1981 Swedish motorcycle Grand Prix
The 1981 Swedish motorcycle Grand Prix was the thirteenth round of the 1981 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of 14–16 August 1981 at the Scandinavian Raceway in Anderstorp, Sweden.


1981 Swiss Indoors
The 1981 Swiss Indoors was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts at the St. Jakobshalle in Basel, Switzerland that was part of the 1981 Volvo Grand Prix. It was the 13th edition of the tournament and was held from 12 October through 18 October 1981. First-seeded Ivan Lendl won the singles title.


1981 Swiss Indoors, Finals, Doubles
Ilie Năstase /  José Luis Clerc defeated  Markus Günthardt /  Pavel Složil 7–6, 6–7, 7–6


1981 Swiss referendums
Four referendums were held in Switzerland in 1981. The first was held on 5 April on a popular initiative "for a new policy on foreigners." Known as the "Mitenand Initiative", it was rejected by 84% of voters. The next two referendums were held on 14 June on popular initiatives for gender equality and the protection of consumer rights, both of which were approved. The final referendum was held on 29 November on prolonging the federal finance order, and was also approved.


1981 Syracuse Orangemen football team
The 1981 Syracuse Orangemen football team represented Syracuse University during the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team was led by first-year head coach Dick MacPherson and played their home games in the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York. Syracuse finished the season with a 4–6–1 record.


1981 Syrian parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Syria on 9 and 10 November 1981. The result was a victory for the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party, which won 127 of the 195 seats.


1981 São Paulo FC season
The 1981 season was São Paulo's 52nd season since club's existence.


1981 TAA Formula Ford Driver to Europe Series
The 1981 TAA Formula Ford Driver to Europe Series was an Australian motor racing competition for Formula Ford racing cars.


1981 TAA Formula Ford Driver to Europe Series
The series, which was the twelfth Australian Formula Ford Series, was won by Phillip Revell driving a Lola T440.


1981 TAA Formula Ford Driver to Europe Series, Series schedule
The series was contested over eight rounds with one race per round.


1981 TAA Formula Ford Driver to Europe Series, Points system
Points were awarded on a 20, 15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 3, 2, 1 basis for the first ten places at each round.


1981 TAAC Men's Basketball Tournament
The 1981 Trans America Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Tournament (now known as the Atlantic Sun Men's Basketball Tournament) was held March 4–8, 1981 at the Hirsch Memorial Coliseum in Shreveport, Louisiana.


1981 TAAC Men's Basketball Tournament
Mercer upset top-seeded Houston Baptist in the championship game, 72–67, to win their first TAAC/Atlantic Sun men's basketball tournament. The Bears, in turn, received the TAAC's automatic bid to the 1981 NCAA Tournament. This was Mercer's first appearance in the Division I NCAA tournament.


1981 TANFL season
The 1981 Tasmanian Australian National Football League (TANFL) premiership season was an Australian rules football competition staged in Hobart, Tasmania over twenty (20) roster rounds and four finals series matches between 4 April and 19 September 1981.


1981 TANFL season
The League was known as the Winfield League under a A$30,000 commercial naming-rights sponsorship agreement with the Winfield tobacco company.


1981 TANFL season, 1981 TANFL Ladder, Round 9
Note: This match was moved to North Hobart after Queenborough was closed by the Hobart City Council 24-hours prior.


1981 TANFL season, 1981 TANFL Ladder, Round 19
Note: Peter Hudson (Glenorchy) returns to football for the first time since his 1979 retirement and kicks 10 goals.


1981 TANFL season, 1981 TANFL Ladder, Grand Final
Source: All scores and statistics courtesy of the Hobart Mercury and Saturday Evening Mercury (SEM) publications.


1981 TCU Horned Frogs football team
The 1981 TCU Horned Frogs football team represented Texas Christian University (TCU) in the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Horned Frogs finished the season 2–7–2 overall and 1–6–1 in the Southwest Conference. The team was coached by F. A. Dry, in his fifth year as head coach. The Frogs played their home games in Amon G. Carter Stadium, which is located on campus in Fort Worth, Texas.


1981 Taipei International Championships
The 1981 Taipei International Championships was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts in Taipei, Taiwan that was part of the 1981 Volvo Grand Prix. It was the fifth edition of the tournament and was held from 9 November through 15 November 1981. Unseeded Robert Van't Hof won the singles title.


1981 Taipei International Championships, Finals, Doubles
John Benson /  Mike Bauer defeated  John Austin /  Mike Cahill 6–4, 6–3


1981 Talladega 500
The 1981 Talladega 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event that took place on August 2, 1981, at Alabama International Motor Speedway in Talladega, Alabama.


1981 Talladega 500, Background
Talladega Superspeedway, originally known as Alabama International Motor Superspeedway (AIMS), is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base in the small city of Lincoln. The track is a Tri-oval and was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in the 1960s. Talladega is most known for its steep banking and the unique location of the start/finish line - located just past the exit to pit road. The track currently hosts the NASCAR series such as the Sprint Cup Series, Xfinity Series, and the Camping World Truck Series. Talladega Superspeedway is the longest NASCAR oval with a length of 2.66 miles (4.28 km), and the track at its peak had a seating capacity of 175,000 spectators.


1981 Talladega 500, Race report
An all-American grid of 42 drivers would appear at this race; Joe Booher would receive credit for the last-place finish due to an engine issue on the fourth lap. It took more than three hours to resolve the 188 lap race. There were eight caution periods for 36 laps with 39 lead changes. Harry Gant would win the pole position with a qualifying speed of 195.897 miles per hour (315.266 km/h). Rick Wilson crashed at least four times in this race before finally finishing his Oldsmobile off on lap 148.


