Athletes and Sports Stars Who Died in 2011

Ollie Matson (1930-2011)

Feb 19 Pro/College Football Hall of Fame halfback (First-team All-Pro 1952, 54–59; Pro Bowl 1952, 54–58; NFL 1950s All Decade Team), dies of dementia at 80

Feb 20 Betty Hicks, American golfer, author (US Open runner-up 1948, 54), dies of Alzheimer's disease at 90

Duke Snider (1926-2011)

Feb 27 American Baseball Hall of Fame outfielder (8 x MLB All Star; World Series 1955, 59; Brooklyn / LA Dodgers), dies at 84

Mar 9 Inge Sørensen, Danish swimmer (youngest female Olympic Games medalist in an individual event [12] bronze 200m breaststroke 1936), dies at 86
Mar 15 Marty Marion, American baseball shortstop and manager (MLB All-Star 1943–50; NL MVP 1944; St. Louis Cardinals), dies from a heart attack at 93
Mar 21 Gerd Klier, German footballer (b. 1944)
Mar 21 Ladislav Novák, Czech footballer (b. 1931)
Mar 21 Nikolai Adrianov, Soviet-Russian gymnast (Olympic-4 gold/2 silver/bronze-1976), dies at 58
Mar 23 Fred Titmus, English cricket all-rounder (53 Tests, 153 wickets, 10 x 50s; Middlesex), dies at 78
Apr 1 Lou Gorman, American baseball executive (general manager Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox), dies at 82
Apr 2 Larry Finch, American college basketball coach (University of Memphis 1986-97), dies at 60
Apr 10 Homer Smith, American football coach (b. 1931)
Apr 10 Mikhail Rusyayev, Russian footballer (b. 1964)
Apr 12 Eddie Joost, American baseball shortstop (MLB All Star 1949, 52; World Series 1940 Cincinnati Reds; Philadelphia Athletics) and manager (Philadelphia A's), dies at 94
Apr 16 Gerry Alexander, West Indian cricket wicket-keeper (25 Tests, top score 108, 90 dismissals), dies at 82
Apr 18 Mason Rudolph, American golfer (Ryder Cup 1971; PGA C'ship 1973 3rd), dies at 76
Apr 18 Olubayo Adefemi, Nigerian footballer, dies at 25

Grete Waitz (1953-2011)

Apr 19 Norwegian long distance athlete (9 x NYC Marathon titles; World C'ship gold 1983; 5 x gold World Cross Country; WR x 4), dies of cancer at 57

Apr 22 Wiel Coerver, Dutch soccer manager (developer of Coerver Method, football coaching technique), dies of pneumonia at 86
Apr 24 Colin Snedden, New Zealand cricket spin bowler (1 Test; Auckland), dies at 93
Apr 25 (Fletcher) Joe Perry, American AAFC/NFL Hall of Fame fullback, 1948-63, 3X Pro Bowl (San Francisco 49ers; Baltimore Colts), and US Navy veteran, dies of complications from dementia at 84
Apr 30 Emilio Navarro, Puerto Rican baseball player, dies at 105
May 1 Henry Cooper, English boxer (British, European, C'wealth heavyweight champion; famous defeats to Muhammad Ali 1963, 66), dies of heart failure at 76
May 1 Ted Lowe, English snooker commentator (Pot Black, BBC), dies at 90
May 3 Sergo Kotrikadze, Georgian footballer (b. 1936)
May 5 Yosef Merimovich, Israeli football player, 1948-58, and manager, 1958-89, dies at 86

Seve Ballesteros (1957-2011)

May 7 Spanish golfer (British Open 1979, 84, 88, US Masters 1980, 83), dies of brain cancer at 54

May 8 Lionel Rose, Australian boxer (WBA, WBC, The Ring bantamweight title 1968-69; first Indigenous Australian to win a world title), dies at 62
May 9 Wouter Weylandt, Belgian cyclist, dies at 26
May 13 Derek Boogaard, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1982)

Harmon Killebrew (1936-2011)

May 17 American Baseball HOF utility (13 × MLB All-Star; AL MVP 1969; 6 × AL HR leader; Washington Senators, Minnesota Twins), dies from esophageal cancer at 74

