2006 in sports

Centuries:	20th century · 21st century · 22nd century
Decades:	1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s 2030s
Years:	2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

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2006 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.

[edit] American football

January 2, Fiesta Bowl – Ohio State 34-20 Notre Dame
January 2, Sugar Bowl – West Virginia 38-35 Georgia
January 3, Orange Bowl – Penn State 26-23 (3 OT) Florida State
January 4, Rose Bowl (National Championship Game) – Texas Longhorns 41-38 USC Trojans
February 5 – Pittsburgh Steelers win Super Bowl XL at Ford Field in Detroit, defeating the Seattle Seahawks 21-10.
MVP of Super Bowl XL is Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward.
Reggie White, Troy Aikman, John Madden, Warren Moon, Harry Carson, and Rayfield Wright are elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

[edit] Association football

January 1 - Australia officially leaves the Oceania Football Confederation and joins the Asian Football Confederation

International competitions

Domestic competitions

Argentina Primera División – Boca Juniors (Clausura)
Brazil Campeonato Brasileiro – São Paulo FC
England Premiership – Chelsea
France Ligue 1 – Lyon
Germany Bundesliga – Bayern Munich
Italy Serie A – Inter Milan awarded title after initial winners Juventus were stripped of the title due to involvement in the 2006 Serie A match fixing scandal.
Spain La Liga – FC Barcelona
Portugal Liga – FC Porto

[edit] Athletics

March – 2006 Commonwealth Games held in Melbourne
May 12 – Justin Gatlin equals Asafa Powell's 100 m world record time of 9.77 seconds in Doha, Qatar. Gatlin was initially given a time of 9.76, which would have been a new record, but a few days later the time was corrected to 9.77
June 11 – Asafa Powell equals the 100 m world record once again, as he ran the distance in 9.77 seconds at Gateshead, England
August 18 – Asafa Powell runs the 100 m in a record-equalling 9.77 seconds for a third time, this time in Zürich
August – 2006 European Championships in Athletics held in Gothenburg, Sweden

[edit] Baseball

March 20 – Japan wins the first World Baseball Classic, defeating Cuba 10-6 in the championship game.
May 28 – Barry Bonds hits his 715th career home run in a 6-3 home loss to the Colorado Rockies, passing Babe Ruth for second place on the career list and setting a new record for left-handed hitters.
July 11 – American League wins the MLB All-Star Game by a score of 3-2 on Michael Young's game-winning 2-run triple in the 9th inning.
October 14 – Detroit Tigers sweep the Oakland Athletics in the American League Championship Series and advance to their first World Series since 1984.
October 27 – St. Louis Cardinals win the 2006 World Series 4-1 in Game 5. The St. Louis Cardinals (10 wins) advance to 2nd place for most World Series wins after the New York Yankees(26).

[edit] Basketball

Miami Heat defeat the Dallas Mavericks in 6 games in the NBA Finals series. Finals MVP Dwyane Wade rallied four consecutive 35-point games to come back from a two games to none deficit and win four straight.
University of Florida wins its first ever NCAA title, defeating UCLA 73-57. George Mason, an 11 seed, makes it to the final four
University of Maryland wins its first ever NCAA women's title, defeating Duke 77-75 in overtime.
January 22 – Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant scores 81 points in a win over the Toronto Raptors, becoming only the second player in league history to score at least 80 points in one game. It was the second highest individual point total in NBA history (Second only to Wilt Chamberlain's 100 point performance).
Chinese Basketball Association – Guangdong Southern Tigers defeat Bayi Rockets (4-1) in finals.
National Basketball League (Australia) – Melbourne Tigers defeat the Sydney Kings 3-0 in best-of-five final series
Euroleague – Russian power CSKA Moscow dethrones the two-time defending Euroleague champions Maccabi Tel Aviv (Israel) 73-69 at Sazka Arena in Prague. This is CSKA's fifth title in the competition, but first since 1971. Third place goes to TAU Cerámica, which defeated FC Barcelona 87-82 in an all-Spanish affair.
The Detroit Shock stunned the 2005 WNBA Champion Sacramento Monarchs in 5 games in the 2006 WNBA Finals.

