Deaths Famous Dead Athletes
John Levra
American college football player (Pittsburg State Gorillas) and coach (New Mexico Highlands Cowboys · 18 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 18
Artur Shamrin
Soviet and Russian footballer (FC Lokomotiv Moscow) · 18 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 18
Mladen Bartolović
Bosnian football player (Cibalia · 18 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 18
Luciano Zardi Italian Olympic weightlifter dead at age 95
Luciano Zardi, an Italian weightlifter who competed at the 1952 Summer Olympics, died on January 19, 2026, at the age of 95. Born in Ferrara, Italy, on September 15, 1930, he took part in the men's middle heavyweight event at… · 19 January 2026 · January 2026
Nabaloum Dramane
Ivorian-born Burkinabe boxer · 18 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 18
Ioan Crâsnic
Romanian wrestler and wrestling coach · 18 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 18 · Other
Kuncoro
Indonesian football player (Arema · 18 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 18
Wilbur Wood
American baseball player (Boston Red Sox · 17 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 17
Phil Goyette
Canadian ice hockey player (Montreal Canadiens) · 17 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 17
David Young (footballer, born 1945) English footballer dead at age 80
David Young, an English footballer who played for Charlton Athletic, Southend United and Newcastle United, died on January 18, 2026, aged 80. A central defender, he made 209 appearances in the Football League. Young won the FA Cup in 1973… · 18 January 2026 · January 2026
Alan Black
Scottish footballer (Norwich City · 17 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 17
Bruce Leung
Hong Kong martial artist and actor · 17 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 17 · Artists
Chet Brooks
American football player (San Francisco 49ers) · 16 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 16
Ray Crone
American baseball player (Milwaukee Braves · 16 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 16
Hoot Gibson (American football) American football player (San Diego Chargers dead at age 86
Claude "Hoot" Andrew Gibson, an American football player and coach, died on January 17, 2026. He was 87. Gibson was a defensive back and kick returner who played college football for the NC State Wolfpack before competing professionally in the… · 17 January 2026 · January 2026
Grant Batty
New Zealand rugby union player (Wellington · 16 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 16 · Grant,
Jaro Zawislan
American college soccer coach (Cornell Big Red) · 15 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 15 · Other
Anouschka Bernhard
German footballer (national team) · 15 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 15
Chris Krug American baseball player dead at age 86
Chris Krug, an American Major League Baseball catcher who played for the Chicago Cubs and San Diego Padres, died on January 16, 2026. Born Everett Ben Krug on December 25, 1939, he was signed by the St. Louis Cardinals as… · 16 January 2026 · January 2026
Edgar Salvé
Belgian middle-distance runner · 15 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 15
Clay Iles English tennis player and coach dead at age 83
Clay Iles, an English tennis player and coach, died on January 15, 2026, aged 83. A British player and LTA-licensed tennis coach, he also worked as a sports writer and tennis umpire. Iles competed at the Wimbledon Championships 12 times… · 15 January 2026 · January 2026
Ante Grgurević
Croatian basketball coach and player · 14 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 14
Mojtaba Tarshiz
Iranian footballer (Shahr Khodro F.C · 14 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 14
Rick Link
American professional wrestler · 13 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 13 · Other
Ali Hassan
Mozambican footballer (Sporting · 13 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 13
Kim Min-jae
South Korean baseball player (Lotte Giants · 13 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 13
Jason Lafreniere
Canadian ice hockey player (Tampa Bay Lightning · 12 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 12
Bill Courtney
American college basketball coach (Cornell Big Red · 12 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 12 · Other
Eric Redrobe
English association footballer · 12 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 12 · Éric
Peter Schofield (Australian rules footballer) Australian footballer (Richmond dead at age 93
Peter John Schofield, the Australian rules footballer who played for Richmond, Melbourne and North Melbourne in the Victorian Football League, died on January 13, 2026, aged 93. Born on 12 February 1932, Schofield made his VFL debut for Richmond with… · 13 January 2026 · January 2026
Brandon Holiday American canoeist dead at age 53
Brandon Holiday, an American canoeist, died on January 13, 2026. Born on January 25, 1972, he was a paracanoe sprint kayaker from the United States. Holiday grew up in Maplewood, New Jersey, where he played tennis and baseball and trained… · 13 January 2026 · January 2026
Benjaminas Zelkevičius
81 Lithuanian football player (Žalgiris Vilnius · 12 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 12
Dave Giusti
American baseball player (Houston Astros · 11 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 11
Sergey Galkov
Russian Olympic sprint canoeist (1988) · 11 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 11
Sergey Gaikov
Russian Olympic sprint canoeist (1988) · 11 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 11
Mohammad Ilyas
Pakistani cricketer (national team) · 11 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 11
John Wallace
Scottish trumpet player · 10 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 10
Thierry Steimetz
French footballer (Amnéville · 10 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 10 · French
