Famous Dead Athletes: Recent Athlete Deaths and Obituaries
Over 20,000 obituaries of famous dead athletes. Notable deaths, news, info, and memorial pages.
Nicky Smith public figure dead at age 57
Nicky Smith, an English professional footballer and later policeman and football manager, died on April 13, 2026. Born Nicholas Leslie Smith on 28 January 1969 in Berkeley, Gloucestershire, he began…
Rafael Tolosa Colombian racing cyclist dead at age 67
Rafael Tolosa, a Colombian racing cyclist, died on April 13, 2026, at the age of 67. Tolosa, also known as Rafael Antonio Tolosa Calvo, rode for Café de Colombia and…
Hans-Jürgen Becher German footballer dead at age 84
Hans-Jürgen Becher, a German footballer who played for Schalke 04, died on April 13, 2026, at the age of 84. A defender, he made 32 appearances in the Oberliga West…
Dave McGinnis American football player and coach dead at age 74
Dave McGinnis, an American football player and coach, died on April 13, 2026, at the age of 74. He played as a defensive back at Texas Christian University, where he…
Lyudmila Shevtsova retired Russian-Ukrainian athlete dead at age 91
Lyudmila Shevtsova, a Russian-Ukrainian athlete, died on April 13, 2026, at the age of 91. She competed mainly in the 800 metres and set a world record in the event…
Alonso López Colombian footballer dead at age 69
Alonso López died on April 12, 2026. He was a Colombian footballer who played for Millonarios and the national team. His death was announced in brief notices that identified him…
Edgardo Roque Filipino Olympic basketball player dead at age 88
Edgardo Roque, a Filipino Olympic basketball player, died on April 12, 2026, at age 88. Born on February 11, 1938, in Obando, Bulacan, in the Philippine Commonwealth, he competed in…
Aldo Cacioppo Italian basketball player dead at age 81
Aldo Cacioppo died on April 12, 2026. He was an Italian basketball player. Aldo Cacioppo [it], 81, Italian basketball player. Tags Athletes, 12 April 2026, Aldo, Cacioppo, Italy, 2026-04-12, April…
Ursula Donath German runner, Olympic bronze medalist dead at age 94
Ursula Donath, a German runner and Olympic bronze medalist, died on April 12, 2026. She was 94. Born Ursula Jurewitz in Saldus, Latvia, she competed in the 400 metres and…
Dominic Frimpong Ghanaian footballer, shot dead at age 20
Dominic Frimpong, a Ghanaian professional footballer who played for Berekum Chelsea, died on April 12, 2026, after he was shot when the club’s team bus was attacked by armed robbers.…
Csaba Kuzma Hungarian Olympic boxer dead at age 71
Csaba Kuzma, a Hungarian Olympic boxer, died on April 12, 2026, at the age of 71. He was a retired light-heavyweight boxer who represented Hungary at the 1980 Summer Olympics…
Laurie Abrahams English footballer and coach dead at age 72
Laurie Abrahams, the English footballer and coach at Irvine Valley College, died on April 12, 2026, aged 72. Born Lawrence Adam Michael Abrahams in Stepney, in the East End of…
Chris Payton-Jones American football player, traffic collision dead at age 30
Chris Payton-Jones, an American football player who played for the Arizona Cardinals, Minnesota Vikings and Tennessee Titans, died on April 11, 2026, in a traffic collision. He was 30. A…
Paul Berry English footballer dead at age 68
Paul Berry, the English footballer who played for Oxford United and Witney United, died on April 11, 2026, aged 68. Born on April 8, 1958, he was a professional player…
Marian Cygan Polish football player and manager dead at age 85
Marian Cygan, a Polish football player and manager, died on April 11, 2026, at the age of 85. Born on June 30, 1940, he was raised in Kraków and came…
Sutan Harhara Indonesian football player and manager dead at age 73
Sutan Harhara, an Indonesian football player and manager, died on April 11, 2026, at the age of 73. He played for Persija Jakarta and the Indonesia national team in the…
