1997 in sports
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See also: 1996 in sports, other events of 1997, 1998 in sports and the list of 'years in sports'.
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Auto Racing
- Stock car racing:
- Jeff Gordon is the youngest driver ever to win the Daytona 500
- NASCAR Championship - Jeff Gordon
- Indy Racing League -
- Indianapolis 500 - Arie Luyendyk
- CART Racing - Alex Zanardi won the season championship
- Formula One Championship - Jacques Villeneuve of Canada
- V8 Supercars Australia
- Championship Series won by Glenn Seton in a Ford Falcon EL.
- Bathurst 1000 for V8 Supercars won by Russel Ingall and Larry Perkins in a Holden Commodore VS.
- Bathurst 1000 for Super Touring won by Jim Richards and Rickard Rydell. Rydell setting a shootout lap of 2:14.x, fastest super touring lap ever around the mountain at that time.
- 24 hours of Le Mans: the team of Michele Alboreto / Stefan Johansson / Tom Kristensen won, driving a TWR-Porsche
- Rally racing - Tommi Mäkinen won the World Rally Championship
- the team of Piero Liatti / Fabrizia Pons won the Monte Carlo Rally driving a Subaru Impreza WRC97
- Drag racing - Gary Scelzi won the NHRA "Top Fuel" championship.
Baseball
- June 12 - Interleague play begins in baseball, ending a 126-year tradition of separating the major leagues until the World Series.
- World Series: Florida Marlins won 4 games to 3 over the Cleveland Indians. The Series MVP was Liván Hernández, Florida
Basketball
- NCAA Men's Basketball Championship:
- Arizona wins 84-79 over Kentucky
- NBA Finals:
- Chicago Bulls earn their second repeat of the decade as they beat the Utah Jazz 4 games to 2 (see Steve Kerr).
- WNBA Finals:
- Houston Comets defeat the New York Liberty in one game playoff series.
Boxing
- January 18 - Las Vegas, Nevada - Oscar De La Hoya maintained his World Boxing Council super lightweight title in with a 12-round unanimous decision over Miguel Angel Gonzalez.
- June 28 - Mike Tyson bites off a piece of the ear of Evander Holyfield in the third round of their WBA Heavyweight title fight, getting disqualified by referee Mills Lane.
- July 9 - Mike Tyson's boxing license is suspended for at least a year and he is fined $3 million for biting Evander Holyfield's ear in a televised match.
Cricket
- The Ashes - Australia win the six test series 3-2
- ICC Trophy - Bangladesh
- Women's Cricket World Cup - Australia beat New Zealand by five wickets
- County Cricket Championship (England and Wales) - Glamorgan
Cycling
- Giro d'Italia won by Ivan Gotti of Italy
- Tour de France - Jan Ullrich of Germany
- World Cycling Championship: Laurent Brochard of France
Field Hockey
- October 17 - 19 - Champions Trophy held at Adelaide, Australia won by Germany. Hosts Australia finish second.
Figure Skating
- World Figure Skating Championships:
- Men's champion: Elvis Stojko, Canada
- Women's champion: Tara Lipinski, United States
- Pairs champions: Mandy Wötzel & Ingo Steuer, Germany
Football (American)
- Super Bowl XXXI: Green Bay Packers won 35-21 over the New England Patriots
Football (Australian Rules)
- Australian Football League
- Port Adelaide join the league
- The Adelaide Crows win the 101st AFL premiership (Adelaide Crows 19.11 (125) d St Kilda 13.16 (94))
- Brownlow Medal awarded to Robert Harvey (St Kilda)
Football (Canadian)
- Grey Cup: Toronto Argonauts won 47-23 over the Saskatchewan Roughriders
- Vanier Cup: UBC Thunderbirds win 39-23 over the Ottawa Gee Gees
Football (Soccer)
- England - FA Cup: Chelsea won 2-0 over Middlesbrough
Scottish FA Cup Kilmarnock FC beat Falkirk 1-0.
Golf
- Major championship results:
- PGA tour's leading money winner for the year: Tiger Woods - $2,066,833
- PGA Champions Tour leading money winner: Hale Irwin - $2,343,364
- Ryder Cup: Europe won 14 1/2-13 1/2 over the United States in world team golf.
- US Women's Open - Alison Nicholas
- LPGA Championship - Chris Johnson
- Annika Sörenstam: leading money winner on the LPGA tour, earning $1,236,789.
Thoroughbred Horse Racing
- Australia - Melbourne Cup - Might And Power
- Canada - Queen's Plate - Awesome Again
- France - Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe - Peintre Célèbre
- Ireland - Irish Derby Stakes - Desert King
Harness Racing
- Australian Inter Dominion Harness Racing Championship:
- Pacers: Our Sir Vancelot
- Trotters: Pride Of Petite
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: Dominik Hasek of the Buffalo Sabres
- Stanley Cup - Detroit Red Wings win 4 games to 0 over the Philadelphia Flyers
Skiing
- Alpine Skiing
- The men's overall season champion: Luc Alphand, France
- The women's overall season champion: Pernilla Wiberg, Sweden
Snooker
- World Snooker Championship: Ken Doherty beats Stephen Hendry 18-12
- World rankings: Stephen Hendry remains world number one for 1997/98
Tennis
- Grand Slam in tennis men's results:
- Grand Slam in tennis women's results:
- Davis Cup: Sweden won 5-0 over the United States in world tennis.
General sporting events
- Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Champion:
- Martin Buser won with lead dogs: Blondie & Fearless
Births
Deaths
- Exceller - great thoroughbred racehorse
- March 21 - John Nemechek 27, NASCAR race driver
- September 9 - Richie Ashburn, Major League Baseball player
- November 14 - Eddie Arcaro, only jockey to win two Triple Crownsfr:1997 en sport