1981 Talladega 500, Race report
This race marked the end of the road for an iconic sponsorship as the Wood Brothers' #21 Ford hit the track in its famous Purolator colors for the final time, ending a partnership that dated back to 1971. Alabama's own Neil Bonnett qualified well and led some laps early on before a mechanical gremlin put the #21 on the sidelines. Morgan Shepherd and his crew chief Darrell Bryant and a few of his own crew members got into a fight before this race. That led to Shepherd being released and Joe Millikan being hired for the rest of the season. Shepherd would qualify for the race in 15th place. However, he would drop out of the race on lap 55 due to engine problems and finish in 36th place.


1981 Talladega 500, Race report
Darrell Waltrip, Terry Labonte, and Ron Bouchard were nose-to-tail going into the final lap. Coming through the trioval to the finish line, Labonte tried to pass Waltrip on the outside, Waltrip forcing him high, up against the wall. Bouchard, in third place, slipped by on the inside and won by 2 feet or 0.61 metres in a spectacular 3-wide photo finish in front of 75,000 spectators. It would be the only Cup victory of his career. The thrilling win would propel him to that year's NASCAR Rookie of the Year award. Bouchard and Pete Hamilton are the only NASCAR Cup Series winners from Massachusetts to date.


1981 Talladega 500, Race report
Terry Herman would make his first NASCAR Cup start in this race while Sandy Satullo, II would make his last. Stan Barrett would make the best finish of his career in this race; he would go on to father independent driver Stanton Barrett. Richard Childress would make one of his final driving appearances before becoming a full-time owner of Richard Childress Racing.


1981 Talladega 500, Race report
The finish of the race was shown on the CBS Evening News that night, due to the technical problems that happened during the race.