Stefanos Borbokis Greek footballer dead at age 59
Stefanos Borbokis, a Greek footballer who played for PAOK, Iraklis and the national team, died on April 11, 2026, at the age of 59. Borbokis began his career at PAOK…
Pedro Ramayá Beltrán Colombian caña de millo player, pleural effusion dead at age 96
Pedro Ramayá Beltrán, a Colombian caña de millo player and songwriter, died on April 11, 2026, at age 96. Born Pedro Agustín Beltrán Castro on February 5, 1930, in Patico,…
Cleighten Cornelius New Zealand cricketer and winemaker, myeloma dead at age 49
Cleighten Cornelius, a New Zealand cricketer and winemaker, died on April 11, 2026, aged 49, in Blenheim, New Zealand, from myeloma. Born in Christchurch on June 2, 1976, he played…
Murt Duggan dead at age 84, Vet
Murt Duggan, an Irish hurler and selector, died on April 11, 2026, at the age of 85. Born in Gortnahoe on November 27, 1940, he played at club level with…
Phil Garner American baseball player and manager, pancreatic cancer dead at age 76
Phil Garner, an American baseball player and manager, died on April 11, 2026, of pancreatic cancer. He was 76. Garner played in Major League Baseball as an infielder with the…
Jacek Magiera Polish football coach dead at age 49
Jacek Magiera, a Polish football coach, died on April 10, 2026. Jacek Magiera, 49, Polish football coach. Tags Athletes, 10 April 2026, Jacek, Magiera, Poland, 2026-04-10, April 10, April 2026
Browning Nagle public figure dead at age 57
Browning Nagle, an American football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League, died on April 10, 2026, at age 57 of colon cancer. He played for the…
Gerry Ward American basketball player dead at age 84
Gerry Ward, an American basketball player who played for the Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers and Chicago Bulls, died on April 10, 2026, at age 84. Born Gerald W. Ward on…
C. D. Gopinath Indian test cricketer dead at age 96
C. D. Gopinath, the Indian test cricketer who represented Madras and the national team, died on April 9, 2026, at the age of 96. Born in Madras on March 1,…
Valery Rukhledev Russian sports activist dead at age 78
Valery Rukhledev, a Russian sports activist and six-time Deaflympics wrestling gold medalist, died on April 9, 2026, at the age of 78. Born on January 18, 1948, in Rybinsky District,…
Domingos Lucas Naftal Mozambican footballer dead at age 84
Domingos Lucas Naftal, a Mozambican footballer, died on April 9, 2026, aged 84. Born on April 23, 1941, Naftal played as a forward and began at youth level with FC…
Jackie Moore American basketball player dead at age 93
Jackie Moore, an American basketball player, died on April 9, 2026, at age 93. Born in Philadelphia on September 24, 1932, John T. "Jackie" Moore was a 6-foot-5 small forward…
John Edelman public figure dead at age 90
John Edelman, an American former Major League Baseball pitcher, died on April 9, 2026. He was 90. Edelman, whose full name was John Rogers Edelman, signed with the Milwaukee Braves…
Billy Bryan American baseball player dead at age 87
Billy Bryan, an American baseball player who appeared for the Kansas City Athletics, New York Yankees and Washington Senators, died on April 9, 2026, at age 87. William Ronald Bryan…
Brian Garvey English footballer dead at age 88
Brian Garvey, the English footballer who played as a defender in the Football League, died on April 8, 2026, aged 88. Born in Kingston upon Hull, he joined his hometown…
Davey Lopes American baseball player and coach, complications from Parkinson’s disease dead a…
Davey Lopes, an American baseball player and coach, died April 8, 2026, of complications from Parkinson's disease. He was 80. Lopes played in Major League Baseball as a second baseman…
Srećko Bogdan Croatian footballer dead at age 69
Srećko Bogdan, a Croatian footballer and former professional defender, died on April 8, 2026, at the age of 69. Born in Mursko Središće, Croatia, FPR Yugoslavia, he began his career…
