1955 in sports

Encyclopedia : 1 : 19 : 195 : 1955 in sports

Contents

NASCAR Championship - Tim Flock
AAA Racing:
Bob Sweikert won the Indianapolis 500
Bob Sweikert won the season championship
Formula One Championship - Juan Manuel Fangio of Argentina
24 hours of Le Mans:
Pierre Levegh killed along with more than 80 spectators in the worst auto racing accident in history
the team of Mike Hawthorn / Ivor Bueb won, driving a Jaguar D-type
Rally racing:
*the team of Per Malling / Gunnar Fadum won the Monte Carlo Rally driving a Sunbeam-Talbot
Drag racing - The NHRA staged its first "Nationals" in Great Bend, Kansas. Calvin Rice won the inaugural "Top Fuel" championship.

April 23: The White Sox tallied a franchise record 29 runs at Kansas City. Sherm Lollar was 5-for-6 with a pair of home runs and five RBI, while reserve outfielder Bob Nieman and infielder Walt Dropo drove in seven runs a piece, and Chico Carrasquel hit 5-for-6 with five runs, in the 29-6 victory over the Athletics.

World Series:October 4 - Brooklyn Dodgers win 4 games to 3 over the New York Yankees. The Series MVP is pitcher Johnny Podres, Brooklyn.

NCAA Men's Basketball Championship:
San Francisco wins 76-73 over La Salle

NBA Finals:
Syracuse Nationals win 4-3 over the Fort Wayne Pistons

The ninth European basketball championship, Eurobasket 1955, is won by Hungary.

March 1: Allen Fieldhouse opens at the University of Kansas as the Jayhawks defeat Kansas State.

September 21 in New York City, Rocky Marciano knocks out the Light-heavyweight champion Archie Moore in the 9th round to retain his World Heavyweight Championship.

Giro d'Italia won by Fiorenzo Magni of Italy
Tour de France - Louison Bobet of France
World Cycling Championship: Stan Ockers of Belgium

World Figure Skating Championships:
Men's champion: Hayes Alan Jenkins, United States
Women's champion: Tenley Albright, United States
*Pairs champions: Frances Dafoe & Norris Bowden, Canada

NFL Championship: Cleveland Browns won 38-14 over the Los Angeles Rams
Oklahoma Sooners - college football champions.

Victorian Football League
* Melbourne wins the 59th VFL Premiership (Melbourne 8.16 (64) d Collingwood 5.6 (36))
* Brownlow Medal awarded to Fred Goldsmith (South Melbourne)

Grey Cup: Edmonton Eskimos won 34-19 over the Montreal Alouettes

England

First Division - Chelsea win the 1954-55 title.
FA Cup - Newcastle United beat Manchester City 3-1.

Men's Golf
Grand Slam of golf results:
#April - The Masters - Cary Middlecoff
#June - US Open - Jack Fleck
#July - British Open - Peter Thomson
#August - PGA Championship - Doug Ford

PGA tour's leading money winner for the year: Julius Boros - $63,122

Ryder Cup the United States team wins 8-4 over the British team in world golf.
Women's Golf
The LPGA launches the new LPGA Championship annual tournament.
US Women's Open - Fay Crocker
LPGA Championship - Beverly Hanson
Patty Berg: leading money winner on the LPGA tour, earning $16,492.

Australia - Melbourne Cup - Toparoa
Canada - Queen's Plate - Ace Marine
France - Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe - Ribot
Ireland - Irish Derby Stakes - Panaslipper

English Triple Crown Races:
#Two Thousand Guineas Stakes - Our Babu
#Epsom Derby - Phil Drake
#St. Leger Stakes - Meld

United States Triple Crown Races:
#Kentucky Derby - Swaps
#Preakness Stakes - Nashua
#Belmont Stakes - Nashua

August 31 - In one of the most famous match races in thoroughbred racing history, Nashua beat Swaps at Washington Park racetrack. It was Swaps only loss in nine starts as a three-year old. Nashua's owner-breeder, William Woodward, Sr., dreamed of owning an Epsom Derby winner, and he planned to send Nashua to England to train toward that goal. However, Woodward was shot to death by his wife before he could proceed.

The first Cane Pace is held at Yonkers Raceway.
Little Brown Jug for pacers won by Quick Chief
Cane Pace won by Quick Chief

The United States Trotting Triple Crown races are established. Scott Frost will win the first ever crown.
#Hambletonian - Scott Frost
#Yonkers Trot - Scott Frost
#Kentucky Futurity - Scott Frost

Australian Inter Dominion Harness Racing Championship:
Pacers: Tactician
Trotters: Battle Cry

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: Ted Kennedy, Toronto Maple Leafs

Stanley Cup: - Detroit Red Wings win 4 games to 3 over the Montreal Canadiens

World Hockey Championship
* Men's champion: Canada's Penticton Vees win 5-0 over the USSR

World Snooker Championship: Fred Davis beats John Pulman 37-34

Grand Slam in tennis men's results:
#Australian Open - Ken Rosewall
#French Open - Tony Trabert
#Wimbledon championships - Tony Trabert
#US Open - Tony Trabert