[edit] Boxing

January 7 – Carlos Manuel Baldomir upsets Zab Judah by unanimous decision and is crowned world welterweight champion by the WBC.
March 3 – Welshman Joe Calzaghe defeats American Jeff Lacy by landslide unanimous decision for the WBO-IBF super middleweight title unification. Calzaghe's stellar performance propelled him to #9 in Ring Magazine's pound for pound list.
April 1 – Sergei Liakhovich wins the WBO world heavyweight title from Lamon Brewster by unanimous decision.
April 8 – Floyd Mayweather Jr. defeats Zab Judah by unanimous decision to win the IBF welterweight title. A mini-riot ensued as Roger Mayweather, Floyd's uncle and trainer, runs into the ring retaliating to a low blow and rabbit punch by Judah. The fight resumed and Mayweather won by decision.
April 22 – Wladimir Klitschko wins the IBF world heavyweight title from Chris Byrd by TKO in round 7.
June 10 – Bernard Hopkins defeats Antonio Tarver by unanimous to take the light heavyweight world championship.
June 17 – Winky Wright and Jermain Taylor fight ends in a draw for the undisputed middleweight championship of the world in Memphis, Tennessee
13 to 23 July – 36th European Amateur Boxing Championships held in Plovdiv, Bulgaria
August 12 – Oleg Maskaev knocks out Hasim Rahman in the 12th round to win the WBC Heavyweight title.
November 4 Floyd Mayweather Jr. becomes the WBC and linear Welterweight champion after he defeats Carlos Baldomir by unanimous decision.
November 11 Wladimir Klitschko defends his IBF heavyweight title by defeating American contender Calvin Brock winning by a stunning knockout in the seventh round.
November 18 Manny Pacquiao wins by technical knockout in his third and rubber match against Erik Morales
December 9 Jermain Taylor defends his middleweight title as he defeats Kassim Ouma

[edit] Canadian football

November 19 – The BC Lions win the 94th Grey Cup game, defeating the Montreal Alouettes 25-14 at Canad Inns Stadium in Winnipeg.

[edit] Cricket

Main article: 2006 in cricket

[edit] Curling

Olympic champions:
- Men's – Canada (Brad Gushue, Mark Nichols, Russ Howard, Jamie Korab, Mike Adam)
- Women's – Sweden (Anette Norberg, Eva Lund, Cathrine Lindahl, Anna Svärd, Ulrika Bergman)
World champions:
- Men's – Scotland (David Murdoch, Ewan MacDonald, Warwick Smith, Euan Byers, Peter Smith)
- Women's – Sweden (Anette Norberg, Eva Lund, Cathrine Lindahl, Anna Svärd, Ulrika Bergman)

[edit] Cycling

2006 Tour de France was won by Floyd Landis of the USA, who subsequently failed a drugs test
2006 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships held in Zeddam, Netherlands, and won by Erwin Vervecken (men) and Marianne Vos (women)

[edit] Figure skating

World Figure Skating Championships held in Calgary, Canada
- Men's champion: Stéphane Lambiel
- Ladies' champion: Kimmie Meissner
- Pair skating champions: Pang Qing and Tong Jian
- Ice dancing champions: Albena Denkova and Maxim Staviski

[edit] Gaelic Athletic Association

Gaelic football
- All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, Kerry 4-15 Mayo 3-05
- National Football League, Kerry 2-11 Galway 0-11
Hurling
- All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Kilkenny 1-16 Cork 1-13

[edit] Gliding

World Gliding Championships held at Eskilstuna, Sweden
- Open Class Winner: Michael Sommer, Germany; Glider: Alexander Schleicher ASW 22 BLE

[edit] Golf

Men's professional

Masters Tournament – Phil Mickelson
U.S. Open – Geoff Ogilvy
British Open – Tiger Woods
PGA Championship – Tiger Woods
PGA Tour money leader – Tiger Woods with $9,941,563

Men's amateur

Women's professional

Kraft Nabisco Championship – Karrie Webb
LPGA Championship – Se Ri Pak
U.S. Women's Open – Annika Sörenstam
Women's British Open – Sherri Steinhauer
LPGA Tour money leader – Lorena Ochoa with $2,592,872

Team event

Team Europe wins the Ryder Cup for the third straight time, defeating Team USA 18½–9½.

