- May 1 Wan Chi Keung, Hong Kong soccer striker (32 caps; South China AA, Seiko SA) and actor, born in British Hong Kong (d. 2010)
- May 3 Gillian Rolton, Australian equestrian (Summer Olympics 1992, 1996- gold), born in Adelaide, South Australia (d. 2017)
- May 4 Ulrike Meyfarth, German athlete (Olympic gold high jump 1972 WR 1.92m, 1984; WR 2.02m 1982), born in Frankfurt, Germany
- May 6 Tim Simpson, American golfer (4 PGA Tour titles, born in Atlanta, Georgia
- May 12 Bernie Federko, Canadian NHL ice hockey HOF forward, 1976-90 (St. Louis Blues, Detroit Red Wings), born in Foam Lake, Saskatchewan
- May 15 Alice Miller, American golfer (Nabisco Dinah Shore 1985), born in Marysville, CA
- May 15 Dan Patrick, American sportscaster
Sugar Ray Leonard (67 years old)
May 17 American boxer (Olympic gold 1976), born in Rocky Mount, North Carolina
- May 18 Naomichi 'Joe' Ozaki, Japanese golfer (32 Japan Tour titles), born in Tekushima, Japan
- May 20 Andrew Hilditch, cricketer (Australian opening bat 1979-85)
- May 20 Tomas Smid, Czech, tennis star
- May 23 Buck Showalter, American baseball manager (AL Manager of the Year 1994, 2004, 14; NY Yankees, Arizona Diamondbacks, Texas Rangers, Baltimore Orioles) and analyst (ESPN, YES network), born in DeFuniak Springs, Florida
- May 23 Mark Shaw, New Zealand rugby union flanker (30 caps; Manawatu, Hawke's Bay), born in Palmerston North, New Zealand
- May 27 Nick Lowery, NFL kicker (NY Jets)
- May 28 Jeff Dujon, cricket wicket-keeper (WI 1981-91, their most successful)
- May 28 Markus Höttinger, Austrian racing driver (d. 1980)
- May 30 Allison Roe, New Zealand athlete (NYC Marathon, Boston 1981; Seoul 1982), born in Auckland, New Zealand
About May 1956
How Old? 67 or 68 years old
Generation: Baby Boomer
Leap Year: Yes
Baseball Players
Basketball Stars
Boxers
Footballers
NFL Stars
Tennis Champions