1981 Talladega 500, Finishing order
† signifies that the driver is known to be deceased * Driver failed to finish race


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season
The 1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 6th season in the National Football League the 6th playing their home games at Tampa Stadium and the 6th under head coach John McKay. The team improved on their 5–10–1 record from the 1980 season and finished 9-7.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season
The team was considered to be superior to the 1979 team that finished the season one game shy of the Super Bowl. With the running game and special teams ineffective, the Buccaneers depended heavily on the pass, and particularly on the big play. Jimmie Giles returned to form, establishing numerous team receiving records. Doug Williams became (with Jim Zorn) the second active quarterback to need only four seasons to reach the 10,000 career passing yards mark.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season
The defense improved over the previous season, a change that McKay attributed to less reliance on blitzes, and a general improvement in speed due to changes in the secondary and the drafting of Hugh Green. Their defense allowed the fewest touchdowns of any NFL team, and was described by opponents as "outstanding" and "almost awesome". The team was dogged by inconsistent play throughout the season.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season
Players and coaches believed the Buccaneers to be a playoff-worthy team, but a tendency to self-destruct kept them on the edge of the playoff race, thanks in part to a failure of any other team to take control in either the NFC Central division or the NFC wild-card chase. "We make more mistakes at crucial times than any team I've ever been associated with", said ex-Buckeyes, -Raiders, and -Dolphins safety Neal Colzie. Opposing coach Dick Vermeil said, "I'm not sure they know how good they are", after his Philadelphia Eagles team beat the Buccaneers despite having been outplayed. Nevertheless, the team developed a maturity through the season which allowed them to remain competitive instead of collapsing when behind or when being outplayed.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season
Late-season coaching adjustments improved the effectiveness of the offense and cut down on opposing teams' ability to control the ball against the defense. This resulted in their playing with more confidence, and less predictability. It also resulted in a three-game winning streak that put them in control of the division race. The regular season culminated in a season-finale matchup between the Buccaneers and the Detroit Lions, two 8–7 teams vying for the division lead in the Pontiac Silverdome, where the Lions had gone undefeated all season. The Buccaneers won and entered the playoffs as the number three seed in the NFC, where they lost to the Dallas Cowboys in a 38–0 rout which tied the NFL record for largest margin of victory in a playoff game.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Offseason, NFL Draft, Draft trades
The Buccaneers' third-round pick was traded to the Los Angeles Rams in 1978, for guard Greg Horton. Their fifth-round pick had been traded to the Oakland Raiders in 1978 as part of the trade for quarterback Mike Rae. Their sixth-round pick was traded to the New Orleans Saints in 1979 for punter Tom Blanchard. Finally, their seventh-round pick went to Dallas as part of the previous season's trade for Dave Stalls.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Offseason, NFL Draft, Draft selections
Pittsburgh defensive end Hugh Green was a surprise selection, as the Buccaneers were considered to need help in the secondary, and were expected to pick either USC safety Ronnie Lott or UCLA safety Kenny Easley (who had already been taken by the Seattle Seahawks by the time of Tampa Bay's selection). Green's Pittsburgh team produced eight NFL starters, believed to be the most by far from any single college team. By contrast, the Georgia team that finished ahead of them in the national championship race produced only two NFL players, neither of them a starter.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Offseason, NFL Draft, Draft selections
Personnel director Ken Herock described Green as "dominating...a heavy hitter...an impact player" and said that there was no choice but to draft him. Scouting services described him as a 220-lb linebacker with the lateral movement of a 180-lb cornerback. It was doubly surprising that, considering their fondness for ex-USC players, the Buccaneers would pass over Lott to select a player at a position at which they already were so deeply stocked with talent. However, the staff did not deliberate long before calling his name, and soon felt him worthy of Rookie of the Year honors.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Offseason, NFL Draft, Draft selections
With no premier defensive backs available in the second round, and with running back having been identified by the coaching staff as a problem area of the team, they selected Missouri running back James Wilder Sr.. Wilder's selection and subsequent training camp performance made starting fullback Johnny Davis expendable, and he was traded to San Francisco for James Owens. With their middle-round picks traded away, West Texas A&M cornerback John Holt became the Buccaneers' last selection of the first day of the draft.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Offseason, NFL Draft, Draft selections
When McKay saw cornerbacks Holt and Johnny Ray Smith return punts, he immediately cut original Buccaneer Danny Reece, who had handled nearly every punt return in the team's first five years. Reece, who had set a league record by calling for fair catches only twice in the previous two seasons, had fallen out of favor due to several fumbles during the previous season, and never had the speed expected of a return man. Smith did make the team, but was immediately placed on injured reserve. Eighth-round pick Denver Johnson left camp unexpectedly shortly before the first preseason game, despite strong prospects of making the squad. It was later revealed that he had been accepted to law school, and chose that over a football career.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Preseason
Tailback having been a problem spot the previous season, the Buccaneers attempted to accommodate Ricky Bell's desire to play in California, but were unable to work out a trade. The contract of Jerry Eckwood, who had received much criticism for fumbling at key moments the previous season, was renegotiated in accordance with his 1979 production, rather than his 1980 production.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Preseason
