Athletes and Sports Stars Born in 1979

Birthdays 1 - 200 of 361

Drew Brees (45 years old)

Jan 15 American football quarterback (Super Bowl MVP 2009, New Orleans Saints; 13 x Pro Bowl; 7 × NFL passing yards leader), born in Austin, Texas

Jan 15 Martin Petrov, Bulgarian soccer winger (90 caps; Servette, VfL Wolfsburg, Atlético Madrid, Manchester City, Bolton Wanderers), born in Vratsa, Bulgaria
Jan 16 Brenden Morrow, Canadian ice hockey player, born in Carlyle, Canada
Jan 16 Jason Ward, Canadian ice hockey player, born in Chapleau, Canada
Jan 16 Jimmy Walker, American golfer (PGA C'ship 2016), born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Jan 18 Brian Gionta, American NHL ice hockey player, 2001-18 (New Jersey Devils, Montreal Canadiens, and 2 other teams), born in Rochester, New York
Jan 18 Kenyatta Jones, American NFL and arena football player (New England Patriots and 3 other teams, born in Gainesville, Florida (d. 2018)
Jan 18 Paulo Ferreira, Portuguese footballer, born in Cascais, Portugal
Jan 19 Josu Sarriegi, Spanish football player, born in Lazkao, Spain
Jan 19 Svetlana Khorkina, Russian gymnast, born in Belgorod, Russia

Brian O'Driscoll (45 years old)

Jan 21 Irish rugby union player (Ireland, British & Irish Lions), born in Dublin, Ireland

Jan 21 Byung-Hyun Kim, Korean baseball player
Jan 23 Juan Rincón, Venezuelan baseball player, born in Maracaibo, Venezuela
Jan 23 Larry Hughes, American basketball player, born in St. Louis, Missouri
Jan 27 Daniel Vettori, New Zealand cricketer
Jan 27 Liesbet Van Breedam, Belgian beach volleyball player
Jan 27 Rodrigo Ribeiro, Brazilian racing driver, born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Jan 28 Ali Boulala, Swedish skateboarder, born in Stockholm, Sweden
Jan 30 Karen Smith, Australian field hockey midfielder (World Cup gold 1998; Champions Trophy gold 1997, 99, 2003; Commonwealth Games gold 2006), born in Toowoomba, Australia
Feb 1 Juan Silveira dos Santos, Brazilian soccer defender (79 caps; Flamengo, Bayer Leverkusen, Roma, Internacional), born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Feb 2 Fani Chalkia, Greek athlete (Olympic gold 400m hurdles 2004), born in Larissa, Greece
Feb 4 Giorgio Pantano, Italian racing car driver
Feb 7 Daniel Bierofka, German football player and coach, born in Munich, West Germany
Feb 7 Jon Leicester, American baseball player
Feb 9 "Casper" David Gray, English snooker player (2003 Scottish Open Winner), born in Lower Morden, Greater London
Feb 9 Akinora Iwamura, Japanese professional baseball infielder (NPB,1998-2006. 2011-14; MLB 2007-10), born in Uwajima, Ehime, Japan
Feb 10 Ross Powers, American snowboarder, born in Bennington, Vermont
Feb 12 Antonio Chatman, American NFL wide receiver and punt returner, born in Jackson, Alabama
Feb 12 Matt Mauck, American NFL player, born in Jasper, Indiana
Feb 13 Rafael Márquez, Mexican footballer, born in Zamora, Mexico
Feb 14 Pablo Pallante, Uruguayan footballer, born in Montevideo, Uruguay
Feb 15 Alenka Kejžar, Slovenian swimmer, born in Kranj, Slovenia
Feb 15 Gordon Shedden, Scottish auto racing driver, born in Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Feb 15 Josh Low, English footballer, born in Bristol, United Kingdom

Valentino Rossi (45 years old)

Feb 16 Italian motorcycle road racer (MotoGP World C'ship 2001, 02, 03, 04, 05, 08, 09; 250cc World C'ship 1999; 125cc World C'ship 1997), born in Urbino, Italy

