1989 in sports explained

1989 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.

Alpine skiing

• Alpine Skiing World Cup
  • Men's overall season champion: Marc Girardelli, Luxembourg
  • Women's overall season champion: Vreni Schneider, Switzerland

American football

• Super Bowl XXIII – the San Francisco 49ers (NFC) won 20–16 over the Cincinnati Bengals (AFC)
  • Location: Joe Robbie Stadium
  • Attendance: 75,129
  • MVP: Jerry Rice, WR (San Francisco)
• January 2 - Fiesta Bowl (1988 season):
  • The Notre Dame Fighting Irish won 34-21 over the West Virginia Mountaineers to win the national championship

Artistic gymnastics

• World Artistic Gymnastics Championships –
  • Men's all-around champion: Igor Korobchinsky, USSR
  • Women's all-around champion: Svetlana Boginskaya, USSR
  • Men's team competition champion: USSR
  • Women's team competition champion: USSR

Association football

See main article: 1989 in football (soccer).

Australian rules football

• Victorian Football League
  • May 6 – Geelong kicks the highest losing score in VFL/AFL history, kicking 25.13 (163) to Hawthorn’s 26.15 (171)
  • June 24 – Essendon kicks the lowest winning score since the 1927 Grand Final, beating Footscray 3.10 (28) to 3.5 (23).
  • Hawthorn wins the 93rd VFL Premiership beating Geelong 21.18 (144) d 21.12 (138)
  • Brownlow Medal awarded to Paul Couch (Geelong)

Baseball

See main article: 1989 in baseball.

• April 8 – One-handed pitcher Jim Abbott makes his major-league debut with the California Angels, without spending a single day in the minor leagues. He went on to a 12–12 record for the season.
• August 10 – Ten months after undergoing surgery for cancer in his pitching arm, San Francisco Giants pitcher Dave Dravecky returns to the major leagues, winning his comeback 4–3.
• August 15 – Dave Dravecky's comeback bid ends when his pitching arm breaks in the sixth inning of his second start. Two years later, the cancer-stricken arm would be amputated.
• August 24 – Following an investigation that he gambled on baseball, superstar player Pete Rose is banned from baseball for life.
• World Series – Oakland Athletics won 4 games to 0 over the San Francisco Giants in a series that was delayed because of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. The Series MVP was Dave Stewart, Oakland.
• Taiwan Professional Baseball League, officially founded on October 23.

Basketball

• NCAA Men's Basketball Championship –
  • Michigan wins 80–79 over Seton Hall in overtime
• NBA Finals –
  • The Detroit Pistons win 4 games to 0 over the Los Angeles Lakers to win the franchise's first championship.
• National Basketball League (Australia) Finals:
  • North Melbourne Giants defeated the Canberra Cannons 2–1 in the best-of-three final series.

Boxing

• February 11 – In Grenoble, France, Rene Jacquot won a 12-round decision over Donald Curry to win the World Welterweight Championship
• May 29 to June 3 – 28th European Amateur Boxing Championships held in Athens, Greece

Canadian football

• Grey Cup – Saskatchewan Roughriders won 43–40 over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats
• Vanier Cup – Western Ontario Mustangs won 35–10 over the Saskatchewan Huskies

Cycling

• Giro d'Italia won by Laurent Fignon of France
• Tour de France – Greg LeMond of the United States
• UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race – Greg LeMond of the United States

Dogsled racing

• Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Champion –
  • Joe Runyan won with lead dogs: Rambo & Ferlin the Husky

Field hockey

• Men's Champions Trophy: Australia
• Women's Champions Trophy: South Korea

Figure skating

• World Figure Skating Championships –
  • Men's champion: Kurt Browning, Canada
  • Ladies’ champion: Midori Ito, Japan
  • Pair skating champions: Ekaterina Gordeeva & Sergei Grinkov, Soviet Union
  • Ice dancing champions: Marina Klimova / Sergei Ponomarenko, Soviet Union

Gaelic Athletic Association

• Camogie
  • All-Ireland Camogie Champion: Kilkenny
  • National Camogie League: Kilkenny
• Gaelic football
  • All-Ireland Senior Football Championship – Cork 0–17 died Mayo 1–11
  • National Football League – Cork 0–15 died Dublin 0–12
• Ladies' Gaelic football
  • All-Ireland Senior Football Champion: Kerry
  • National Football League: Kerry
• Hurling
  • All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship – Tipperary 4–24 died Antrim 3–9
  • National Hurling League – Galway 2–16 beat Tipperary 4–8

Golf

Men's professional

• Masters Tournament – Nick Faldo
• U.S. Open – Curtis Strange
• British Open – Mark Calcavecchia
• PGA Championship – Payne Stewart
• PGA Tour money leader – Tom Kite – $1,395,278
• Senior PGA Tour money leader – Bob Charles – $725,887
• Ryder Cup – Europe and the United States teams tied 14–14 in team golf.