His agent's statement that "he will either play and do well, or he's not gonna be here" was interpreted to mean that Eckwood would be paid too highly to remain as a backup, but would not feel underpaid should a Bell trade place him in a starting role. The decline in Bell's performance was such that Eckwood moved ahead of him on the depth chart. The existence of the muscle disease that would soon lead to Bell's retirement and death was not yet known.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Preseason
Bell cited McKay's criticism as a reason for requesting a trade, but smoothed over differences in a meeting with McKay. Defensive line became an area for concern during preseason, as Reggie Lewis and two rookies walked out of camp. This was the second year in a row that the highly regarded Lewis left camp, but this time he sent word of his retirement through his agent. Extra security had to be assigned to Neal Colzie during camp, as his life was being threatened by anonymous phone calls believed to be related to the gangland-style slaying of his two stepsisters in Atlanta.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Preseason
Injuries quickly became a challenge, as the team lost more players to injuries in their first preseason game than they did during the entire 22-game (preseason through playoffs) 1979 season. The secondary, particularly the safety position, was hit especially hard. Mark Cotney was lost for the season with a knee injury, Curtis Jordan suffered a broken collarbone, and Cedric Brown missed some time with a bruised shoulder. Cotney was expected to have lost his starting role to Colzie, but was valued as a backup.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Preseason
Jordan was lost to the team when, upon being activated from injured reserve later in the season, he was claimed off of procedural waivers by the Washington Redskins. An injury to Dave Reavis during the same game required arthroscopic surgery that left him sidelined into the regular season, and left the team with only two offensive tackles. As the team had opened training camp with a small roster, McKay had to trade draft picks to the Philadelphia Eagles and Los Angeles Rams to augment the roster with safeties Zac Henderson and Jeff Delaney, and tackle Rick Dozier.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Preseason
Ray Snell was also sidelined, for the second consecutive year, with severe headaches which were attributed to high blood pressure. Rick Berns, the 1979 third-round draft pick who was a capable runner but ineffective as a blocker and passer and who had never been able to recover from McKay's public criticism the previous season, was released late in camp. An unexpected shakeup of the receiving corps took place when ex-Steeler Theo Bell and ex-49er James Owens, both among the NFL's leading returners, were brought in with an eye toward improving the special teams.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Preseason
This resulted in the displacement of former FSU star Mike Shumann and original Buccaneer Isaac Hagins, who were promptly released with the hope that they would still have time to catch on with another team. Owens, an Olympic sprinter, came to the team in a late trade, as did Dallas Cowboys starting cornerback Aaron Mitchell, a tough tackler brought in to fill Cotney's role in run support. Adjustments were made to the team's defensive philosophy, with the secondary moving to a more aggressive style of play intended to cut down on opponents' success in the short passing game.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Preseason
The secondary also benefited from an improved pass rush, with Hugh Green's presence preventing blockers from concentrating their efforts on Lee Roy Selmon. James Wilder emerged as a reliable receiver, leading the team in catches during the preseason. McKay reported being happy with the team's preseason performance, saying that they were playing with the intensity and enthusiasm that had been missing the previous year.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Regular season
Coach McKay said, "if we had a high bridge here, I'd jump off it", after an early loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in which the Buccaneers achieved only 12 yards rushing and the special teams "completely collapsed". He promised changes, which could mean either personnel changes or scrapping their balanced offense in favor of a passing-dominated attack. The offensive line was unable to block effectively on running plays, with both starting tackles injured.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Regular season
Changes came after week 3, with Garo Yepremian's release resulting in an acrimonious dispute in which Yepremian accused the Buccaneers of lacking organization, compared the move to "taking your car to get the tires changed when the transmission needs fixing", and said that "they must know what they're doing, they're in first place" (a point of ridicule, as the entire division was tied at 1–2). McKay in turn accused Yepremian of acting childishly, asking "what is he, 12 or 37?" Coaches had soured on Yepremian due to his short kickoffs and low, easily blocked field goals.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Regular season
Punter Tom Blanchard was placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury the same week. The two kickers were replaced by ex-Cardinals and -Lions punter Larry Swider, and kicker Bill Capece, holder of FSU's single-season scoring record.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Regular season
There was a measure of irony in both signings, as Swider had at one time been on the Buccaneers' roster, but was claimed by the Lions off of procedural waivers when the Buccaneers tried to activate him as Dave Green's injury replacement during the 1979 season, while it was Yepremian's mentorship a decade earlier that had given Capece the encouragement to pursue professional football. After some undisclosed discipline problems, Dave Lewis was replaced by Andy Hawkins, who played well enough to take Lewis' spot permanently.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Regular season
The coaching began to be criticized after a pair of midseason losses to the Minnesota Vikings and Denver Broncos. Denver players stated that shutting down Jimmie Giles was all it took to stop the Buccaneer offense, while the defense was still vulnerable to a short-yardage, ball-control attack. McKay felt that the team had become an "aerial circus" and that Williams' performance was being affected by trying to do too much, and so made a decision to establish a running game, taking over playcalling responsibilities on running plays.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Regular season
