1961 in sports

**1961 in sports** describes the year's events in world sport.

## American football
* AFL Championship – Houston Oilers won 10-3 over the San Diego Chargers
* NFL Championship – Green Bay Packers won 37-0 over the  New York Giants
* NCAA I-A Championship –
** University of Alabama (AP)(UPI)
** Ohio State (FWAA)

## Association football
### Cup Finals
* Copa Libertadores final - Peñarol won 2-1 on aggregate against Palmeiras
* European Cup final - Benfica 3-2 Barcelona
* FA Cup final – Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 Leicester City
* Copa del Generalísimo final - Atletico Madrid 3-2 Real Madrid
### League Winners
* : Racing Club
* : Santos
* : Tottenham Hotspur
* : AS Monaco
* : Juventus
* : Feyenoord
* : Benfica
* : Dynamo Kyiv
* : Real Madrid
* : Fenerbahçe

## Baseball
* January 16 – Mickey Mantle becomes the highest paid player in Major League Baseball by signing a contract that will pay him $75,000 per season.
* April 11 – The former Washington Senators play their first home game in Metropolitan Stadium as the Minnesota Twins
* July 13 – In his majors debut, Milwaukee Braves outfielder Mack Jones tied a post-1900 National League record by collecting three singles and a double in his first game.
* Roger Maris hits 61 home runs during the regular season, breaking Babe Ruth's mark of 60 that had stood since 1927
* October - World Series – New York Yankees win 4 games to 1 over the Cincinnati Reds. The series MVP is Whitey Ford of the Yankees.

## Basketball
* NCAA Men's Basketball Championship –
** Cincinnati wins 70-65 over Ohio St.
* NBA Finals|NBA Finals –
** Boston Celtics won 4 games to 1 over the St. Louis Hawks

## Boxing
* June 3 in Los Angeles, California -  Emile Griffith knocked out Gaspar Ortega in the 12th round to retain the Welterweight Championship

## Canadian football
* Grey Cup – Winnipeg Blue Bombers win 21-14 over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats

## Cycling
* August 1 – death of Adrie Voorting (aged 30), Dutch road bicycle and track cyclist
* Giro d'Italia won by Ercole Baldini of Italy
* Tour de France - Jacques Anquetil of France
* World Cycling Championship – Rik Van Looy of Belgium

## Figure skating
* The World Figure Skating Championships in Prague are cancelled after the entire USA team of skaters, officials, leaders and chaperones are killed in a plane crash on 15 February en route to the competition.
* Among the dead are:
**Bradley Lord (21), USA men's figure skating champion;
**Maribel Vinson-Owen, USA women's figure skating champion and coach;
**Maribel Yerxa Owen (20), USA women's figure skating champion;
**Laurence Owen (16), USA women's figure skating champion.

## Golf
'''Men's professional**
* Masters Tournament - Gary Player becomes the first international golfer to win the Masters.
* U.S. Open - Gene Littler
* British Open - Arnold Palmer
* PGA Championship - Jerry Barber
* PGA Tour money leader - Gary Player - $64,540
* Ryder Cup - United States wins 14½ to 9½ over Britain in team golf.
**Men's amateur**
* British Amateur - Michael Bonallack
* U.S. Amateur - Jack Nicklaus
**Women's professional'''
* Women's Western Open - Mary Lena Faulk
* LPGA Championship - Mickey Wright
* U.S. Women's Open - Mickey Wright
* Titleholders Championship - Mickey Wright
* LPGA Tour money leader - Mickey Wright - $22,236

## Harness racing
* United States Pacing Triple Crown races –
*# Cane Pace - Cold Front
*# Little Brown Jug - Henry T. Adios
*# Messenger Stakes - Adios Don
* United States Trotting Triple Crown races –
*# Hambletonian - Harlan Dean
*# Yonkers Trot - Duke Rodney
*# Kentucky Futurity - Duke Rodney
* Australian Inter Dominion Harness Racing Championship –
** Pacers: Massacre

## Horse racing
**Steeplechases**
* Cheltenham Gold Cup – Saffron Tartan
* Grand National – Nicolaus Silver
**Flat races**
* Australia – Melbourne Cup won by Lord Fury
* Canada – Queen's Plate won by Blue Light
* France – Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe won by Molvedo
* Ireland – Irish Derby Stakes won by Your Highness
* English Triple Crown Races:
*# 2,000 Guineas Stakes – Rockavon
*# Epsom Derby – Psidium
*# St. Leger Stakes – Aurelius
* United States Triple Crown Races:
*# Kentucky Derby – Carry Back
*# Preakness Stakes – Carry Back
*# Belmont Stakes – Sherluck

## Ice hockey
* Art Ross Memorial Trophy as the NHL's leading scorer during the regular season: Bernie "Boom-Boom" Geoffrion, Montreal Canadiens
* Hart Memorial Trophy for the NHL's Most Valuable Player: Bernie "Boom-Boom" Geoffrion, Montreal Canadiens
* Stanley Cup – Chicago Black Hawks win 4 games to 2 over the Detroit Red Wings
* World Hockey Championship –
** Men's champion: Trail Smoke Eaters from Canada
* NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship - University of Denver Pioneers defeat St. Lawrence University Saints 12-2 in Denver, CO

## Motor racing
* Stock car racing –
** Marvin Panch wins the Daytona 500 in the Smokey Yunick-owned and -prepared Pontiac
** NASCAR Championship - Ned Jarrett (Chevrolet)
* USAC Racing
** 30 May – A.J. Foyt wins his first 45th running of the Indianapolis 500 in the *Bowes Seal Fast Special* Trevis-Offenhauser
**A.J. Foyt wins the driving championship
* Formula One – Phil Hill (United States) wins World Drivers' Champion, driving for Ferrari.
* 24 hours of Le Mans –  Olivier Gendebien / Phil Hill win, sharing a Ferrari 250TR
* Rally racing - the team of Maurice Martin / Roger Bateau win the Monte Carlo Rally driving a Panhard PL17
* Drag racing
** Pete Robinson won Top Eliminator at the NHRA Nationals
** Jack Chrisman wins Top Eliminator at the first Winternats with NHRA's first sub-9 sec pass

## Radiosport
* First European Amateur Radio Direction Finding Championships held in Stockholm, Sweden.  This event was the first organized international competition in the sport.

## Rugby union
* 67th Five Nations Championship series is won by France

## Swimming
* August 13 – USA's Becky Collins breaks the world record in the women's 200m butterfly (long course) during a meet in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – **2:32.8**.
* August 19 – US swimmer Carl Robie takes over the world record in the men's 200m butterfly (long course) from his compatriot Michael Troy at a meet in Los Angeles, California, clocking **2:12.6**.

## Tennis
* Grand Slam in tennis men's results:
*# Australian Open - Roy Emerson
*# French Open - Manuel Santana
*# Wimbledon championships - Rod Laver
*# US Open - Roy Emerson
* Grand Slam in tennis women's results:
*# Australian Open - Margaret Court
*# French Open - Ann Haydon Jones
*# Wimbledon championships - Angela Mortimer Barrett
*# US Open - Darlene Hard
* Davis Cup – Australia won 5-0 over Italy in world tennis.

## Multi-sport events
* Pan Arab Games held in Casablanca, Morocco
* Second Summer Universiade held in Sofia, Bulgaria

## Awards
* Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year – Roger Maris, Major League Baseball
* Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year – Wilma Rudolph, Track and field

## References