Feb 17 Josh Willingham, American MLB baseball outfielder, 2004-14 (Florida Marlins, and 4 other teams), born in Florence, Alabama
Feb 19 Clinton Morrison, Irish footballer
Feb 19 Steve Cherundolo, American soccer player
Feb 21 Pascal Chimbonda, French footballer, born in Les Abymes, Guadeloupe
Feb 22 Brett Emerton, Australian footballer, born in Bankstown, Australia
Feb 24 Jesse Billauer, American quadriplegic surfer
Feb 26 Mariano Bainotti, Argentine racing driver, born in San Basilio, Argentina
Feb 26 Pedro Mendes, Portuguese footballer, born in Guimarães, Portugal
Feb 28 Ivo Karlović, Croatian tennis player, born in Zagreb, Croatia
Feb 28 Primož Peterka, Slovenian ski jumper, born in Ljubljana, Slovenia
Feb 28 Sébastien Bourdais, French auto racer, (Champ Car World Series 2004-07, Le Mans 24 Hours 2016), born in Le Mans, France
Mar 1 Mikkel Kessler, Danish boxer (WBA super-middleweight title x 3; WBC title x 2; IBA title 2002), born in Copenhagen, Denmark
Mar 2 Damien Duff, Irish soccer winger (100 caps, Republic of Ireland; Blackburn Rovers, Chelsea, Newcastle United, Fulham), born in Dublin, Ireland
Mar 4 Geoff Huegill, Australian swimmer
Mar 5 Tang Gonghong, Chinese weightlifter (Olympic gold women's 75kg 2004; World C'ship gold 1998, 99), born in Yantai, China
Mar 6 Erik Bedard, Canadian baseball player
Mar 6 Ryan Nyquist, American BMX rider (4 x X Games gold; 3 x Gravity Games gold), born in Los Gatos, California
Mar 11 Elton Brand, American NBA basketball player, 1999-2016 (Los Angeles Clippers, Philadelphia 76ers, and 3 other teams), and general manager (76ers, 2018-present), born in Cortlandt Manor, New York
Mar 11 Fred Jones, American basketball player
Mar 12 Edwin Villafuerte, Ecuadorian soccer goalkeeper (16 caps; Barcelona SC), born in Ventanas, Ecuador
Mar 13 Cedric Van Branteghem, Belgian athlete, born in Ghent, Belgium
Mar 13 Johan Santana, Venezuelan baseball pitcher (4 × MLB All-Star; AL Cy Young 2004, 06; Triple Crown 2006; Gold Glove 2007; no-hitter 2012; Minnesota Twins, NY Mets), born in Tovar Municipality, Mérida, Venezuela
Mar 14 Love [Arsénio Sebastião Cabungula], Angolan footballer, born in Luanda, Angola
Mar 14 Nicolas Anelka, French footballer, born in Le Chesnay, France
Mar 14 Sead Ramović, German-born Bosnian footballer
Mar 15 Kevin Youkilis, American baseball player
Mar 16 Édison Méndez, Ecuadorian soccer midfielder (111 caps; Deportivo Quito, LDU Quito, PSV), born in Ibarra, Ecuador
Mar 17 Andrew Ference, Canadian ice hockey player
Mar 18 Anthony Maher, American soccer player
Mar 18 Dramane Coulibaly, Malian footballer
Mar 19 Christos Patsatzoglou, Greek footballer
Mar 19 Hedo Türkoğlu, Turkish basketball player
Mar 19 Hee-Seop Choi, Korean baseball player
Mar 19 Ivan Ljubičić, Croatian tennis player
Mar 20 Bernard O'Connor, Gaelic Footballer
Mar 20 Keven Mealamu, New Zealand rugby player
Mar 22 Juan Uribe, Dominican baseball player, born in Sabana Grande de Palenque, Dominican Republic
Mar 23 Donncha O'Callaghan, Irish rugby player
Mar 23 Mark Buehrle, American baseball player
Mar 23 Misty Hyman, American swimmer (Olympic gold 200m butterfly 2000), born in Mesa, Arizona
Mar 23 Natalya Baranovskaya, Olympic swimmer
Mar 24 Graeme Swann, English cricket spin bowler (60 Tests, 255 wickets, BB 6/65; 79 ODIs; 39 T20I; Northamptonshire CCC, Nottinghamshire CCC), born in Northampton, England
Mar 24 Periklis Iakovakis, Greek athlete (400 meter hurdles)
Mar 26 Pierre Womé, Cameroonian soccer left back who played 68 internationals; Bologna, Werder Bremen, 1. FC Köln, Lucchese, born in Douala, Cameroon
Mar 27 Michael Cuddyer, American baseball outfielder who was MLB All Star 2011, 13; NL batting champion & Silver Slugger award 2013; Minnesota Twins, Colorado Rockies, born in Norfolk, Virginia
Apr 1 Ivano Balić, Croatian handballer (198 caps; Olympic gold 2004; World C'ship gold 2003), born in Split, Croatia
Apr 1 Ruth Beitia, Spanish athlete (Olympic gold women's high jump 2016), born in Santander, Spain
Apr 4 Roberto Luongo, Canadian ice hockey goaltender, born in Montreal, Quebec
Apr 5 Timo Hildebrand, German footballer