Duško Vujošević Montenegrin basketball coach, heart and kidney disease dead at age 67
Duško Vujošević, a Montenegrin basketball coach, died on April 8, 2026, of heart and kidney disease. He was 67. Vujošević coached Partizan Belgrade in four stints and also worked with…
Kostakis Pierides Cypriot footballer dead at age 85
Kostakis Pierides, a Cypriot footballer who played for Pezoporikos Larnaca, Olympiakos Nicosia and the Cyprus national team, died on April 8, 2026, at the age of 85. Born on April…
Ken Smale public figure dead at age 92
Ken Smale, an Australian footballer and music director, died on April 7, 2026. He was 92. Smale played for Collingwood in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and was a forward…
Jack Crabtree public figure dead at age 90
Jack Crabtree, an American football player who was a quarterback for the Oregon Ducks, died on April 7, 2026, at the age of 90. Crabtree played at Excelsior High School…
Mircea Lucescu Romanian footballer and manager, complications from a heart attack dead at age 80
Mircea Lucescu, the Romanian footballer and manager, died on April 7, 2026, from complications from a heart attack. He was 80. Lucescu played for Dinamo București and the Romania national…
Alex Hilton Canadian boxer dead at age 61
Alex Hilton, a Canadian boxer, died on April 7, 2026, at age 61. A former professional boxer, he won the vacant Canadian middleweight title at age 18 in December 1983,…
Chuck Nieson American baseball player dead at age 83
Chuck Nieson, an American former Major League Baseball pitcher for the Minnesota Twins, died on April 7, 2026. He was 83. Born Charles Bassett Nieson in Hanford, California, on September…
Nancy Garapick Canadian swimmer, Olympic bronze medalist dead at age 64
Nancy Garapick, the Canadian swimmer and 1976 Olympic bronze medalist, died on April 6, 2026. Born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, in 1961, she won two bronze medals at the 1976…
Juarez Teixeira Brazilian footballer dead at age 97
Juarez Teixeira died on April 6, 2026. He was a Brazilian footballer who played for Jabaquara and Grêmio and was also part of the national team. Juarez Teixeira, 97, Brazilian…
Danny Miranda Cuban baseball player, Olympic champion, intestinal blockage dead at age 47
Danny Miranda, a Cuban baseball player and Olympic champion, died on April 5, 2026, of intestinal blockage. He was 2004 Olympic champion. Danny Miranda, 47, Cuban baseball player, Olympic champion…
Eberhard Riedel German Olympic alpine skier dead at age 88
Eberhard Riedel died on April 5, 2026. He was a German Olympic alpine skier who competed in the 1960, 1964, and 1968 Winter Games. His career included appearances across three…
Francesco Zani Italian rugby union player dead at age 87
Francesco Zani, an Italian rugby union player, died on April 5, 2026, at the age of 87. Known as Francesco "Franco" Zani, he played as a lock and spent time…
Adán Godoy Chilean footballer dead at age 89
Adán Godoy died on April 5, 2026. He was a Chilean footballer who played for Santiago Morning and the national team. Adán Godoy, 89, Chilean footballer (Santiago Morning, national team).…
Tony Davis American football player, complications from Parkinson’s disease dead at age 73
Tony Davis, an American football player who played for the Cincinnati Bengals, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Boston Breakers, died on April 5, 2026, of complications from Parkinson's disease. His career…
Gerard Williams public figure dead at age 73
Gerard Williams, an American professional football cornerback, died in April 2026 at the age of 73. Born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, in 1952, he played in the National Football League…
Garner Ekstran American football player dead at age 84