[edit] Handball

2006 European Men's Handball Championship: France
2006 European Women's Handball Championship: Norway

[edit] Horse racing

Steeplechases

Cheltenham Gold Cup – War of Attrition
Grand National – Numbersixvalverde

Flat races

Australia – Melbourne Cup won by [[]]
Canada – Queen's Plate won by [[]]
Dubai – Dubai World Cup won by Electrocutionist
France – Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe won by [[]]
Ireland – Irish Derby Stakes won by [[]]
Japan – Japan Cup won by Deep Impact
English Triple Crown Races:
1. 2,000 Guineas Stakes – [[]]
2. Epsom Derby – [[]]
3. St. Leger Stakes – [[]]
United States Triple Crown Races:
1. Kentucky Derby – Barbaro
2. Preakness Stakes – [[]]
3. Belmont Stakes – [[]]
Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships:
1. Breeders' Cup Classic – [[]]
2. Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic – [[]]
3. Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf – [[]]
4. Breeders' Cup Juvenile – [[]]
5. Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies – [[]]
6. Breeders' Cup Mile – [[]]
7. Breeders' Cup Sprint – [[]]
8. Breeders' Cup Turf – [[]]

[edit] Ice hockey

17 February – Swedish women's ice hockey team defeats the United States in the semi-final round in the 2006 Olympic games. This marks the first time that either the United States or Canada has lost to anyone other than each other.
26 February – Sweden defeats Finland 3-2 to capture the men's gold medal at the 2006 Olympic games.
8 April – Wisconsin Badgers defeat the Boston College Eagles for the NCAA National Championship.
Stanley Cup Finals – Carolina Hurricanes defeat the Edmonton Oilers 4 games to 3 to win the Stanley Cup

[edit] Lacrosse

World Lacrosse Championship – Canada]] 15-10 USA in London, Ontario, breaking a 28-year US winning streak.
National Lacrosse League – Champion's Cup won by Colorado Mammoth over Buffalo Bandits 16-9 at the HSBC Arena, Buffalo, New York
Major League Lacrosse – Steinfeld Cup won by Philadelphia Barrage over Denver Outlaws 23-12 at The Home Depot Center, Carson, California

[edit] Motor racing

Formula One –
- Fernando Alonso clinches the World Driver's Championship.
- Renault F1 clinches the Formula One constructors title.
World Rally Championship won by Sébastien Loeb for the Citroën Total World Rally Team.
World Touring Car Championship won by Andy Priaulx
Stock car racing (NASCAR):
- Daytona 500 won by Jimmie Johnson in the #48 Lowe's Chevrolet
- UAW Ford 500 won by Brian Vickers in the #25 Ditech Chevrolet
- Allstate 400 at the Brickyard won by Jimmie Johnson in the #48 Lowe's Chevrolet
- 2006 NASCAR Nextel Cup Champion – Jimmie Johnson
Indy Racing League –
- March 26 – Paul Dana is killed and Ed Carpenter is injured in an accident during the final practice before the Toyota Indy 300. Dana's teammates, Buddy Rice and Danica Patrick, withdraw from the race following the crash.
- Indianapolis 500 won by Sam Hornish, Jr..
- 2006 IRL IndyCar Series champion – Sam Hornish, Jr..
24 hours of Le Mans won by
- 2006 Austrailian V8 Supercar champion – Rick Kelly.

[edit] Radiosport

13th Amateur Radio Direction Finding World Championship held in Primorsko, Bulgaria.

[edit] Rugby league

February 3 at Galpharm Stadium, Huddersfield – 2006 World Club Challenge match is won by the Bradford Bulls 30-10 over the Wests Tigers before 19,207
March 18 at Canberra Stadium, Canberra – record for most points scored in Australian premiership history is broken with 102 scored in the Newcastle Knights' 70-32 win over the Canberra Raiders
May 5 at Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane – 2006 ANZAC Day Test is won by Australia 50-12 against New Zealand before 44,191
July 5 at Telstra Dome, Melbourne – 2006 State of Origin is won by Queensland in the third and deciding match against New South Wales 16-14 before 54,833
August 26 at Twickenham Stadium, London – 2006 Challenge Cup tournament culminates in St Helens RLFC's 42-12 win over Huddersfield Giants in the final before 65,187
October 1 at Telstra Stadium, Sydney – 2006 NRL premiership culminates in the Brisbane Broncos' 15-8 win over the Melbourne Storm in the Grand Final before 79,609
October 14 at Old Trafford, Manchester – Super League XI culminates in St Helens RLFC's 26-4 win over Hull FC in the Grand Final before 72,582
November 25 at Aussie Stadium, Sydney – 2006 Tri-nations tournament culminates in Australia's 16-12 win over New Zealand in the final before 27,325