Apr 7 Adrián Beltré, Dominican baseball player
Apr 8 Jeremy Guthrie, American MLB baseball pitcher, 2004-17 (Baltimore Orioles, Kansas City Royals, and 3 other teams), born in Roseburg, Oregon
Apr 9 Clare Bronfman, American heiress (Seagrams), equestrian, and convicted felon (NXIVM human trafficking), born in New York City
Apr 10 Peter Kopteff, Finnish footballer, born in Helsinki, Finland
Apr 12 Elena Grosheva, Russian gymnast (Olympic 1996), born in Yaroslavl, Russia
Apr 12 Jordan De Jong, American baseball player, born in Orange City, Iowa
Apr 12 Mateja Kežman, Serbian footballer, born in Belgrade, Serbia
Apr 13 Baron Davis, American basketball point guard (NBA All-Star 2002, 04; NBA steals leader 2004, 07; Charlotte Hornets; NO Hornets, GS Warriors, LA Clippers), born in Los Angeles, California
Apr 13 Meghann Shaughnessy, American tennis player, born in Richmond, Virginia
Apr 14 Noé Pamarot, French footballer, born in Fontenay-sous-Bois, France
Apr 16 Christijan Albers, Dutch Formula One driver, born in Eindhoven, Netherlands
Apr 16 Sixto Peralta, Argentine footballer, born in Comodoro Rivadavia, Argentina
Apr 18 Anthony Davidson, British Formula One driver, born in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England
Apr 18 Matthew Upson, English footballer (England national team World Cup 2010), born in Eye, England
Apr 18 Michael Bradley, American basketball player, born in Worcester, Massachusetts
Apr 22 Zoltan Gera, Hungarian footballer
Apr 27 Natasha Chokljat, Australian netball player, born in Tasmania, Australia
Apr 29 Lee Dong-Gook, Korean footballer, born in Pohang, South Korea
Apr 29 Ryan Sharp, Scottish racing driver, born in Newtonhill, Scotland
Apr 30 Gerardo Torrado, Mexican footballer
May 1 Jennifer Botterill, Canadian ice hockey forward (Olympic gold 2002, 06, 10; Toronto Aeros, Harvard), born in Ottawa, Canada
May 1 Mauro Bergamasco, Italian rugby union flanker (Italy 106 caps; Benetton Treviso, Stade Français), born in Padova, Italy
May 2 Jason Chimera, Canadian ice hockey player, born in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
May 2 Roman Lyashenko, Russian ice hockey player, born in Murmansk, Russia (d. 2003)
May 4 Lesley Vainikolo, Tongan rugby union winger (5 Tests England; Gloucester Rugby, La Rochelle) and rugby league winger (12 Tests NZ; Canberra Raiders, Bradford Bulls), born in Nukuʻalofa, Tonga
May 7 Katie Douglas, American basketball player
May 9 Brandon Webb, American baseball pitcher (MLB All-Star 2006, 07, 08; NL Cy Young Award 2006; NL wins leader 2006, 08; Arizona Diamondbacks), born in Ashland, Kentucky
May 12 Andre Carter, American football player and coach, born in Denver, Colorado
May 12 Steve Smith, American football player, orn in Los Angeles, California
May 14 Carlos Tenorio, Ecuadorian soccer forward (50 caps; LDU Quito, Al-Sadd), born in Esmeraldas, Ecuador
May 14 Clinton Morrison, English-born Irish footballer
May 15 Adolfo "Bofo" Bautista, Mexican professional footballer, 1998-2016, born in Dolores Hidalgo, Mexico
May 17 Wayne Thomas, English footballer, born in Gloucester, England
May 18 Julián Speroni, Argentine footballer (Crystal Palace), born in Buenos Aires, Argentina
May 18 Mariusz Lewandowski, Polish footballer (Shakhtar Donetsk), born in Legnica, Poland
May 18 Milivoje Novakovič, Slovenian footballer, born in Ljubljana, Slovenia
May 19 Andrea Pirlo, Italian footballer
May 19 Diego Forlán, Uruguayan footballer
May 21 Damián Ariel Álvarez, Argentinian Mexican footballer, born in Morón, Argentina
May 21 Scott Smith, mixed martial arts fighter, born in Reno, Nevada
May 23 Kirk Saarloos, American baseball player
May 24 Frank Mir, American UFC fighter and professional wrestler, born in Las Vegas, Nevada
May 24 Joe Kennedy, American MLB baseball pitcher. 2001-07 (Tampa Bay Devil Rays and 4 other teams), born in La Masa, California (d. 2007)
May 24 Tracy McGrady, American Basketball Hall of Fame forward (NBA All-Star 2001–07; NBA scoring champion 2003, 04; Toronto Raptors, Orlando Magic, Houston Rockets), born in Bartow, Florida
May 25 Caroline Ouellette, French Canadian ice hockey player, born in Montreal, Quebec