Garner Ekstran, an American football player who played for the Saskatchewan Roughriders and BC Lions, died on April 4, 2026. His death was reported without further details. Ekstran was known…
Paul Orsatti French footballer and manager dead at age 84
Paul Orsatti, the French footballer and manager who played as a goalkeeper and coached Gazélec Ajaccio, died on April 4, 2026, at the age of 84. Orsatti played professionally from…
Bob Duliba American baseball player dead at age 91
Bob Duliba died on April 4, 2026. He was an American baseball player. Bob Duliba, 91, American baseball player. Tags Athletes, 04 April 2026, America, Bob, Duliba, 2026-04-04, April 2026,…
Gerald Paddio American basketball player, traffic collision dead at age 60
Gerald Paddio died on April 4, 2026, in a traffic collision. He was an American basketball player who played for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Indiana Pacers, and New York Knicks. His…
Yun Ki-hyeon South Korean Go player dead at age 83
Yun Ki-hyeon, a South Korean Go player, died on April 4, 2026. He was 83. Born on September 19, 1942, Yun won the Guksu title twice, in 1971 and 1972.…
Ted Read public figure dead at age 94
Ted Read died April 3, 2026. Ted Read, 94, British academic and cross-country coach. (death announced on this date) Tags Athletes, Scientists, 03 April 2026, Britain, Read, Ted, 2026-04-03, April…
Valery Skrylev Russian martial arts coach dead at age 71
Valery Skrylev, a Russian martial arts coach, died on April 3, 2026. Valery Skrylev [ru], 71, Russian martial arts coach. Tags Athletes, 03 April 2026, Russia, Skrylev, Valery, 2026-04-03, April…
John Cheek American lacrosse player dead at age 70
John Cheek died on April 3, 2026. He was an American lacrosse player who played on the national team. John Cheek, 70, American lacrosse player (national team). Tags Athletes, 03…
Fred Curry American professional wrestler dead at age 82
Fred Curry, an American professional wrestler known as "Flying" Fred Curry, died on April 3, 2026, at age 82. Born Fred Thomas Koury Jr., he competed in the NWA and…
Butch Wilson American football player, cancer dead at age 84
Butch Wilson, an American football player who played for the Baltimore Colts and New York Giants, died on April 3, 2026, of cancer. He was 84. Wilson, whose full name…
Neville Glover Australian rugby league player dead at age 70
Neville Glover, the Australian rugby league player who represented Parramatta Eels, Penrith Panthers and Australia, died on April 2, 2026, aged 70. Neville Kenneth Glover OAM was born in Sydney…
Nicolás Biglianti Uruguayan footballer, Rampla Juniors, Peñarol), pancreatic cancer dead at age 51
Nicolás Biglianti, a Uruguayan footballer who played for Liverpool Montevideo, Rampla Juniors and Peñarol, died on April 2, 2026, of pancreatic cancer. He was 51. Biglianti, whose full name was…
Trygve Berge Norwegian Olympic alpine skier dead at age 93
Trygve Berge, Norwegian Olympic alpine skier, died on April 2, 2026, at the age of 93. Born in Voss Municipality on April 13, 1932, he competed in alpine skiing at…
Nicolás Biglianti Uruguayan footballer dead at age 51
Nicolás Biglianti, a Uruguayan footballer, died on April 2, 2026. Nicolás Biglianti [es], 51, Uruguayan footballer. Tags Athletes, 02 April 2026, Biglianti, Uruguay, 2026-04-02, April 2, April 2026, Nicolás
Ian Rutherford New Zealand cricketer dead at age 68
Ian Rutherford, a New Zealand cricketer who played for Otago, Central Districts and Central Otago, died on April 2, 2026, aged 68. Born in Dunedin on June 30, 1957, Ian…
Gilbertson Sangma Indian footballer dead at age 70
Gilbertson Sangma, an Indian footballer who played as a forward, died on April 2, 2026. He received his early football lessons at the Assam Police Reserve in Dergaon. Sangma began…
Dan Piachaud Sri Lankan cricketer dead at age 89
Dan Piachaud, a Sri Lankan cricketer who played for Oxford University, Marylebone and the national team, died on April 2, 2026, aged 89. Born in Colombo in 1937, he studied…