Grand Slam in tennis women's results:
#Australian Open - Beryl Penrose
#French Open - Angela Mortimer
#Wimbledon championships - Louise Brough
#US Open - Doris Hart

Davis Cup: Australia wins 5-0 over the United States in world tennis

Second Pan American Games held in Mexico City, Mexico

Second Mediterranean Games held in Barcelona, Spain

Births

January

January 2 — Jinty Stewart, Scottish field hockey goalkeeper
January 3 — Frances Edmonds, British sports writer
January 14 — Dominique Rocheteau, French soccer player
January 19 — Uwe Reinders, German soccer player
January 21 — Peter Fleming, American tennis player
January 21 — Juan Pellón, Spanish field hockey player
January 21 — Nikolina Shtereva, Bulgarian middle distance runner
January 24 — Jim Montgomery, American swimmer
January 29 — John Tate, American boxer
January 31 — Virginia Ruzici, Romanian tennis player

February

February 2 — Aleksandr Gusev, Soviet field hockey player
February 3 — Bruno Pezzey, Austrian soccer player (d. 1994)
February 10 — Miguel Chaves, Spanish field hockey player
February 10 — Jose Maria Flores Burlon, Uruguayan boxer
February 10 — Greg Norman, Australian golfer
February 18 — Donna Gurr, Canadian backstroke swimmer
February 24 — Alain Prost, French Formula I driver

March

March 4 — David Jackson, New Zealand boxer (d. 2004)
March 6 — Wendy Boglioli, American butterfly swimmer
March 6 — Peter Dignan, New Zealand rower
March 11 — David Bell, Australian field hockey player
March 14 — Daniel Bertoni, Argentinian soccer player
March 16 — Jiro Watanabe, Japanese boxing world champion
March 18 — Philippe Boisse, French fencer
March 18 — Elaine Jensen, New Zealand field hockey goalkeeper
March 26 — Andy Hoepelman, Dutch water polo player

April

April 13 — Safet Sušić, Bosnian soccer player
April 25 — Américo Gallego, Argentinian soccer player
April 26 — Ulrika Knape, Swedish diver
April 28 — Djamel Zidane, Algerian soccer player

May

May 2 — Marianne Vermaat, Dutch backstroke swimmer
May 6 — Ann Grant, Zimbabwean field hockey player
May 7 — Florenta Craciunescu, Romanian discus thrower
May 9 — Edmund Coffin, American saddlemaker and equestrian

June

June 12 — Guy Lacombe, French soccer player and manager
June 21 — Michel Platini, French soccer player
June 23 — Jean Tigana, French soccer player and manager
June 26 — Maxime Bossis, French soccer player
June 28 — Heribert Weber, Austrian soccer player

July

July 5 — Peter McNamara, Australian tennis player
July 8 — Gillian Cowley, Zimbabwean field hockey player
July 9 — Steve Coppell, English soccer player

August

August 2 — Gail Neall, Australian medley swimmer
August 4 — Gerrie Coetzee, South African boxer
August 5 — John Whitaker, British equestrian
August 8 — Renzo Vecchiato, Italian basketball player
August 9 — Udo Beyer, German shot putter
August 12 — Bert Bergsma, Dutch freestyle swimmer

September

September 1 — Maureen George, Zimbabwean field hockey player
September 2 — Florenta Mihai, Romanian tennis player
September 9 — Gernot Jurtin, Austrian soccer player
September 15 — Linda Watson, Zimbabwean field hockey player
September 25 — Ludo Coeck, Belgian soccer player
September 25 — Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, German soccer player

October

October 3 — José Valencia, Argentinian soccer player
October 4 — Anton Pichler, Austrian soccer player
October 4 — Jorge Valdano, Argentinian soccer player
October 11 — Hans-Peter Briegel, German soccer player
October 16 — Annemarie Groen, Dutch backstroke swimmer

November

November 1 — Anne Audain, New Zealand middle and long distance athlete
November 26 — Barbara Tilden, New Zealand field hockey player
November 27 — Sarah English, Zimbabwean field hockey player
November 28 — Alessandro Altobelli, Italian soccer player

December

December 5 — Juha Tiainen, Finnish hammer thrower (d. 2003)
December 6 — Tony Woodcock, English soccer player
December 12 — Mikhail Nichepurenko, Soviet field hockey player
December 19 — Marek Dziuba, Polish soccer player
December 29 — Theo Doyer, Dutch field hockey player

Deaths

January 21 — Archie Hahn (74), American athlete (b. 1880)
January 26 — Holger Nielsen, Danish fencer, shooter and athlete (b. 1866)
May 10 — Tommy Burns, world heavyweight boxing champion
May 26 — Alberto Ascari, F1 race car champion
September 4 — Gus Weyhing, Major League Baseball pitcher (1887-1901)
October 27 — Clark Griffith, Major League Baseball pitcher (1891-1914)
November 4 — Cy Young, American baseball player
December 6 — Honus Wagner, Major League Baseball player (1897-1917)

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