Jonny Wilkinson (44 years old)

May 25 English international and Newcastle Falcons rugby player, born in Frimley, England

May 25 Sam Sodje, Nigerian footballer, born in Greenwich, London
May 26 Mehmet Okur (Memo), Turkish basketball player
May 27 Mile Sterjovski, Australian footballer
May 28 Joeri Jansen, Belgian athlete
May 29 Arne Friedrich, German soccer defender, coach (Germany 82 caps, Hertha BSC), born in Bad Oeynhausen, Germany
May 30 Mike Bishai, Canadian ice hockey player
Jun 1 Ladislav Nagy, Slovak ice hockey left wing (World C'ship gold 2002; NHL: SL Blues, Phoenix Coyotes, Dallas Stars, LA Kings), born in Šaca, Slovakia
Jun 1 Santana Moss, American NFL wide receiver / punt returner (Pro Bowl 2005; New York Jets, Washington Redskins), born in Miami, Florida
Jun 4 Daniel Vickerman, Australian rugby union player
Jun 4 Naohiro Takahara, Japanese soccer forward (57 caps; Hamburg S-V, Urawa Reds), born in Mishima, Shizuoka, Japan
Jun 5 Jason White, American NASCAR driver, born in Richmond, Virginia
Jun 7 Hilary Lunke, American golfer (US Open 2003), born in Edina, Minnesota
Jun 7 Kevin Hofland, Dutch footballer
Jun 12 Dallas Clark, American football tight end (Super Bowl 2006; Pro Bowl, First-team All-Pro 2009; Indianapolis Colts), born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Jun 13 Nila Håkedal, Norwegian beach volleyball player
Jun 15 Charles Zwolsman Jr., Dutch racing driver
Jun 15 Yulia Nestsiarenka, Belarusian sprinter (Olympic gold, 2004), born in Brest, Byelorussian SSR, Soviet Union
Jun 17 Nick Rimando, American soccer player, born in Montclair, California
Jun 19 John Duddy, Northern Irish boxer
Jun 19 Quentin Jammer, American football player
Jun 20 Cael Sanderson, Olympic Wrestler
Jun 20 Charles Howell III, American golfer (3 PGA Tour titles, Rookie of the Year 2001), born in Augusta, Georgia
Jun 21 Kostas Katsouranis, Greek soccer midfielder (116 caps; Super League Greek Footballer of the Year 2005, 13; Panachaiki, AEK Athens, Benfica, Panathinaikos, PAOK), born in Patras, Greece
Jun 22 Brad Hawpe, American MLB baseball outfielder, 2004-13, All-Star (Colorado Rockies, and 3 other teams), born in Fort Worth, Texas
Jun 22 Joey Cheek, American speed skater (Olympic gold, 2006), born in Greensboro, North Carolina
Jun 23 LaDainian Tomlinson, American football player
Jun 25 Richard Hughes, Scottish footballer (Bournemouth), born in Glasgow
Jun 26 Ryō Fukuda, Japanese racing driver, born in Fukuoka, Japan
Jun 26 Walter Herrmann, Argentine basketball small forward (Olympic gold 2004; Detroit Pistons; Spanish League Top Scorer & All-Star Game MVP 2003), born in Venado Tuerto, Santa Fe, Argentina
Jun 28 Jimmy Spithill, Australian sailor (America's Cup winning helmsman 2010, 2013), born in Sydney, Australia
Jun 29 Andy O'Brien, Irish soccer defender (26 caps, Republic of Ireland; Newcastle United), born in Harrogate, England
Jun 29 Marleen Veldhuis, Dutch swimmer (Olympic gold 2008, silver 2012, bronze 2004, 12), born in Borne, Netherlands
Jun 29 Matthew Bode, Australian rules football player (Adelaide Football Club)
Jul 1 Forrest Griffin, American UFC HOF mixed martial artist (UFC Light Heavyweight C'ship 2008; UFC Middleweight C'ship 2011, 12), born in Columbus, Ohio