May 25 Paul Splittorff, American MLB pitcher and broadcaster (KC Royals), dies of oral cancer at 64
May 25 Terry Jenner, Australian cricket spin bowler (9 Tests, 24 wickets; WA CA, SA CA), dies from a heart attack at 66
May 27 Margo Dydek, Polish basketball player (b. 1974)
May 29 William "Bill" Roycroft, Australian equestrian 3 day (Olympic bronze 1976), dies at 96
May 31 Andy Robustelli, American NFL defensive end (LA Rams, NY Giants), dies at 85
May 31 Pauline Betz Addie, American tennis player (5 Grand Slam singles titles), dies of complications from Parkinson's disease at 91
Jun 7 Paul Dickson, American football player and coach (b. 1937)
Jun 9 Mike Mitchell, American basketball small forward (NBA All-Star 1981; Italian League top scorer 1998), dies from cancer at 55

Kurt Nielsen (1930-2011)

Jun 11 Danish tennis player, (Wimbledon 1953, 55 runner-up), dies at 80

Jun 22 John Waite, South African cricket wicket-keeper, dies at 81
Jun 24 Tomislav Ivić, Croatian football manager (b. 1933)
Jun 27 Betty Callaway, English figure skating coach (Torvill & Dean, Regőczy & Sallay), dies after a fall at 83
Jun 27 Mike Doyle, English former footballer (b. 1946)
Jun 30 Barry Bremen, American sports imposter and businessman (b. 1947)
Jul 2 Juno Stover-Irwin, American diver (Olympic silver women's platform 1956, bronze 1952), dies at 82
Jul 5 Armon Gilliam, American NBA forward, 1987-2000 (Phoenix Suns, Milwaukee Bucks, NJ Nets, and 3 other teams), and college coach, 2001-05 (Penn State), dies of a heart attack at 47
Jul 6 John Mackey, American Pro Football HOF tight end (Super Bowl 1970; 3 × First-team All-Pro; 5 × Pro Bowl; Baltimore Colts, San Diego Chargers), dies at 69
Jul 7 Dick Williams, American Baseball Hall of Fame manager (World Series 1972, 73 Oakland A's) and utility (Brooklyn Dodgers), dies of a ruptured aortic aneurysm at 82
Jul 9 Don Ackerman, American basketball player (b. 1930)
Jul 13 Allan Jeans, Australian football player and coach (b. 1933)
Jul 16 Forrest Blue, American football player (b. 1944)
Jul 27 Hideki Irabu, Japanese-American NPB and MLB baseball pitcher, 1988-2004 (New York Yankees, 1997-2002), takes his own life at 42
Aug 3 Allan Watkins, Welsh cricket all-rounder, (15 Tests, England @ 40.15, 11 wickets; Glamorgan), dies at 89
Aug 3 Bubba Smith, American College Football Hall of Fame defensive end (Michigan State; Pro Bowl 1970, 71; First Team All Pro 1971; Super Bowl 1971; Baltimore Colts) and actor (Police Academy), dies of acute drug intoxication and heart disease at 66
Aug 4 Naoki Matsuda, Japanese Soccer player (b. 1977)
Aug 15 Eric Dempster, New Zealand cricket spin bowler (5 Tests, TS 47, 2 wickets; Wellington CA), dies at 86
Aug 15 Rick Rypien, Canadian ice hockey player, dies at 27
Aug 16 Pete Pihos, American Pro/College Football HOF end (Indiana University; 6 x Pro Bowl; 6 × First-team All-Pro; Philadelphia Eagles), dies at 87
Aug 24 Mike Flanagan, American baseball pitcher (b. 1951)
Sep 4 Lee Roy Selmon, American College-Pro Football HOF defensive end (NFL Defensive Player of the Year 1979; First-team All-Pro 1979, 80, 82; 6× Pro Bowl; TB Buccaneers), dies from a stroke at 56
Sep 7 Brad McCrimmon, Canadian ice hockey defenseman (Stanley Cup 1989 Calgary Flames; NHL All-Star 1988; Plus-Minus Award +48 1989), dies as head coach KHL Lokomotiv Yaroslavl in plane crash at 52
Sep 7 Josef Vašíček, Czech ice hockey center (World C'ship gold 2005; Carolina Hurricanes), dies in Lokomotiv Yaroslavl air disaster at 30
Sep 7 Ruslan Salei, Belarusian ice hockey defenceman (917 NHL games; 48 internationals), dies in Lokomotiv Yaroslavl plane crash at 36
Sep 11 Christian Bakkerud, Danish racing driver (b. 1984)
Sep 12 Alexander Galimov, Russian ice hockey player (b. 1985)
Sep 27 Dave Hill, American golfer (13 PGA Tour titles), dies of emphysema at 74
Oct 1 Johnny Schmitz, American baseball pitcher (MLB All-Star 1946, 48; NL saves leader 1946), dies at 90
Oct 1 Sven Tumba, Swedish ice hockey center, football winger, golfer, golf course designer, dies of a hip infection at 80
Oct 5 Graham Dilley, English cricket fast bowler (41 Tests, 138 wickets; Kent CCC, Worcestershire CCC), dies from oesophageal cancer at 52

