1988 in sports - Definition and Overview

See also: 1987 in sports, other events of 1988, 1989 in sports and the list of 'years in sports'.

Auto Racing

• Stock car racing:
  • Bobby Allison won the Daytona 500
  • NASCAR Championship - Bill Elliott
• CART Racing - Danny Sullivan won the season championship
  • Indianapolis 500 - Rick Mears
• Formula One Championship - Ayrton Senna of Brazil
• 24 hours of Le Mans:
  • won by the team of Jan Lammers / Johnny Dumfries / Andy Wallace driving a Jaguar XJR-9LM
• Rally racing - Miki Biasion in a Lancia won the World Rally Championship
  • the team of Bruno Saby / Jean-Francois Fauchille won the Monte Carlo Rally driving a Lancia Delta HF 4x4
• Drag racing - Joe Amato won the NHRA "Top Fuel" championship.

Baseball

• January 12: Former Pirates slugger Willie Stargell is the only player elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Stargell, leader of two world champions in Pittsburgh and NL co-MVP in 1979 at age 39, becomes the 17th player to be elected in his first year of eligibility. Jim Bunning falls four votes shy of the 321 needed for election in his 13th year on the ballot.

• August 8: The first night game ever at Wrigley Field is scheduled, but is rained out. The history-making game would be played the following night.

• World Series: Los Angeles Dodgers won 4 games to 1 over the Oakland Athletics. The Series MVP was Orel Hershiser, Los Angeles

Basketball

• NCAA Men's Basketball Championship:
  • Kansas wins 83-79 over Oklahoma

• NBA Finals:
  • Los Angeles Lakers won 4 games to 3 over the Detroit Pistons

Boxing

• June 6 - In Las Vegas, Nevada, Iran Barkley knocked out Thomas Hearns in the 3rd round to win the WBC Middleweight Title.
• November 7 - In Las Vegas, Nevada, boxer Sugar Ray Leonard knocks out Donnie LaLonde.

Cycling

• Giro d'Italia won by Andrew Hampsten of the United States
• Tour de France - Pedro Delgado of Spain
• World Cycling Championship: Maurizio Fondriest of Italy

Field Hockey

• * March 25 - April 1 - Tenth Men's Champions Trophy held in Lahore, Pakistan won by Germany. Hosts Pakistan end 2nd.

Figure Skating

• World Figure Skating Championships:
  • Men's champion: Brian Boitano, (United States)
  • Women's champion: Katarina Witt, (East Germany)
  • Pairs champions: Jelena Walowa & Oleg Wassiljew, (Soviet Union)

Football (American)

• Super Bowl XXII: Washington Redskins won 42-10 over the Denver Broncos

Football (Australian Rules)

• Victorian Football League
  • Hawthorn wins the 92nd VFL Premiership (Hawthorn 22.20 (152) d Melbourne 6.20 (56))
  • Brownlow Medal awarded to Gerard Healy (Sydney Swans)

Football (Canadian)

• Grey Cup: Winnipeg Blue Bombers won 22-21 over the B.C. Lions
• Vanier Cup: Calgary Dinos won 52-23 over the St. Mary's Huskies

Football (Soccer)

• England - FA Cup: Wimbledon won 1-0 over Liverpool

Golf

Men's Golf

• Grand Slam of golf results:
  1. May - The Masters - Sandy Lyle
  2. June - US Open - Curtis Strange
  3. July - British Open - Seve Ballesteros
  4. August - PGA Championship - Jeff Sluman

• PGA tour's leading money winner for the year: Curtis Strange - $1,147,644
• PGA Champions Tour leading money winner: Bob Charles - $533,929

Women's Golf

• US Women's Open - Liselotte Neumann
• LPGA Championship - Sherri Turner
• Sherri Turner: leading money winner on the LPGA tour with earnings of $347,255.