[edit] Rugby union

France win the 2006 Six Nations Championship
Sale Sharks win the Guinness Premiership
London Wasps win the 2005-06 Powergen Cup
Biarritz win the Top 14
Ulster win the Celtic League
Munster win the 2005-06 Heineken Cup
The Crusaders win the Super 14 final in foggy conditions.
The All Blacks win the 2006 Tri Nations Series
The Blue Bulls and the Free State Cheetahs share the Currie Cup in Bloemfontein after the final went into extra time and was drawn 28-28

[edit] Ski jumping

Four Hills Tournament – Janne Ahonen and Jakub Janda are joint winners, the first time in the tournament's 54-year history that it has been shared

[edit] Ski mountaineering

February-March – 2006 World Championship of Skimountaineering held in the Province of Cuneo in Italy

[edit] Speed skating

European Championships held at Hamar, Norway
- Men's all-round: Enrico Fabris (Italy) with 151.523 points
- Ladies' all-round: Claudia Pechstein (Germany) with 163.159 points
World Sprint Championships held at Heerenveen, Netherlands
- Men: Joey Cheek (USA) with 139.990 points
- Ladies: Svetlana Zhurova (Russia) with 153.625 points
World Allround Championships held at Calgary, Canada
- Men: Shani Davis (USA) with 145.742 points
- Ladies: Cindy Klassen (Canada) with 154.580 points

[edit] Swimming

8th World Short Course Championships held in Shanghai
- Australia wins the most medals (24) and the most gold medals (12)
28th European LC Championships held in Budapest
- Italy and France win the most medals (15); Russia the most gold medals (7)
August 12 – Roland Schoeman breaks the short course world record in the men's 50m freestyle (short course) at Hamburg and becomes the first man to swim the distance under 21 seconds with a time of 20:98 seconds.
August 28 – at Hobart, Tasmania, Australian swimmer Libby Lenton betters Natalie Coughlin's world record in the women's 100m butterfly (short course) from 56:39 to 55:95

[edit] Tennis

Australian Open
- Men's Final: Roger Federer (Switzerland) defeats Marcos Baghdatis (Cyprus)
- Women's Final: Amélie Mauresmo (France) defeats Justine Henin-Hardenne (Belgium)
French Open
- Men's Final: Rafael Nadal (Spain) defeats Roger Federer (Switzerland)
- Women's Final: Justine Henin-Hardenne (Belgium) defeats Svetlana Kuznetsova (Russia)
Wimbledon Championships
- Men's Final: Roger Federer (Switzerland) defeats Rafael Nadal (Spain)
- Women's Final: Amélie Mauresmo (France) defeats Justine Henin-Hardenne (Belgium)
US Open
- Men's Final: Roger Federer (Switzerland) defeats Andy Roddick (USA)
- Women's Final: Maria Sharapova (Russia) defeats Justine Henin-Hardenne (Belgium)

[edit] Volleyball

Men's World League: Brazil
2006 Men's European Volleyball League: Netherlands
2006 FIVB Men's World Championship: Brazil
Women's World Grand Prix: Brazil
2006 FIVB Women's World Championship: Russia

[edit] Water polo

2006 FINA Men's Water Polo World Cup: Serbia
2006 FINA Men's Water Polo World League: Serbia
2006 Men's European Water Polo Championship: Serbia
2006 Women's European Water Polo Championship: Russia
2006 FINA Women's Water Polo World League: USA

[edit] Multi-sport events

Central American and Caribbean Games held in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia

[edit] Awards

[edit] References

Centuries:	20th century · 21st century · 22nd century
Decades:	1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s 2030s
Years:	2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009