Having lost 4 of their last 5 games, there was concern that, about to face a Green Bay Packers team on a three-game win streak, the Buccaneers were about to repeat the late-season slides of the last three seasons. After breaking their two-game losing streak by routing the Packers, the Buccaneers demonstrated a newfound ability to continue to stick to and execute their game plan when playing with a deficit. Quarterbacks coach Bill Nelsen correctly predicted that the Buccaneers' performance against the Packers would cause the Vikings to underestimate the Packers, and thus lose their matchup the following week.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Regular season
Nelsen admonished the team not to miss a chance to take charge of the division, and they responded with an uncharacteristic rebound from a 14-point deficit against the Saints. A Week 14 last-minute victory over the Atlanta Falcons, combined with upset losses by the Lions and Vikings the same day, left the Buccaneers needing to win only one of their last two games to make the playoffs. They were one of only five teams in Week 15 who were capable of winning a division championship without help from another team.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Regular season
The season ended with a matchup against the Detroit Lions in front of a Pontiac Silverdome-record crowd of 80,444, with the Buccaneers and Lions tied for the division lead at 8–7. A season-ending New York Giants win against the Dallas Cowboys left the Giants at 9–7, guaranteeing that the winner of the Buccaneers-Lions game would win the division (the Packers were still in contention, but required an improbable set of circumstances that included a Buccaneers-Lions tie), while the loser would miss the playoffs entirely.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Regular season
Although the Lions outplayed the Buccaneers in most statistical categories, numerous Buccaneers stepped forward with key plays at crucial moments in the game, resulting in an upset victory. A crowd of over 8,000 gathered at team headquarters to greet them on their return from Detroit. The Buccaneers traveled to Dallas for a matchup with the Cowboys, where they suffered an embarrassing 38–0 shutout.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 1: vs Minnesota Vikings
A Saturday-evening game left the Buccaneers as the first winners of the 1981 season. The Buccaneers scored on a 55-yard pass from Doug Williams to Kevin House, and a 10-yard Williams run. The Buccaneers' rushing attack struggled, although Jerry Eckwood had an apparent 39-yard touchdown run that was called back due to penalty. Williams was held to 8 completions on 22 attempts for only 108 yards, but was able to lead a 76-yard scoring drive in the fourth quarter, after the Vikings had closed to within 7–6 on a pair of Rick Danmeier field goals.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 1: vs Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings answered with a 72-yard drive of their own that ended in a 4-yard Steve Dils touchdown pass to Joe Senser. With Tampa Bay holding a 14–13 lead, Neal Colzie sealed the victory by returning his second interception of the day 82 yards for a touchdown, preventing the Vikings' potentially game-winning field goal attempt. McKay later said, "Neal pulled us out of the fire. As I was watching him run it back, I could only think how glad I was we picked him up last year". Dils passed for 361 yards on 62 attempts, still the most pass attempts against the Buccaneers in a game. The Buccaneers set several team records which still stand, including most passing attempts, completions, and first downs, and Dana Nafziger's 6 special teams tackles.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 2: at Kansas City Chiefs
A bad snap resulted in punter Tom Blanchard being tackled at the 14-yard line, setting up the Chiefs' only touchdown of the day, an 8-yard Ted McKnight run. The Buccaneers answered with a drive culminating in a 2-yard James Wilder touchdown run. The game was marked by breakdowns of the Buccaneer special teams. Blanchard kicked an 18-yard punt after bobbling the snap, and J.T. Smith was allowed to return a punt 62 yards. The defense held the Chiefs to 59 first-half yards, with the score tied 10–10 at halftime.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 2: at Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City offense controlled the ball for 23 of 30 minutes in the second half, sidelining a Buccaneer offense that was able to manage only 12 yards rushing. Buccaneer offensive and defensive collapses were seen to coincide with the departures of tackle Charley Hannah and defensive end Lee Roy Selmon, respectively, both with hamstring injuries. Chiefs coach Marv Levy opted for a conservative offensive strategy, twice settling for field goals when stopped on the 2-yard line. Nick Lowery's four field goals were the most by the Chiefs in a game since 1976. McKay, speaking of his team's performance, said "It will take them a long time to get the smell out of this stadium". The 2–0 start was the Chiefs' best since their Super Bowl season of 1969.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 3: at Chicago Bears
The Buccaneers took an early lead on Mike Washington's 29-yard interception return for a touchdown, after which he left the game with a pulled stomach muscle. Ricky Bell chipped a shoulder bone on his only play of the game. A Gary Fencik interception set up a Matt Suhey touchdown run that evened the score at 7–7. The Buccaneers' special teams broke down for the second week in a row.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 3: at Chicago Bears
Jeff Fisher's 88-yard punt return touchdown broke the record for the longest punt return by a Tampa Bay opponent, a record that had been set by J. T. Smith just the previous week. A long Theo Bell punt return was called back for a penalty. The Buccaneers scored again on the first drive of the second half, which ended in a Kevin House touchdown reception. However, the Bears were able to dominate possession of the football for the rest of the game, with Walter Payton moving into fourth-place all-time in NFL rushing yardage.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 3: at Chicago Bears
Despite a game plan that Jimmie Giles described as the best he'd seen against the Bears, the Buccaneers found themselves prone to errors at critical moments. They outperformed the Bears in most major offensive categories, compiling 450 yards of offense. Several players blamed mental errors and the lack of a killer instinct for the failure to put away what they felt to be an inferior team, while others noted that the large number of injuries left the team without enough personnel to do the things they wanted to. The game left all NFC Central teams tied at 1–2.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 4: vs St. Louis Cardinals
