municipal Stadium.
- 1970 NCAA Division I-A national football championship – The Nebraska Cornhuskers win 17-12 over the LSU Tigers on January 1, 1971.
Association football
- January 2 - At the end of a Rangers-Celtic match at Ibrox Park in Glasgow, barriers at Stairway 13 give way under a mass of fans, killing 66 and injuring over 200 others.
- June 30 – death of Georgi Asparuhov (28), Bulgarian international
- Atlético Mineiro wins the first Campeonato Brasileiro Série A
- Arsenal are the English First Division champions
- England - FA Cup – Arsenal won 2-1 over Liverpool to win The Double
- European Championship Cup Final: Ajax - Panathinaikos 2-0
Athletics
- August – Athletics at the 1971 Pan American Games held in Cali, Colombia
- August – 1971 European Championships in Athletics held at Helsinki
Australian rules football
- Victorian Football League
- Hawthorn wins the 75th VFL Premiership (Hawthorn 12.10 (82) d St Kilda 11.9 (75))
- Brownlow Medal awarded to Ian Stewart (Richmond)
Baseball
- World Series – Pittsburgh Pirates won 4 games to 3 over the Baltimore Orioles. Game four was the first night game in World Series history.
Basketball
- NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship –
- UCLA wins 68-62 over Villanova
- NBA Finals –
- Milwaukee Bucks win 4 games to 0 over the Baltimore Bullets
- 1971 ABA Finals –
- Utah Stars defeat Kentucky Colonels 4 games to 3; Stars defeat Indiana Pacers in division finals while Colonels defeat Virginia Squires
Boxing
- March 8 - Joe Frazier defeats Muhammad Ali at Madison Square Garden, in the first of three epic bouts between the two, to retain the World Heavyweight Championship.
Canadian football
- Grey Cup – Calgary Stampeders won 14-11 over the Toronto Argonauts
- Vanier Cup – Western Ontario Mustangs won 15-14 over the Alberta Golden Bears
Cricket
- 5 January, Melbourne – first-ever one-day international is played after a Test match is abandoned because of rain, Australia beating England by 5 wickets.
Cycling
- Giro d'Italia won by Gosta Pettersson of Sweden
- Tour de France - Eddy Merckx of Belgium
- World Cycling Championship – Eddy Merckx of Belgium
Field hockey
- Men's World Cup in Barcelona, Spain
- Gold Medal: Pakistan
- Silver Medal: Spain
- Bronze Medal: India
- Pan American Games (Men's Competition) in Cali, Colombia
- Gold Medal: Argentina
- Silver Medal: Mexico
- Bronze Medal: Canada
Figure skating
- World Figure Skating Championships –
- Men's champion: Ondrej Nepela, Czechoslovakia
- Ladies' champion: Beatrix Schuba, Austria
- Pair skating champions: Irina Rodnina & Alexei Ulyanov, Soviet Union
- Ice dancing champions: Lyudmila Pakhomova & Alexandr Gorshkov, Soviet Union
Golf
Men's professional
- PGA Championship - Jack Nicklaus
- Masters Tournament - Charles Coody
- U.S. Open - Lee Trevino
- British Open - Lee Trevino
- PGA Tour money leader - Jack Nicklaus - $244,491
- Ryder Cup - United States won 18 1/2 to 13 1/2 over Britain in team golf
Men's amateur
Women's professional
- LPGA Championship - Kathy Whitworth
- U.S. Women's Open - JoAnne Carner - this win made her the first person ever to win three different USGA individual championship events.