Men's amateur

• British Amateur – Stephen Dodd
• U.S. Amateur – Chris Patton
• European Amateur – David Ecob

Women's professional

• Nabisco Dinah Shore – Juli Inkster
• LPGA Championship – Nancy Lopez
• U.S. Women's Open – Betsy King
• Classique du Maurier – Tammie Green
• LPGA Tour money leader – Betsy King – $654,132

Harness racing

• North America Cup – Goalie Jeff
• United States Pacing Triple Crown races –
  1. Cane Pace – Dancing Master
  2. Little Brown Jug – Goalie Jeff
  3. Messenger Stakes – Sandman Hanover
• United States Trotting Triple Crown races –
  1. Hambletonian – Park Ave Joe & Probe (dead heat)
  2. Yonkers Trot – Valley Victory
  3. Kentucky Futurity – Peace Corps
• Australian Inter Dominion Harness Racing Championship –
  • Pacers: Jodie's Babe
  • Trotters: Yankee Loch

Horse racing

Steeplechases

• Cheltenham Gold Cup – Desert Orchid
• Grand National – Little Polveir

Flat races

• Australia – Melbourne Cup won by Tawrrific
• Canadian Triple Crown Races:
  1. Queen's Plate – With Approval
  2. Prince of Wales Stakes – With Approval
  3. Breeders' Stakes – With Approval
  • With Approval becomes the first horse to win the Canadian Triple Crown since 1963.
• France – Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe won by Carroll House
• Ireland – Irish Derby Stakes won by Old Vic
• Japan – Japan Cup won by Horlicks
• English Triple Crown Races:
  1. 2,000 Guineas Stakes – Nashwan
  2. The Derby – Nashwan^[1]
  3. St. Leger Stakes – Michelozzo
• United States Triple Crown Races:
  1. May 6 – Kentucky Derby – Sunday Silence
  2. Preakness Stakes – Sunday Silence
  3. Belmont Stakes – Easy Goer
• Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships:
  1. Breeders' Cup Classic – Sunday Silence
  2. Breeders' Cup Distaff – Bayakoa
  3. Breeders' Cup Juvenile – Rhythm
  4. Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies – Go for Wand
  5. Breeders' Cup Mile – Steinlen
  6. Breeders' Cup Sprint – Dancing Spree
  7. Breeders' Cup Turf – Prized

Ice hockey

• Art Ross Trophy as the NHL's leading scorer during the regular season: Mario Lemieux, Pittsburgh Penguins
• March 22 – St. Louis Blues’ Steve Tuttle slits the jugular vein of Buffalo Sabres’ goaltender Clint Malarchuk, with a total of 300 stitches needed to close the wound thanks to trainer Jim Pizzutelli.
• Hart Memorial Trophy for the NHL’s Most Valuable Player: Wayne Gretzky, Los Angeles Kings
• Stanley Cup – The Calgary Flames won 4 games to 2 over the Montreal Canadiens. This constitutes the only time that the visiting team won the cup at the Montreal Forum against the Canadiens.
• World Hockey Championship
  • Men's champion: Soviet Union defeated Canada
  • Junior Men's champion: Soviet Union defeated Sweden

Lacrosse

• The Philadelphia Wings defeat the New York Saints to win the Major Indoor Lacrosse League championship

Motorsport

See main article: 1989 in motorsport and List of 1989 motorsport champions.

Radiosport

• Second European High Speed Telegraphy Championship held in Hanover, Germany.

Rugby league

• June 7 – 1989 Panasonic Cup tournament final: Brisbane Broncos 22–20 Illawarra Steelers at Parramatta Stadium
• June 14 – 1989 State of Origin title is wrapped up by Queensland in Game Two of the three-match series against New South Wales at the Sydney Football Stadium before 40,000.
• July 23 – first of the 1989–1992 World Cup's twenty tournament matches is won by Australia 22–14 over New Zealand at Mount Smart Stadium before 15,000
• September 24 – 1989 NSWRL season Grand Final: Canberra Raiders 19–14 Balmain Tigers at Sydney Football Stadium before 40,500.
• October 4 – 1989 World Club Challenge match is won by Widnes who defeats Canberra Raiders 30–18 at Old Trafford before 30,768

Rugby union

• 95th Five Nations Championship series is won by France

Snooker

• World Snooker Championship – Steve Davis beats John Parrott 18–3
• World rankings – Steve Davis remains world number one for 1989/90

Swimming

• Third Pan Pacific Championships, held in Tokyo, Japan (August 17 – 20)
• August 20 – Tom Jager once again regains the world record (22.14) in the 50m freestyle (long course) during 1989 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships, with a time of 22.12.

Taekwondo

• World Championships held in Seoul, South Korea

Tennis

• Grand Slam in tennis men's results:
  1. Australian Open – Ivan Lendl
  2. French Open – Michael Chang
  3. Wimbledon championships – Boris Becker
  4. U.S. Open – Boris Becker
• Grand Slam in tennis women's results:
  1. Australian Open – Steffi Graf
  2. French Open – Arantxa Sánchez Vicario
  3. Wimbledon championships – Steffi Graf
  4. U.S. Open – Steffi Graf
• Davis Cup – Germany F.R. won 3–2 over Sweden in world tennis.

Triathlon

• 1989 ITU Triathlon World Championships held in Avignon, France
• ETU European Championships held in Cascais, Portugal

Volleyball

• 1989 FIVB Men's World Cup won by Cuba
• 1989 FIVB Women's World Cup won by Cuba
• 1989 Men's European Volleyball Championship won by Italy
• 1989 Women's European Volleyball Championship won by USSR

Water polo

• Men's Water Polo World Cup won by Yugoslavia
• Men's European Water Polo Championship won by West Germany
• Women's European Water Polo Championship won by the Netherlands

Multi-sport events

• Third World Games held in Karlsruhe, West Germany
• 15th Summer Universiade held in Duisburg, West Germany
• Fourteenth Winter Universiade held in Sofia, Bulgaria

Awards

• Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year – Joe Montana, National Football League
• Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year – Steffi Graf, Tennis
• Associated Press Male Athlete of the Decade: Wayne Gretzky, National Hockey League

Notes and References

1. Web site: Epsom Derby History, Winners, & Facts Britannica . www.britannica.com . 4 January 2022 . en.