1951 in sports

1951 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.

American football

• January 14 – The National Football League has its first Pro Bowl Game (Los Angeles).
• September 28 – Norm Van Brocklin sets NFL single game record for most passing yards (554) helping Los Angeles Rams beat New York Yanks 48–21.
• NFL Championship – Los Angeles Rams won 24–17 over the Cleveland Browns.
• Sugar Bowl (1950 season):
  • The Oklahoma Sooners lose 13-7 to the Kentucky Wildcats; still awarded the college football national championship

Association football

England

• First Division – Tottenham Hotspur win the 1950–51 title.
• FA Cup – Newcastle United beat Blackpool 2–0.

Spain

• La Liga won by Atlético Madrid

Italy

• Serie A won by Milan.

Germany

• German football championship won by 1. FC Kaiserslautern.

Portugal

• Primeira Liga won by Sporting C.P..

France

• French Division 1 won by Nice.

Athletics

The athletics competition at the 1951 Pan American Games is held in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Mal Whitfield of the USA wins gold medals in three events: 400m, 800m and 4 × 400 m relay.

Australian rules football

Victorian Football League

• 29 September − Geelong wins the 55th VFL Premiership defeating Essendon 11.15 (81) to 10.10 (70) in the 1951 VFL Grand Final.
• Brownlow Medal is awarded to Bernie Smith (Geelong)

South Australian National Football League

• 29 September − Port Adelaide wins its fourteenth SANFL premiership, defeating North Adelaide 10.12 (72) to 9.7 (61) after the Magpies lost only one game for the season.^[1]
• Magarey Medal awarded to John Marriott (Norwood)

Western Australian National Football League

• October 13 – West Perth wins its eleventh WANFL premiership, beating South Fremantle 13.10 (88) to 12.13 (85)
• Sandover Medal awarded to Fred Buttsworth (West Perth)

Baseball

• January 29 – baseball signs a six-year All-Star game deal for TV and radio rights for $6 million
• September 30 – Joe DiMaggio plays in his final career regular season game.
• October 3 – In one of the most famous finishes in baseball history, Bobby Thomson of the New York Giants hits a three-run walk-off home run, immortalized as the Shot Heard 'Round the World, to give the Giants a 5–4 win over the Brooklyn Dodgers for the National League title.
• World Series – The New York Yankees win 4 games to 2 over the New York Giants.
• Japan Series – The Yomiuri Giants win 4 games to 2 over the Nankai Hawks.

Basketball

• NCAA Men's Basketball Championship –
  • Kentucky wins 68–58 over Kansas State University.
• NBA Finals –
  • Rochester Royals win 4 games to 3 over the New York Knicks
• The seventh European basketball championship, Eurobasket 1951, is won by the Soviet Union.

Boxing

• July 10 – Randy Turpin becomes the middleweight boxing champion by defeating Sugar Ray Robinson.
• July 18 – Jersey Joe Walcott knocks out Ezzard Charles in round 7 during their bout in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Canadian football

• Grey Cup – Ottawa Rough Riders wins 21–14 over the Saskatchewan Roughriders

Cycling

• Giro d'Italia is won by Fiorenzo Magni of Italy
• Tour de France – Hugo Koblet of Switzerland

Figure skating

• World Figure Skating Championships –
  • Men's champion: Dick Button, United States
  • Ladies' champion: Jeannette Altwegg, Great Britain
  • Pair skating champions: Ria Baran & Paul Falk, Germany

Golf

Men's professional

• Masters Tournament – Ben Hogan
• U.S. Open – Ben Hogan
• PGA Championship – Sam Snead
• British Open – Max Faulkner
• PGA Tour money leader – Lloyd Mangrum – $26,089
• Ryder Cup – United States team wins 9½ to 2½ over the British team.

Men's amateur

• British Amateur – Dick Chapman
• U.S. Amateur – Billy Maxwell

Women's professional

• Women's Western Open – Patty Berg
• U.S. Women's Open – Betsy Rawls
• Titleholders Championship – Pat O'Sullivan
• LPGA Tour money leader – Babe Zaharias – $15,087

Harness racing

• Tar Heel, a standardbred horse driven by Del Cameron, runs the first two–minute mile in harness racing history.
• Little Brown Jug for pacers is won by Tar Heel
• Hambletonian for trotters is won by Mainliner
• Australian Inter Dominion Harness Racing Championship –
  • Pacers: Vedette
  • Trotters: Gay Belwin

Horse racing

• July 14 – Citation winds his 32nd race, the Hollywood Gold Cup, becoming the first equine millionaire.

