Sporting Highlights for 1977
Here are some of the sporting highlights in the world of sport for 1977. This year marked the end of an era in football (soccer). The greatest soccer player of all-time Pelé, the only player with three World Cup wins, hanged up his jersey on October 1st with a career total of 1,281 goals.
Argentinian tennis player Guillermo Vilas won his first grand slam title at the French Open. His success continued with a win at the US Open later in the year. He won the Australian Open the next two years finishing his career with four grand slam titles. The Australian Open Tennis was actually held twice this year. When changing from a January event to a December event, two tournaments were held this year; the first in January, the second in December.
The World Series Cricket competition was first staged in 1977, changing the face of international cricket. The tournament was organised by the Australian Television Nine Network to run in opposition to established international cricket.
Tom Watson, who won his first major two years ago in 1975 had a spectacular year winning two majors, The Open Championship and the Masters Tournament. Hollis Stacy won the U.S. Women's Open for the first time, which she would win two more times in the future for a total of four majors to her name.
Red Rum, a steeplechase horse ridden by Tommy Stack, won the Grand National at Aintree, Liverpool, U.K. for an unprecedented third time. The horse had previously won in 1973 and 1974.
The eighth edition of the Rugby League World Cup was held in June. Though billed as the World Cup only four nations fielded teams, of which France and New Zealand were severe underdogs who did not have any chance. Australia defeated Great Britain 13-12 in the final to win the cup.
Frenchman Bernard Thevenet won the Tour de France for the second time this year. Though he was a great rider his win was overshadowed by fellow countryman Bernard Hinault who dominated the race for the next decade.
Below is a timeline of some significant results in the world of sport for the year 1977.
| Date | Results |
|---|---|
| Jan | Tennis Australia Open won by Roscoe Tanner and Kerry Reid |
| Jan | Super Bowl held in Pasadena won by Oakland |
| April | Golf Masters won by Tom Watson (1st win) |
| May | Tennis French Open won by Guillermo Vilas and Mima Jausovec |
| June | Golf US Open won by Hubert Green |
| July | the Cycling Tour de France won by Bernard Thévenet |
| July | Tennis Wimbledon won by Bjorn Borg and Virginia Wade |
| July | Golf The Open Championship won by Tom Watson |
| Aug | Golf US PGA won by Lanny Wadkins |
| Sep | Tennis US Open won by Guillermo Vilas and Chris Evert |
| Oct | The Baseball World Series won by New York Yankees |
| Dec | Tennis Australia Open won by Vitas Gerulaitis and Evonne Cawley |
Please note that the dates for past events are not always known, and are sometimes just placed in the month that the current event is held. If no exact date is listed, then it is just an estimated month that it was held.
If you have a correction or know of events that should be included here, please let me know.
Related Pages
- Ballon D'or Winners for 1977
- Timeline (all years) in the world of sport
- For future sporting events, see the Calendar of Major Sporting Events
- More about the World of Sport
Any comments, suggestions, or corrections? Please let us know.
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