Tom Valenti American chef dead at age 67
Tom Valenti, an American chef, died on April 1, 2026, at age 67. He was executive chef at Jockey Hollow Bar and Kitchen in Morristown, New Jersey, and owner and…
Dick Roberge Canadian ice hockey player and coach dead at age 91
Dick Roberge died on April 1, 2026. He was a Canadian ice hockey player and coach who played for the Johnstown Jets, New Westminster Royals and Pittsburgh Hornets. His career…
Dick Farley American football player and coach dead at age 79
Dick Farley, an American football player and coach who played for the San Diego Chargers and later coached the Williams Ephs, died on April 1, 2026, at age 79. Farley…
Peter V. Smith Australian footballer dead at age 78
Peter V. Smith, an Australian footballer who played with Melbourne and Carlton, died on April 1, 2026, aged 78. Born in Brunswick, Victoria, on September 22, 1947, Peter Victor Smith…
Jack Harliwich New Zealand cricketer dead at age 95
Jack Harliwich, a New Zealand cricketer, died on April 1, 2026, aged 95. Born in Christchurch on July 14, 1930, he was a right-arm medium pacer who played one first-class…
Eduard Koksharov Russian handball player and coach, Olympic champion and bronze medalist dead at ag…
Eduard Koksharov, the Russian handball player and coach who was an Olympic champion in 2000 and a bronze medalist in 2004, died on March 31, 2026. Born in Krasnodar on…
Borislav Mihaylov Footballer, football administrator dead at age 63
Borislav Mihaylov, the Bulgarian football player and administrator who served twice as president of the Bulgarian Football Union, died on March 31, 2026, in Sofia, Bulgaria, from complications of a…
Bob Atha American football player, cancer dead at age 65
Bob Atha, an American football player who played for the Ohio State Buckeyes, died on March 31, 2026, at age 65. Atha, born in Marietta, Ohio, played college football as…
Lionel Fernando Sri Lankan-born Australian cricketer dead at age 86
Lionel Fernando, a Sri Lankan-born Australian cricketer, died on March 31, 2026, aged 86. Born in Negombo, British Ceylon, in 1939, he played for Ceylon from 1964 to 1971 as…
Hans-Jürgen Kreische German football player and manager, Olympic bronze medalist dead at age 78
Hans-Jürgen Kreische, a German football player and manager best known for his long association with Dynamo Dresden and the East Germany national team, died on March 30, 2026. He spent…
Víctor Cabrera public figure dead at age 68
Víctor Hugo Cabrera Sánchez, a Chilean footballer known as a forward, died on March 30, 2026. Better known by his nickname Pititore, he was one of the most prolific goalscorers…
Kees Kuijs public figure dead at age 94
Kees Kuijs, a Dutch footballer who played as a left-back, died on March 30, 2026, at the age of 94. Born Cornelis Johannes Kuijs on 4 October 1931, he made…
Mykola Pinchuk public figure dead at age 79
Mykola Pinchuk, a Ukrainian and Soviet footballer who played as a defender, died on March 30, 2026, at the age of 79. Born Mykola Ivanovych Pinchuk on July 25, 1946,…
Vassilis Goumas Greek basketball player dead at age 79
Vassilis Goumas, a Greek basketball player who played for Panellinios, AEK and Ilysiakos, died on March 30, 2026, at the age of 79. Known during his career as "The Emperor,"…
Gianluca Cherubini Italian footballer dead at age 52
Gianluca Cherubini, an Italian professional footballer who played for Reggiana, Chieti and Torres, died on March 30, 2026. Cherubini was born on 28 February 1974 and played for four seasons…
Tony Godden English footballer dead at age 70
Tony Godden, the English footballer who played as a goalkeeper for Chelsea, Peterborough United and West Bromwich Albion, died on March 29, 2026. Born Anthony Leonard Godden on 2 August…
Kim Bukhantsov Russian Olympic discus thrower dead at age 94