Steeplechases

• Cheltenham Gold Cup – Silver Fame
• Grand National – Nickel Coin

Hurdle races

• Champion Hurdle – Hatton's Grace for the third successive year

Flat races

• Australia – Melbourne Cup is won by Delat
• Canada – Queen's Plate is won by Major Factor
• France – Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is won by Tantieme
• Ireland – Irish Derby is won by Fraise du Bois II
• English Triple Crown Races:
  1. 2,000 Guineas Stakes – Ki Ming
  2. Epsom Derby – Arctic Prince
  3. St. Leger Stakes – Talma
• United States Triple Crown Races:
  1. Kentucky Derby – Count Turf
  2. Preakness Stakes – Bold
  3. Belmont Stakes – Counterpoint

Ice hockey

• August 26 – Bill Barilko, Toronto Maple Leafs dies in an air crash
• Art Ross Memorial Trophy as the NHL's leading scorer during the regular season: Gordie Howe, Detroit Red Wings
• Hart Memorial Trophy – for the NHL's Most Valuable Player: Milt Schmidt, Boston Bruins
• Stanley Cup – Toronto Maple Leafs win 4 games to 1 over the Montreal Canadiens
• World Hockey Championship
  • Men's champion: Canada's Lethbridge Maple Leafs
• NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship – University of Michigan Wolverines defeat Brown University Bruins 7–1 in Colorado Springs, Colorado

Lacrosse

• The 50th anniversaries of the donations of both the Mann Cup and the Minto Cup.
• The Peterborough Timbermen win the 50th Mann Cup.
• The Mimico Mountaineers win the 50th Minto Cup.

Motor racing

• 30 May – Lee Wallard wins the 35th running of the Indianapolis 500 in the Kurtis Kraft–Offenhauser
• NASCAR Championship – Herb Thomas driving his own #92 Plymouth
• AAA Racing –
  • Tony Bettenhausen wins the series championship
• Formula One – Juan Manuel Fangio (Argentina) is World Drivers' Champion in an Alfa Romeo
• 24 Hours of Le Mans – Louis Rosier / Jean-Louis Rosier win sharing a Talbot-Lago
• Rally racing –
  • Marcel Becquart / H. Secret wins the Monte Carlo Rally driving a Hotchkiss
• Drag racing – NHRA is founded by Wally Parks

Rugby league

• 1950–51 European Rugby League Championship / 1951–52 European Rugby League Championship
• 1951 French rugby league tour of Australia and New Zealand
• 1951 New Zealand rugby league season
• 1951 NSWRFL season
• 1950–51 Northern Rugby Football League season / 1951–52 Northern Rugby Football League season

Rugby union

• 57th Five Nations Championship series is won by Ireland

Snooker

• World Snooker Championship – Fred Davis beats Walter Donaldson 58–39.

Speed skating

Speed Skating World Championships

• Men's All-round Champion – Hjalmar Andersen (Norway)

Tennis

Australia

• Australian Men's Singles Championship – Dick Savitt (USA) defeats Ken McGregor (Australia) 6–3, 2–6, 6–3, 6–1
• Australian Women's Singles Championship – Nancye Wynne Bolton (Australia) defeats Thelma Coyne Long (Australia) 6–1, 7–5

England

• Wimbledon Men's Singles Championship – Dick Savitt (USA) defeats Ken McGregor (Australia) 6–4, 6–4, 6–4
• Wimbledon Women's Singles Championship – Doris Hart (USA) defeats Shirley Fry Irvin (USA) 6–1, 6–0

France

• French Men's Singles Championship –
• French Women's Singles Championship –

USA

• American Men's Singles Championship –
• American Women's Singles Championship –

Davis Cup

• 1951 Davis Cup –  Australia 3–2  United States at White City Stadium (grass) Sydney, Australia

Multi-sport events

• First Pan American Games are held in Buenos Aires, Argentina
• Asian Games are held in New Delhi, India
• First Mediterranean Games are held in Alexandria, Egypt

Awards

• Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year – Dick Kazmaier, College football
• Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year – Maureen Connolly, Tennis

References

{{Sports by year 1951 – 2000}}