Thoroughbred Horse Racing

• Australia - Melbourne Cup - Empire Rose
• Canada - Queen's Plate - Regal Intention
• France - Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe - Tony Bin
• Ireland - Irish Derby Stakes - Kahyasi

• English Triple Crown Races:
  1. Two Thousand Guineas Stakes - Doyoun
  2. Epsom Derby - Kahyasi
  3. St. Leger Stakes - Minister Son

• United States Triple Crown Races:
  1. Kentucky Derby - Winning Colors
  2. Preakness Stakes - Risen Star
  3. Belmont Stakes - Risen Star

• Breeders' Cup:
  1. Breeders' Cup Classic - Alysheba
  2. Breeders' Cup Distaff - Personal Ensign
  3. Breeders' Cup Juvenile - Is It True
  4. Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies - Open Mind
  5. Breeders' Cup Mile - Miesque
  6. Breeders' Cup Sprint - Gulch
  7. Breeders' Cup Turf - Great Communicator

Harness Racing

• North America Cup - Jate Lobell

• United States Pacing Triple Crown races:
  1. Cane Pace - Runnymede Lobell
  2. Little Brown Jug - B.J. Scoot
  3. Messenger Stakes - Matt's Scooter

• United States Trotting Triple Crown races:
  1. Hambletonian - Armbro Goal
  2. Yonkers Trot - Southern Newton
  3. Kentucky Futurity - Huggie Hanover

• Australian Inter Dominion Harness Racing Championship:
  • Pacers: Our Maestro
  • Trotters: True Roman

Ice Hockey

• Art Ross Memorial Trophy as the NHL's leading scorer during the regular season: Mario Lemieux, Pittsburgh Penguins

• Hart Memorial Trophy for the NHL's Most Valuable Player: Mario Lemieux, Pittsburgh Penguins

• Stanley Cup: Edmonton Oilers won 4 games to 0 over the Boston Bruins

• August 10 - Hockey's Wayne Gretzky traded to the Los Angeles Kings

• World Hockey Championship:
  • Men's champion: Soviet Union won the Olympic gold medal
  • Junior Men's champion: Canada defeated the USSR

Skiing

• Alpine Skiing
  • The men's overall season champion: Pirmin Zurbriggen, Switzerland
  • The women's overall season champion: Michela Figini, Switzerland

Snooker

• World Snooker Championship: Steve Davis beats Terry Griffiths 18-11
• World rankings: Steve Davis remains world number one for 1988/89

Tennis

• Grand Slam in tennis men's results:
  1. Australian Open - Mats Wilander
  2. French Open - Mats Wilander
  3. Wimbledon championships - Stefan Edberg
  4. US Open - Mats Wilander

• Steffi Graf becomes only the third woman in history to win the Grand Slam in tennis:
  1. Australian Open - Steffi Graf
  2. French Open - Steffi Graf
  3. Wimbledon championships - Steffi Graf
  4. US Open - Steffi Graf

• Davis Cup: Germany won 4-1 over Sweden in world team tennis.

General sporting events

• 1988 Summer Olympics takes place in Seoul, South Korea
  • USSR wins the most medals (132), and the most gold medals (55).
  • September 24: Canada's Ben Johnson wins Olympic gold in 100 metres. Two days later, he is stripped of the medal after testing positive for a banned substance.

• 1988 Winter Olympics takes place in Calgary, Canada
  • USSR wins the most medals (29), and the most gold medals (11).

• Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Champion:
  • Susan Butcher wins with lead dogs: Granite & Tolstoi

Births

Deaths

• January 5 - Pete Maravich NBA basketball hall of famer
• February 28 - Harvey Kuenn, Major League Baseball player (1952-1966)
• March 16 - Mickey Thompson, auto race driver - murdered
• March 19 - Bun Cook, NHL Hockey Hall of Fame player,
• March 21 - Edd Roush, Major League Baseball player (1913-1931)
• March 29 - Ted Kluszewski, Major League Baseball player (1947-1961)
• April 10 - Cliff Gladwin, English cricketer
• August 14 - Enzo Ferrari, automobile manufacturer
• October 13 - Mike Venezia, jockey, racing accident at Belmont Park
• October 22 - Henry Armstrong, World boxing champion
• November 21 - "King" Carl Hubbell, Major League Baseball pitcher (1928-1943)