Włodzimierz Jakubowski
Polish football player (Lech Poznań) and manager (Mieszko Gniezno · 10 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 10
Pavel Akishev
Russian baseball player (national team) · 10 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 10
Robert Hopkins
English footballer (Birmingham City · 10 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 10
Mario Jacquet
Paraguayan footballer (Cerro Porteño · 10 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 10
Davinder Singh
Indian Olympic field hockey player (1980) · 09 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 9
Zelico Petrovic
Yugoslav-born Italian footballer (Taranto · 09 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 9
Dan Coleman (American football) American football player dead at age 63
Dan Coleman, an American football player who was a defensive end for the Minnesota Vikings, died on January 10, 2026, at the age of 63. Born in Lansing, Michigan, on August 14, 1962, he played college football for the Murray… · 10 January 2026 · January 2026
Ian McCrae
Scottish rugby union player (Gordonians · 09 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 9
Bob Boyer
Canadian professional wrestler · 09 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 9 · Other
Jim Furlong
Canadian gridiron football player (Calgary Stampeders) · 08 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 8
Hans Herrmann
German racing driver (Formula One). · 08 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 8 · Other
Tony Dennis
Canadian football player (Saskatchewan Roughriders) · 08 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 8
Philip Long American Olympic swimmer dead at age 77
Philip Long, an American competition swimmer who represented the United States in the 1968 Summer Olympics, died on January 9, 2026. Born in Washington, D.C., on December 6, 1948, he competed in the 200-meter breaststroke at the Mexico City Games… · 09 January 2026 · January 2026
Antonino Mangano
Italian marathon and middle-distance running athlete · 08 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 8
Khawlhring Lalremruata
Indian cricketer (Mizoram) · 08 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 8
Randy McMillan
American football player (Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts) · 08 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 8
Miroslav Stárek
Czech footballer (AC Sparta Prague · 07 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 7 · Czech
Howard Riley (footballer) English footballer dead at age 87
Howard Riley, an English footballer who played for Leicester City, Walsall and Barrow, died on January 8, 2026, at the age of 87. Born on 18 August 1938, he made Football League appearances for the three clubs during his career. · 08 January 2026 · January 2026
Sidney de Jong
Dutch Olympic baseball player (2004 · 07 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 7 · Dutch · Jong
Terry Yorath
Welsh football player (Leeds United · 07 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 7 · Welsh
Glenn Hall
Canadian Hall of Fame ice hockey player (Detroit Red Wings · 07 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 7
Jerry Thomas
American baseball player (Minnesota Golden Gophers) · 06 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 6
Tony Field
English football player (Blackburn Rovers · 06 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 6
Billy Truax
American football player (Los Angeles Rams · 06 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 6
Forest Able
American basketball player (Syracuse Nationals) · 06 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 6
Nick Eddy
American football player (Detroit Lions) · 06 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 6
Martin Chivers
English footballer (Tottenham Hotspur) · 06 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 6
Athol Webb
Australian rules footballer (Melbourne) · 06 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 6
Elbert Kimbrough
American football player (San Francisco 49ers · 06 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 6
Anatoly Yevtushenko
Russian handball coach · 06 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 6 · Other
Willie Knox public figure dead at age 88
Willie Knox, the Scottish football player and manager, died on January 7, 2026. Born in Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, on September 9, 1937, he played as a wing half for Raith Rovers, Forfar Athletic and Barrow. He began his senior career with… · 07 January 2026 · January 2026
Jawann Oldham
American basketball player (Chicago Bulls · 05 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 5
Oscar Lofton
American football player (Boston Patriots) and coach (Southeastern Louisiana Lions) · 05 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 5
Alex Felipe
Brazilian futsal player (Sporting CP · 05 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 5
Robert Vicot
French footballer and manager (Toulon · 05 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 5 · French
Bonifacio Ávila
Colombian Olympic boxer (1972) · 05 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 5 · Avila
Jim Willis
American baseball player (Chicago Cubs) · 05 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 5
José Mingorance
Spanish football player (Espanyol · 04 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 4
Bob Pulford
Canadian ice hockey player (Toronto Maple Leafs · 04 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 4
Jim Dennison
American football coach (Akron Zips · 04 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 4 · Other
Bobby Holmes
Scottish footballer (St Mirren) · 04 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 4
Miklós Dudás
Hungarian Olympic sprint canoeist (2012) · 04 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 4
John Meredith
English footballer (Doncaster Rovers · 04 January 2026 · January 2026 · January 4