Al Davis (1929-2011)

Oct 8 American businessman and NFL executive (owner Oakland Raiders), dies of heart failure at 82

Oct 9 Pavel Karelin, Russian ski jumper (b. 1989)
Oct 15 Elizabeth "Betty" Driver, British singer and actress (Coronation Street; Pardon the Expression), dies from pneumonia at 91

Dan Wheldon (1978-2011)

Oct 16 British race car driver (Indianapolis 500, 2005 & 2011), dies in multi car crash at IndyCar World Championship at Las Vegas, Nevada at 33

Oct 18 Kent Hull, American football center (First-team All-Pro 1990, 91; Pro Bowl 1988, 89, 90; Buffalo Bills), dies from chronic liver disease at 50
Oct 23 Marco Simoncelli, Italian motorcycle racer (250cc World Championship 2008), dies in a track accident at 24
Oct 31 Flórián Albert, Hungarian footballer (European Footballer of the Year 1967), dies at 70

Bob Forsch (1950-2011)

Nov 3 American MLB baseball pitcher, 1974-1989 (St. Louis Cardinals, Houston Astros), dies of a thoracic aortic aneurysm at 61

Nov 3 Matty Alou, Dominican baseball outfielder (NL batting champion 1966; MLB All-Star 1968-69; Pittsburgh Pirates), dies of diabetes complications at 72

Joe Frazier (1944-2011)

Nov 7 American boxer (Olympic gold heavyweight 1964; undisputed world heavyweight champion 1970-73), dies of liver cancer at 67

Nov 8 Ed Macauley, American Basketball Hall of Fame center (7-time NBA All Star), dies of Alzheimer’s disease at 83
Nov 9 Roger Christian, American ice hockey left wing (Olympic gold 1960; Christian Brother's Hockey Sticks), dies at 75
Nov 12 Peter Roebuck, English cricketer and journalist, dies at 55
Nov 17 Kurt Budke, American basketball coach (b. 1961)
Nov 18 Walt Hazzard, American basketball player (Olympic gold 1964), dies at 69
Nov 19 Basil D'Oliveira, English cricket all-rounder (44 Tests, 2,484 @ 40.06, 47 wickets), dies form Parkinson's disease at 80
Nov 22 Ray Flockton, Australian cricketer (prolific NSW batsman of 50's), dies at 81
Nov 23 Jim Rathmann, American auto racer (Indianapolis 500, 1960; Race of Two Worlds at Monza, 1958), dies after a seizure at 83
Nov 24 Tatyana Shchelkanova, Soviet long jumper (Olympic bronze 1964), dies at 74
Nov 25 Vasiliy Alekseyev, Russian weightlifter (Olympic gold 1972, 76), dies at 69
Nov 27 Gary Speed, Welsh footballer and Wales national football team manager, dies at 42
Dec 1 Arthur Beetson, Australian rugby league front rower (29 Tests; Balmain, Easts, Parramatta; RL "Immortal") and coach (2 Tests Australia, 16 games Queensland), dies of a heart attack at 66
Dec 1 Ragnhild Hveger, Danish swimmer (Olympic silver 400m freestyle 1936; 44 world records 1938-56), dies at 90
Dec 3 Sam Loxton, Australian cricket batsman (12 Tests, 1 x 100, HS 101; Victoria; National team selector 1970-81), dies at 90
Dec 4 Sócrates [Socrates Brasileiro Sampaio de Sousa Vieira de Oliveira], Brazilian soccer midfielder and manager (60 caps, 22 goals Brazil; Corinthians), dies of septic shock at 57
Dec 5 Gennady Logofet, Russian footballer (b. 1942)
Dec 5 Peter Gethin, British racing driver (b. 1940)
Dec 15 Andy Carey, American baseball player (third baseman for 1950s New York Yankees), dies at 80
Dec 22 Bettye Danoff, American golfer (co-founder LPGA Tour), dies at 88