The Buccaneers played without linebacker Dave Lewis, who was benched for arriving late to a team meeting. New placekicker Bill Capece provided a pair of field goals, the Buccaneers' only offense through the first three-quarters. A tripping penalty on Calvin Favron erased a fourth-quarter Neil O'Donoghue field goal and forced the Cardinals to punt. The Buccaneers scored the winning points on a James Owens touchdown run on the ensuing possession, and scored again on a Jerry Eckwood run shortly thereafter.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 4: vs St. Louis Cardinals
Owens appeared to have been wrapped up by Favron on the touchdown run, but was able to break free for the score on what was to date his only carry of the season. James Wilder led Buccaneer rushers with 15 carries for 76 yards, and caught 9 passes for 72 yards. Doug Williams completed 17 of 30 passes for 162 yards. Ottis Anderson led Cardinals running backs with 20 carries for 97 yards, and Jim Hart completed 11 of 18 passes for 91 yards.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 5: vs Detroit Lions
In front of the largest crowd to ever attend a regular-season game at Tampa Stadium, the Tampa Bay defense held Billy Sims, in only his second year the Lions' career leader in 100-yard games, to only 75 yards rushing while forcing six turnovers. Several other potential interceptions were dropped. The Buccaneers were held to only 49 yards rushing, but Doug Williams compensated by passing for four touchdowns. Williams was dazed by a blow to the head from Lions tackle Doug English, but returned to the game. The Lions' only touchdown was set up by a botched first-quarter punt attempt.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 5: vs Detroit Lions
Coming after an Eddie Murray field goal, it produced a 10–0 Lions lead that had the crowd cheering when an airplane carrying a "Throw McKay in the Bay" banner flew overhead shortly afterward. Williams then hit Kevin House with two touchdown passes, the second of which was controversial due to replays that showed it inconclusive whether House had both feet in bounds. It was speculated that House was given the benefit of the doubt due to pass interference not having been called on the previous play, when Jimmie Giles was tackled before Williams could even get the pass off.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 5: vs Detroit Lions
After the concussion, Williams returned to throw touchdown passes to James Wilder and Jim Obradovich. Gordon Jones, Ricky Bell and Lee Roy Selmon all missed the game for the Buccaneers, while Jeff Komlo replaced injured Lions quarterback Gary Danielson. It was believed to be the first Buccaneer game in which neither Selmon played.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 6: at Green Bay Packers
Newly acquired Packers receiver John Jefferson fell on his rear end while showing off for the crowd during pregame introductions, a display that inspired the Buccaneer defense. After the Packers took an early 7–0 lead on a Gerry Ellis touchdown run, the Buccaneers scored 21 unanswered points. Doug Williams completed 15 of 23 passes for 199 yards, a career-best 65.2% completion percentage. Green Bay attempted a late rally, as George Cumby's 68-yard return of a James Wilder goal-line fumble set up a field goal to bring the score to 21–10.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 6: at Green Bay Packers
After the Buccaneers were forced to punt on the following possession, the Packers drove all the way to the Tampa Bay 7-yard line before Scot Brantley intercepted a Lynn Dickey pass to kill the drive. Dickey, under the pressure of a constant pass rush, was also intercepted by Hugh Green, Cecil Johnson, and Neal Colzie.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 7: at Oakland Raiders
The Raiders entered the game having set a postwar NFL record of three consecutive games without scoring. Breakdowns on Tampa Bay special teams helped the Raiders to take a 15–0 halftime lead, and eventually to win the game. The Buccaneers could not manage even a first down on offense until Doug Williams' 77-yard touchdown pass to Kevin House in the third quarter. They took the lead on a Jimmie Giles touchdown reception and a Bill Capece field goal. After the Raiders answered with a Chris Bahr field goal, Tampa Bay drove to the Raider 14-yard line, where Ted Hendricks deflected Capece's potentially game-winning last-minute field goal attempt. The loss dropped the Buccaneers out of their first-place tie with the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Central.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 8: at Philadelphia Eagles
The Buccaneers had trouble keeping their footing on a rain-soaked Philadelphia field. Bill Capece missed three field goals, while Neal Colzie's slip while covering Charlie Smith set up a Tony Franklin field goal. Wilbert Montgomery suffered a pinched nerve in the first half that was expected to keep him sidelined for a month, but he instead returned in the second half to gain 119 yards on 22 carries. The Buccaneers failed to capitalize on a questionable Philadelphia play-call in the fourth quarter, when the Eagles elected to run on fourth-and-one, despite holding a 13–10 lead. Norris Thomas recovered Booker Russell's fumble on the ensuing play, and if not for Ron Jaworski's tackle, would have run for a touchdown. Doug Williams' interception two plays later ended any hopes of a comeback. The Eagles finished the game with an NFL-best 7–1 record.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 9: vs Chicago Bears
The Buccaneers drew inspiration from pregame comments in which Gary Fencik and other Bears players said that the Buccaneers lacked patience and could only win by the big play. The Buccaneers responded by winning on big plays, touchdown passes of 81 yards to Jimmie Giles and 51 yards to Kevin House. Giles scored his touchdown by outrunning safety Doug Plank, the player who had notoriously speared him during a meeting the previous year. It was the longest pass play in Buccaneers history, and is still the longest reception by a Buccaneers tight end.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 9: vs Chicago Bears
The Buccaneers also scored on two Bill Capece field goals, although he missed two others from short range. A third-quarter interception by Hugh Green was considered to be the key play of the game. Walter Payton became only the fourth running back in the history of the NFL to gain 9,000 career rushing yards, the only bright spot for the Bears in a loss that left them with the second-worst record in the NFL. A Minnesota Vikings loss left the Buccaneers tied with the Vikings for first place in the NFC Central. McKay mocked Fencik's comments during his postgame press conference, in which he pointed out the "patience" with which various players performed, claimed to have gotten Patience on waivers from Green Bay, and said that "they've got enough problems with their team without coaching our team".