Joe Thornton (44 years old)

Jul 2 Canadian NHL center, (#1 draft pick Boston Bruins 1997; San Jose Sharks; Olympic gold 2010), born in St. Thomas, Ontario

Jul 2 Sam Hornish, Jr., American race car driver
Jul 3 Ludivine Sagnier, French actress (Swimming Pool), born in La Celle-Saint-Cloud, France
Jul 3 Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Greek soccer defender (61 caps; Panathinaikos, Rangers, Eintracht Frankfurt, AEK Athens, Liverpool), born in Trikala, Greece

Amélie Mauresmo (44 years old)

Jul 5 French tennis player (Australian Open, Wimbledon 2006; Tour Finals 2005; Federation Cup 2003), born in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France

Jul 5 Stiliyan Petrov, Bulgarian soccer midfielder (105 caps; CSKA Sofia, Celtic, Aston Villa), born in Mihaylovgrad, Bulgaria
Jul 7 Anastasios Gousis, Greek sprinter, born in Corfu, Greece
Jul 7 Carl Breeze, British racing driver, born in King's Lynn, United Kingdom
Jul 11 Éric Abidal, French footballer (Lyon, Barcelona), born in Saint-Genis-Laval, France
Jul 13 Craig Bellamy, Welsh soccer forward (78 caps; Newcastle United, Norwich City, Manchester City), born in Cardiff, Wales
Jul 14 Axel Teichmann, German cross-country skier, born in Saalburg-Ebersdorf, East Germany
Jul 14 Bernie Castro, Dominican baseball player, born in Santiago, Dominican Republic
Jul 15 Alexander Frei, Swiss footballer
Jul 16 Chris Mihm, American basketball player (Chicago Bulls), born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Kim Rhode (44 years old)

Jul 16 American double trap and skeet shooter (Olympic Gold: 1996, 2004 & 2012), born in Whittier, California

Jul 18 Deion Branch, American football player
Jul 19 Dilhara Fernando, Sri Lankan cricketer, born in Colombo, Sri Lanka
Jul 19 Luke Young, English footballer (Charlton Athletic), born in Harlow, England
Jul 19 Rick Ankiel, American MLB player (St. Louis Cardinals), born in Fort Pierce, Florida
Jul 20 David Ortega, Spanish freestyle and backstroke swimmer
Jul 20 Miklos Fehér, Hungarian soccer striker (25 caps; Győri ETO, Porto, Benfica), born in Tatabánya, Hungary (d. 2004)
Jul 21 David Carr, American football quarterback (2002 NFL Draft: #1 pick Houston Texans), born in Bakersfield, California
Jul 21 Luis Ernesto Michel, Mexican soccer goalkeeper (7 caps; CD Guadalajara 252 games), born in El Grullo, Jalisco, Mexico
Jul 21 Tamika Catchings, American basketball player (Indiana Fever), born in Stratford, New Jersey
Jul 22 Lucas Luhr, German racing driver, born in Mülheim-Kärlich, West Germany
Jul 23 Ricardo Sperafico, Brazilian racing driver, born in Toledo
Jul 24 Anne-Gaëlle Sidot, French tennis player
Jul 24 José Valverde, American baseball player
Jul 24 Valerio Scassellati, Italian racing driver