- May 2 Bernard Lapasset, French rugby union executive (Chairman World Rugby 2008-16; President French Federation of Rugby Union 1991-2008), dies at 75
- May 2 Christian Larièpe, French soccer defender (FC Montceau Bourgogne) and sporting director (AS Saint-Étienne, FC Lausanne-Sport, FC Nantes), dies at 63
- May 2 Damir Šolman, Croatian basketball small forward (World Cup gold 1970, silver 1974 Yugoslavia; Olympic silver 1968, 76; FIBA European Selection 1974; Mladost Zagreb, Jugoplastika), dies at 74
- May 2 Frank Phillips, Australian golfer (Australian Open 1957, 61; Hong Kong Open 1966, 73; Singapore Open 1961, 65), dies at 90
- May 2 Tori Bowie, American athlete (Olympic gold 4×100 m relay, silver 100m, bronze 200m 2016; World C'ship gold 100m, 4x100m relay 2017), dies at 32
- May 3 Lance Blanks, American basketball guard (Detroit Pistons, Minnesota Timberwolves), executive (GM Phoenix Suns 2010-13), and broadcaster (ESPN, Longhorn Network), takes his own life at 56
- May 4 Petr Klíma, Czech NHL right wing, 1985-99 (Detroit Red Wings; Edmonton Oilers, and 3 other teams), dies at 58
- May 5 Arsenio Iglesias, Spanish soccer manager (Deportivo La Coruña, Hércules, Zaragoza, Elche, Real Madrid), dies at 92
- May 5 Siiri Rantanen, Finnish cross country skier (Olympic gold 3 × 5k relay 1956, bronze 1960; bronze 10k 1952), dies at 98
Vida Blue (1949-2023)
May 6 American baseball pitcher (6 x MLB All-Star; Cy Young Award & AL MVP 1971; World Series 1972, 73, 74 Oakland A's; SF Giants, KC Royals), dies at 73
- May 7 Don January, American golfer (PGA Championship 1967; 10 x PGA Tour wins; 22 x PGA Tour Champions wins), dies at 93
- May 7 Vic Stasiuk, Canadian ice hockey left winger (Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins) and coach (Philadelphia Flyers, Vancouver Canucks), dies at 93
- May 8 Joe Kapp, American College / Canadian Football HOF quarterback (UC Berkeley; NFL C'ship & Pro Bowl 1969 Minnesota Vikings; CFL Grey Cup 1964 BC Lions; CFL All-Star 1963, 64), dies at 85
- May 9 Antonio Carbajal, Mexican soccer goalkeeper (32 caps; Club León 364 games) and manager (León, Unión de Curtidores, Atlético Morelia), dies at 93
- May 9 Denny Crum, American College Basketball & Basketball Hall of Fame coach (University of Louisville 1971-2001; NCAA C'ship 1980, 86; 6 x Final Fours), dies at 86
- May 9 John Bland, South African golfer (British Senior Open 1997, 99, 2000 runner-up; US Senior Open 1997 runner-up), dies from cancer at 77
- May 10 Ed Flanagan, American football center (Pro Bowl 1969, 70, 71, 73; Detroit Lions, San Diego Chargers), dies from heart problems at 79
- May 10 Thelston Payne, West Indian cricket wicketkeeper (1 Test, 5 dismissals; 7 ODIs, HS 60; Barbados), dies from pancreatic cancer at 66
- May 11 Futoshi Nakanishi, Japanese Baseball HOF infielder (Nishitetsu Lions; Pacific League MVP 1956; 7×Best Nine Award) and manager (Nishitetsu Lions), dies at 90
- May 12 Bruce Robertson, New Zealand rugby union centre (34 Tests, 22 tries; Counties Manukau RFU), dies at 71
- May 12 Don Denkinger, American baseball umpire (World Series: 1974, 80, 85, 91; MLB All-Star Game 1971, 76, 87; "The Call"), dies at 86
- May 12 Owen Davidson, Australian tennis player (mixed doubles Grand Slam 1967 [Lesley Turner Bowrey, Billie Jean King]; Australian Open doubles 1972, US Open doubles 1973), dies at 79
- May 13 Keiko Tanaka-Ikeda, Japanese gymnast (World C'ship gold balance beam 1954; Olympic bronze team 1964; first Japanese female to win a world title), dies at 89
- May 13 Weldon Olsen, American ice hockey center (Olympic gold 1960, silver 1956; Michigan State University), dies at 90
- May 14 Ferran Olivella, Spanish soccer defender (18 caps Spain, 2 Catalonia; FC Barcelona 214 games), dies at 86
- May 16 Marlene Bauer Hagge, American golfer, co-founder LPGA (Woman's PGA C'ship 1956), dies after a fall at 89
- May 16 Nelsinho Rosa, Brazilian soccer coach (Saudi Arabia, Fluminense, Vasco da Gama), dies at 85
- May 16 Per Røntved, Danish soccer defender (75 caps; Werder Bremen, Brønshøj BK, Randers SK Freja), dies from cancer at 74
- May 18 Buddy Melges, American sailor (Olympic gold Soling 1972; 5 x world champion; America's Cup skipper, America3 1992), dies at 93
Jim Brown (1936-2023)
May 18 American College-Pro Football HOF running back (Syracuse University; Cleveland Browns - NFL Rookie of the Year 1957; NFL MVP 1957, 58, 65; 8 x First-team All-Pro; 9 x Pro Bowl), actor (The Dirty Dozen; ...tick...tick...tick...), and civil rights activist, dies at 87 [1]
- May 19 Brian Booth, Australian cricket batsman (29 Tests @ 42.21, 5 x 100s, 10 x 50s; NSW), dies at 89
- May 20 Rick Hummel, American sports writer (St. Louis Post-Dispatch; J. G. Taylor Spink Award 2007; president Baseball Writers' Association of America), dies at 77
- May 20 Sante Ranucci, Italian cyclist (gold UCI World C'ships amateur road race 1955), dies at 89
- May 20 Terry McDermott, American speed skater (Olympic gold 500m 1964, silver 1968), dies at 82
- May 22 Claude Noel, Tobagonian boxer (WBA Lightweight title 1981), dies at 74
- May 23 Cotton Nash, American baseball outfielder (Chicago WS, Minnesota Twins) and basketball small forward (LA Lakers, SF Warriors, Kentucky Colonels), dies at 80
- May 24 Jerry Krause, American Basketball HOF coach (Eastern Washington University; director basketball operations Gonzaga 1985-2015), dies of colon cancer at 87
- May 25 Denny Stolz, American college football coach (Alma College, Michigan State University, Bowling Green State Uni, San Diego State Uni), dies at 89
- May 29 Vítězslav Mácha, Czech Greco-Roman wrestler (Olympic gold welterweight 1972, silver 1976; World C'ship gold 1974, 77), dies at 75
Baseball Players
Basketball Stars
Boxers
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NFL Stars
Tennis Champions