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 10: at Minnesota Vikings
John McKay said, "that might be the poorest game we've ever played", after the Buccaneers were able to control the ball for only 19½ of the game's 60 minutes. A 95-yard second-quarter drive gave the Vikings a 13–0 lead and used up 9:04 worth of clock time, while keeping the ball away from the Buccaneer offense and forcing them to stand on the sideline in the freezing wind. The Vikings rushed for 205 yards, led by Ted Brown's career-high 129 yards on 31 carries.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 11: vs Denver Broncos
The Buccaneers' only score came on Cedric Brown's 80-yard return of a Steve DeBerg interception, which tied the score at 7–7 in the third quarter. Denver responded with an 80-yard drive, assisted by Norris Thomas' two personal fouls against Rick Upchurch. The Broncos then went on to score on their next two possessions. DeBerg played in relief of Craig Morton, who left the game with a sprained shoulder in the second quarter. The Broncos were able to efficiently control the ball through short-yardage gains.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 11: vs Denver Broncos
Their quarterbacks were a combined 20 of 29 for 143 yards passing, while their backs ran 41 times for 153 yards. Jimmie Giles passed Morris Owens to become the leading receiver in Buccaneer history, while the ground game was held under 50 yards for the fourth time in the season. Despite their 5–6 record, the Buccaneers held the tiebreaker advantage over the other six teams tied with them for the final wild-card playoff slot.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 12: vs Green Bay Packers
Needing a win to maintain their playoff hopes, the Buccaneers broke a two-game losing streak while setting several team records, including most points scored and largest margin of victory. The Packers appeared to be driving for a touchdown after Tampa Bay took an early 3–0 lead, but an injury to quarterback David Whitehurst forced the Packers to replace him with the inexperienced Rich Campbell. Shortly thereafter, Cedric Brown caught the first of Campbell's four interceptions while scoring a touchdown on an interception return for the second week in a row.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 12: vs Green Bay Packers
The special teams performed well, with  John Holt returning a punt 56 yards and Bill Capece kicking three field goals, including a Buccaneer-record 51-yarder. For the first time ever, Tampa Bay went the entire game without having to punt. Despite a league-worst rushing average, the Buccaneers ran for 212 yards, led by James Owens with 112. Owens' 35-yard touchdown run was the longest Buccaneer touchdown run in Tampa Stadium. The win was attributed to several changes in coaching approach.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 12: vs Green Bay Packers
As the offensive line was performing poorly due to injuries that kept them from maintaining a consistent lineup, McKay simplified the offense by calling the same plays repeatedly. McKay also allowed the team to practice without pads during the week, while instituting defensive changes designed to cut down on opponents' ability to control the ball through consistent short-yardage gains. He also took more of a hands-on approach to game day, giving a pep talk to the team prior to the game, and taking over the calling of the running plays. Defensive end Bill Kollar suffered a cartilage tear that required season-ending knee surgery, although the possibility remained that he could be back for the playoffs.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 13: at New Orleans Saints
The Saints took an early 14–0 lead on a 6-yard pass from Archie Manning to tight end Larry Hardy and an 8-yard George Rogers run. A 51-yard Bill Capece field goal put the Buccaneers on the scoreboard. With a 14–3 lead late in the second quarter, Manning saw Hardy beat Mike Washington on a passing play, but Hardy ran an unexpected route, and Washington intercepted the pass. Doug Williams then hit Kevin House with a touchdown pass. A timeout controversy gave the Saints the ball with three seconds left in the first half.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 13: at New Orleans Saints
Neal Colzie, blinded from an earlier scratch to his eye, missed the coverage on Jeff Groth, who caught Manning's last-second pass that would have gone for a touchdown if not for Norris Thomas' tackle on the 4-yard line. The Saints would not have a scoring opportunity for the rest of the game. Williams led the Buccaneers 75 yards to take the lead on the opening drive of the second half. Andy Hawkins prevented a first down on a fourth-quarter fake punt, setting up a 51-yard drive that left the score at 24–14. A later 96-yard fourth-quarter drive was the Buccaneers' longest to date. The win put the Buccaneers into a three-way tie for first place in the NFC Central division.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 14: vs Atlanta Falcons
The Buccaneers met the Atlanta Falcons as both teams remained in playoff contention with 7–6 records. Inspired by news of losses by both of their chief rivals in the division race, the Buccaneers took a 14–3 lead on a 1-yard Jerry Eckwood touchdown and a 38-yard Jimmie Giles reception. The Falcons took a 16–14 lead early in the second half, a half in which the lead alternated several times. Doug Williams completed 19 of 29 passes for 336 yards and two touchdowns.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 14: vs Atlanta Falcons
One of these, a 71-yarder on which he caught Kevin House in single coverage against rookie cornerback Bobby Butler, gave the Buccaneers a 24–23 lead and put Williams past the 10,000-yard career passing mark. Scott Hutchinson preserved the win by deflecting a Mick Luckhurst field goal attempt in the final seconds.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 15: vs San Diego Chargers
Dan Fouts had to pass even more than usual, with running back Chuck Muncie, the league's leading scorer, forced out of the game after only three carries. Fouts completed 33 of 49 passes for 351 yards and a touchdown against the Buccaneers' league-leading secondary. His only touchdown was a 27-yarder to Eric Sievers, the longest touchdown pass against the Buccaneers all season. He was intercepted twice. The Chargers also scored on runs of 8-yards by John Cappelletti and 1-yard by James Brooks, while the Buccaneers scored on a 58-yard reception by Theo Bell and a Bill Capece field goal.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 15: vs San Diego Chargers
Brooks' touchdown was set up by a James Owens fumble, the Buccaneers' first fumble on a running play all season. With the Buccaneers down 21–10 in the fourth quarter, James Wilder scored on runs of 8 and 23 yards in the span of 27 seconds. Dave Lewis forced a Cappelletti fumble that gave the Buccaneers an opportunity to score again, but a hit by Glen Edwards caused Jimmie Giles to lose control of a reception, resulting in a Woody Lowe interception that led to Rolf Benirschke's game-winning field goal. Edwards also intercepted a last-minute pass by Doug Williams.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 15: vs San Diego Chargers
Capece was criticized harshly when, despite having earlier kicked a 49-yard field goal, he missed an extra point attempt that provided the margin of victory for the Chargers. Williams completed 22 of 35 passes for 321 yards, raising his season completion percentage above 50% for the first time in his career. Fouts' touchdown gave him a league-leading total of 32 on the season. The Chargers had been facing elimination from the playoff race with a loss, but instead found themselves with the opportunity to win the AFC West. Their win also denied the New York Jets a playoff spot.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 16: at Detroit Lions
The Buccaneers won the NFC Central division by defeating the Detroit Lions at their home stadium, where the Lions had only lost two games in the two previous seasons. Doug Williams compared calling plays against the crowd noise to trying to shout above an airplane. Tampa Bay took the lead on the longest passing play in their history, an 84-yard second-quarter pass from Williams to Kevin House. After the Lions tied the score at 10, the Buccaneers retook the lead on a Bill Capece field goal 12 seconds into the fourth quarter.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 16: at Detroit Lions
Dave Logan scored the winning points 70 seconds later on a fumble-return touchdown following Lee Roy Selmon's sack of Lions quarterback Eric Hipple. The Lions closed to 20–17 on an 8-yard pass from Hipple to Leonard Thompson, but the Buccaneers were able to run out the clock when Theo Bell recovered the ensuing onside kick. Two key special teams tackles prevented touchdowns by Lions return man Robbie Martin; on the second of these, he suffered a cartilage tear that left him unable to finish the game. Cedric Brown recorded two interceptions, the first of which ended a long Lions drive that threatened to give them a 14–3-second-quarter lead. The second, caught in the end zone, prevented a potential Lions touchdown. The two interceptions left Brown with a team-record nine for the season.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, NFC Divisional Playoffs: at Dallas Cowboys
Facing a Dallas defense that had allowed its previous six opponents an average of less than ten points per game, the Buccaneers were in immediate trouble. Doug Williams was sacked on the game's very first play. Field position was a problem, with the Buccaneers' first-half drives starting at an average of the 19-yard line. Tampa Bay was only able to advance beyond midfield four times during the entire game, and Williams was pressured into mistakes by a constant Dallas pass rush.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, NFC Divisional Playoffs: at Dallas Cowboys
The ground game was held to only 2 yards in the second half, with James Owens starting at running back in place of the injured Jerry Eckwood. The Dallas front four of Ed "Too Tall" Jones, Harvey Martin, Randy White, and John Dutton dominated the Buccaneers' offensive line, moving them backwards with 59 yards in sacks and forcing two intentional grounding penalties. They batted down several of Williams' passes, and Jones caught one of Williams' four interceptions.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, NFC Divisional Playoffs: at Dallas Cowboys
Tom Landry said that it was the best performance by a Dallas front four since their Super Bowl XII victory over Denver in 1978, and credited their intensity for the difference. Interceptions by Jones and Michael Downs set up two third-quarter touchdowns, helping the Cowboys to match their largest-ever margin of victory. Dallas committed no turnovers, and all tipped passes wound up in the hands of Cowboys players. It was the last time that an NFL playoff team had been shut out since the Buccaneers' NFC Championship loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the 1979 postseason. McKay had few comments after the game, telling the press, "I want to get the hell out of here".


