- Jan 1 Jackie Parker, American College and Canadian Football Hall of Fame utility (Mississippi State University; Grey Cup 1954-56; Edmonton Eskimos), born in Knoxville, Tennessee (d. 2006)
- Jan 3 Coo Coo Marlin, American auto racer (NASCAR nine top 5, 51 top 10 finishes in 165 Winston Cup starts), born in Columbia, Tennessee (d. 2005)
- Jan 3 Jaswick Taylor, West Indian cricket fast bowler (3 Tests, 10 wickets; 5/109 in Test debut 1958; Trinidad & Tobago), born in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago (d. 1999)
Chuck Noll (1932-2014)
Jan 5 American Pro Football HOF coach (Super Bowl 1974, 75, 78, 79; Pittsburgh Steelers 1969-91), born in Cleveland, Ohio
- Jan 7 Tormod Knutsen, Norwegian cross country skier (Olympic gold individual 1964, silver 1960), born in Eidsvoll, Norway (d. 2021)
- Jan 10 Lou Henson, American College Basketball Hall of Fame coach (all-time leader in victories University of Illinois and New Mexico State), born in Okay, Oklahoma (d. 2020)
- Jan 14 Don Garlits, American racing driver (1st drag racer over 200mph for 1/4 mile), born in Tampa, Florida
- Jan 14 Tony DeMarco, American boxer (NBA, NYSAC, The Ring welterweight titles 1955), born in Boston, Massachusetts (d. 2021)
- Jan 15 Dean Smith, American athlete (Olympic gold 4x100m relay 1952) and actor, rodeo cowboy and stuntman, born in Emporia, Kansas (d. 2023)
- Jan 15 Lou Jones, American athlete (Olympic gold 4x400m relay 1956), born in New Rochelle, New York (d. 2006)
- Jan 19 Joe Schmidt, College/Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker (10 x Pro Bowl; 8 x First-team All-Pro; NFL C'ship 1953, 57; Detroit Lions) and coach (Detroit Lions 1967-72), born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Jan 20 Frank Arok, Yugoslavian-Australian soccer coach (Australia 1983-89), born in Kanjiža, Serbia (d. 2021)
- Jan 21 Boris Shakhlin, Russian gymnast (Olympic gold, 1956, 1960, 1964; World Champion, 1958; European Champion, 1955), born in Ishim, Russia, USSR (d. 2008)
- Jan 21 John Chaney, American Basketball Hall of Fame college coach (Cheyney University, Temple University), born in Jacksonville, Florida (d. 2021)
- Jan 28 Parry O'Brien, American athlete (Olympic gold shot put 1952, 1956; silver 1960), born in Santa Monica, California (d. 2007)
- Jan 29 Tommy Taylor, English soccer striker (19 caps; Manchester United 166 games; died Munich air disaster), born in Smithies, West Riding of Yorkshire (d. 1958)
- Jan 30 Vladimír Heger, Czech basketball coach (Czechoslovakia 1965-69, 72-76; Netherlands 1983-85), born in Prague, Czech Republic (d. 2021)
About January 1932
How Old? 92 years old
Generation: Silent Generation
Leap Year: Yes
Chinese Zodiac: Goat/Sheep
Star Signs: Capricorn (Dec 22 - Jan 19), Aquarius (Jan 20 - Feb 18)
Baseball Players
Basketball Stars
Boxers
Footballers
NFL Stars
Tennis Champions