Kim Bukhantsov, a Soviet athlete and Russian Olympic discus thrower, died on March 29, 2026, at the age of 94. He competed in the men's discus throw at the 1956,…
Willie Watson Scottish footballer dead at age 76
Willie Watson, a Scottish footballer who played as a defender, died on March 29, 2026. Born William Watson on 4 December 1949, he signed with Manchester United in 1970 and…
Bill Riley Canadian ice hockey player and coach, cancer dead at age 75
Bill Riley, a Canadian ice hockey player and coach, died on March 29, 2026, of cancer. Born in Amherst, Nova Scotia, on September 20, 1950, he played 139 NHL games…
Jay Robinson American Hall of Fame wrestler and coach dead at age 79
Jay Paul Robinson, an American Hall of Fame wrestler and coach, died on March 29, 2026. Known as J Robinson, he competed in the 1972 Summer Olympics as a middleweight…
Chang Ung Sports administrator dead at age 87
Chang Ung North Korean basketball player (national team) and sports administrator, president of ITF (2002–2015) and member of the IOC (1996–2018) · Died March 28, 2026 Chang Ung, a North…
Joël Henry French footballer dead at age 63
Joël Henry, the French footballer who played as an attacking midfielder, died on March 28, 2026. He made 345 appearances and scored 51 goals in Ligue 1 between 1978 and…
Joey Browner American football player dead at age 65
Joey Browner, an American football player who played safety for the Minnesota Vikings and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, died on March 28, 2026, at age 65. Browner played for the Vikings…
Dallas O’Neill Australian rugby league and union player dead at age 83
Dallas O'Neill, an Australian rugby league and rugby union player, died on March 28, 2026, aged 83. Born in Mackay, Queensland, O'Neill was an Australian rugby union international who represented…
Jeff Siemon American football player dead at age 75
Jeff Siemon, an American football player who spent his entire 11-year NFL career as a linebacker for the Minnesota Vikings, died on March 28, 2026. He was 75. Siemon played…
Kitty Harrison American college tennis coach dead at age 91
Kitty Harrison, an American college tennis coach who led the North Carolina Tar Heels women’s tennis team, died on March 27, 2026. Katherine Gordon Harrison coached the Tar Heels from…
Larry Price American football player and radio host dead at age 91
Larry Price, an American football player and radio host, died on March 27, 2026. He was 91. Price was a resident of Honolulu and was known for his work as…
Mary Rand British track and field athlete, Olympic champion dead at age 86
Mary Rand, the British track and field athlete and 1964 Olympic champion, died on March 27, 2026, aged 86. Born Mary Denise Bignal in Wells, Somerset, England, she excelled at…
David Cabrero Spanish Olympic track cyclist dead at age 49
David Cabrero, a Spanish Olympic track cyclist, died on March 27, 2026, after a long illness. Born in Madrid on December 11, 1976, Cabrero competed in two events at the…
Barret Robbins American football player dead at age 52
Barret Robbins, an American football player who spent nine seasons as a center for the Oakland Raiders, died on March 26, 2026, at age 52. Born in Houston, Texas, in…
Rosa Salikhova Russian volleyball player, Olympic champion dead at age 81
Rosa Salikhova, a Russian volleyball player and Olympic champion, died on March 26, 2026. Born on September 24, 1944, in Nizhny Tagil, Sverdlovsk Oblast, in the Russian SFSR, Soviet Union,…
Orlando Wiet Surinamese-Dutch mixed martial artist dead at age 60
Orlando Wiet, a Surinamese-Dutch mixed martial artist, died on March 26, 2026, at the age of 60. Born in Paramaribo, then in Dutch Guiana, on October 24, 1965, he was…
Alex Cropley Scottish footballer dead at age 75
Alex Cropley, a Scottish footballer who played for Hibernian, Aston Villa and the Scotland national team, died on March 26, 2026. Born in Aldershot, Hampshire, and raised in Edinburgh, he…