- Titleholders Championship - not played
- LPGA Tour money leader - Kathy Whitworth - $41,181
Harness racing
- United States Pacing Triple Crown races –
- Cane Pace - Albatross
- Little Brown Jug - Nansemond
- Messenger Stakes - Albatross
- United States Trotting Triple Crown races –
- Hambletonian - Speedy Crown
- Yonkers Trot - Quick Pride
- Kentucky Futurity - Savoir
- Australian Inter Dominion Harness Racing Championship –
- Pacers: Stella Frost
- Trotters: Geffini
Horse racing
Steeplechases
- Cheltenham Gold Cup – L'Escargot
- Grand National – Specify
Flat races
- Australia – Melbourne Cup won by Silver Knight
- Canada – Queen's Plate won by Kennedy Road
- France – Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe won by Mill Reef
- Ireland – Irish Derby Stakes won by Irish Ball
- English Triple Crown Races:
- United States Triple Crown Races:
Ice hockey
- April 13 – death of Michel Briere (21), Canadian player with Pittsburgh Penguins
- Art Ross Memorial Trophy as the NHL's leading scorer during the regular season: Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins
- Hart Memorial Trophy for the NHL's Most Valuable Player: Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins
- Stanley Cup – Montreal Canadiens win 4 games to 3 over the Chicago Black Hawks
- World Hockey Championship
- Men's champion: Soviet Union defeated Czechoslovakia
- NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship – Boston University Terriers defeat University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Golden Gophers 4-2 in Syracuse, NY
Lacrosse
- Cornell beats Maryland 12-6 to win the first NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship.
- The Brantford Warriors win the Mann Cup.
- The Richmond Roadrunners win the Minto Cup.
- The Victoria McDonalds win the Castrol Cup.
Motor racing
- July 11 – death of Pedro Rodríguez, Mexican F1 driver
- Stock car racing –
- Indianapolis 500 - Al Unser, Sr
- USAC Racing - Joe Leonard
- Formula One Championship - Jackie Stewart of Great Britain
- 24 hours of Le Mans – the team of Helmut Marko / Gijs van Lennep won, driving a Porsche 917
- Rally racing - the team of Ove Andersson / David Stone won the Monte Carlo Rally driving an Alpine-Renault A110
- Drag racing –
- The NHRA announces the first "Grandnational" in Canada at Sanair International Drag Strip, near Montreal, Quebec.
- Hank Johnson won Top Fuel at the NHRA Supernationals.
Radiosport
- Sixth Amateur Radio Direction Finding European Championship held in Duisburg, Federal Republic of Germany.
Rugby league
- 18 September – the 1971 NSWRFL season culminates in a Grand Final victory for South Sydney, defeating St George 16–10
Rugby union
- 77th Five Nations Championship series is won by Wales who complete the Grand Slam
Snooker
- World Snooker Championship – John Spencer beats Warren Simpson 37-29
Swimming
- August 27 – US swimmer Mark Spitz recaptures the world record in the men's 200m butterfly (long course), clocking 2:03.9 at a meet in Houston, Texas.
- August 31 – Four days after Mark Spitz broke the world record in the men's 200m butterfly (long course), West Germany's Hans-Joachim Fassnacht betters the time to 2:03.3 at a meet in Landskrona, Sweden.
Tennis
- Grand Slam in tennis men's results:
- Grand Slam in tennis women's results:
- Davis Cup – United States wins 3-2 over Romania in world tennis.
- Sixteen year old Chris Evert makes her US Open debut reaching the semifinals where she is defeated by eventual champion Billie Jean King.
- First time in 16 years that Americans won both the men's and women's title at the US Open.
Volleyball
- European Volleyball Championship held in Italy
- 1971 Men's European Volleyball Championship won by the USSR
- 1971 Women's European Volleyball Championship won by the USSR
- Volleyball at the 1971 Pan American Games held in Cali, Colombia
- Men's and women's tournaments both won by Cuba
Multi-sport events
- Sixth Pan American Games held in Cali, Colombia
- Sixth Mediterranean Games held in Izmir, Turkey
Awards
- ABC's Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year: Lee Trevino, Golf
- Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year – Lee Trevino, PGA golf
- Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year – Evonne Goolagong, Tennis
References
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