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Awards and records, Postseason honors
Jimmie Giles, Pro Bowl starter, United Press International second-team All-StarLee Roy Selmon, Pro Bowl starter, Pro Bowl co-MVP (with Kellen Winslow)Hugh Green, Pro Bowl first alternateGreg Roberts, United Press International second-team All-StarHugh Green placed third (behind Lawrence Taylor and Ronnie Lott) in the Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the Year voting.


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Awards and records, Records
Several individual and team records set in 1981 are still standing as of 2009:


1981 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Awards and records, Records
Several other records established in 1981 have since been broken:


1981 Tangerine Bowl
The 1981 Tangerine Bowl was an American college football bowl game played on December 19, 1981, at Orlando Stadium in Orlando, Florida. The game featured the Southern Miss Golden Eagles and the Missouri Tigers.


1981 Tangerine Bowl, Background
Southern Miss had finished with 9 wins in the regular season, their most since 1962 in their second straight bowl appearance, their first consecutive bowl seasons since 1957-58. Missouri had finished 5th in the Big Eight Conference, qualifying for their 4th straight bowl appearance. This was the first Tangerine Bowl for Southern Miss since 1958. This was Missouri's first ever Tangerine Bowl.


1981 Tangerine Bowl, Game summary
Bobby Meyer gave the Tigers a 7-0 lead on his three yard touchdown run in the first quarter. The Golden Eagles narrowed the lead to 7-3 on a Steve Clark field goal. Missouri increased their lead with two Bob Lucchesi field goals in the span of 5 minutes to make it 13-3 at halftime. Sammy Winder made it 13-10 on his 4 yard touchdown run in the middle of the third quarter. Lucchesi made it 16-10 on his 30 yard field goal in the third quarter. He added another one from 28 yards out to make it 19-10. Southern Miss narrowed it to 19-17 with 1:03 remaining on a David Sellers touchdown pass to Louis Lipps.


1981 Tangerine Bowl, Aftermath
Head Coach Bobby Collins left for SMU after the game, and the Eagles did not return to a bowl game until 1988. Southern Miss has not played in the Tangerine (now Citrus) bowl since. Missouri did not return until 2015.


1981 Tasmanian power referendum
The Tasmanian power referendum was a one-question referendum held on 12 December 1981, and intended to determine the location of a proposed hydroelectricity dam to be built on the Gordon River in Tasmania, Australia.


1981 Tasmanian power referendum, Background
In 1978, the Hydro-Electric Commission (HEC) proposed the construction of a hydroelectricity dam on the Gordon River. The location of the proposed dam was below the Gordon's junction with the Franklin River, and the flooding caused by damming the river would have destroyed the environmentally sensitive Franklin River valley area. Responding to community concern over the proposal, Premier Doug Lowe ordered a moratorium on dam construction and an environmental impact study.


1981 Tasmanian power referendum, Background
With the community polarised over the proposed dam's environmental impact and Tasmania's economic and employment needs, Lowe proposed a compromise: to construct the dam at a different point on the Gordon, above the junction with the Olga River (Gordon-above-Olga). Lowe was successful in getting the Gordon-above-Olga plan through the Tasmanian House of Assembly, however the more conservative upper house, the Tasmanian Legislative Council, voted to block the legislation and insisted on the HEC's original Gordon-below-Franklin plan.


1981 Tasmanian power referendum, Background
With a parliamentary deadlock over the issue, Lowe was left with no option but to call for a referendum. When announcing the referendum to the media, he was questioned as to whether it would include a 'No Dams' option and he indicated it would. The President of the Labor Party in Tasmania wrote to all Labor MHAs instructing them to withdraw that option, and Lowe was forced into an embarrassing backdown.


1981 Tasmanian power referendum, Background
About a month before the referendum was held, Doug Lowe lost a no-confidence motion, and stood down as Premier. He was replaced by Harry Holgate.


1981 Tasmanian power referendum, The 'No Dams' campaign
A determined campaign against a Franklin Dam by the Tasmanian Wilderness Society was underway, and Lowe hoped to get the support of the society's director, Bob Brown, for the Gordon-above-Olga proposal, also offering to set up a Wild Rivers National Park. Brown refused to support Lowe's alternative unless the "No Dams" option was reinstated on the ballot paper, and when Lowe was unable to comply with this request, the Wilderness Society encouraged its supporters to make their own option by writing "No Dams" on the ballot paper themselves.


1981 Tasmanian power referendum, Results, Initial count, Seat breakdown
In the initial count of the ballot papers, a significant protest vote was evident, with tens of thousands of electors writing "No Dams" on their ballot papers. The Tasmanian Electoral Office initially disregarded all these votes as informal, even if the voter had indicated one of the legitimate options. Subsequent legal advice indicated that these votes should be counted, and 23,839 votes were reclassified as formal votes.


1981 Tasmanian power referendum, Aftermath
Despite the success of the 'No Dams' campaign demonstrated by the significant protest vote, the original Gordon-below-Franklin proposal was carried with a majority in the referendum. Holgate, who had prorogued the House while the referendum was conducted, pledged the government would proceed with the dam construction. Almost as soon as the House reconvened, Labor lost a no-confidence motion, forcing an election for May 1982. At that election, Tasmanian Labor was roundly defeated by Robin Gray and the Liberal Party. Gray also pledged to build the dam.


1981 Tasmanian power referendum, Aftermath
On 5 March 1983, federal Labor won power, with new Prime Minister Bob Hawke promising to halt the dam project. The Commonwealth Government legislated to prohibit construction of the Franklin Dam, and the legislation was reinforced in the Commonwealth v Tasmania case before the High Court of Australia.


1981 Taça de Portugal Final
The 1981 Taça de Portugal Final was the final match of the 1980–81 Taça de Portugal, the 41st season of the Taça de Portugal, the premier Portuguese football cup competition organized by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF). The match was played on 6 June 1981 at the Estádio Nacional in Oeiras, and opposed two Primeira Liga sides: Benfica and Porto. Benfica defeated Porto 3–1 to claim the Taça de Portugal for a seventeenth time.


1981 Taça de Portugal Final
In Portugal, the final was televised live on RTP. As a result of the Águias claiming both the league and cup double in the same season, cup runners-up Porto faced their cup final opponents in the 1981 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira.


1981 Team Ice Racing World Championship
The 1981 Team Ice Racing World Championship was the third edition of the Team World Championship. The final was held on 7/8 February, 1981 in Inzell, Germany.


1981 Tefilin Polyesters season
The 1981 Tefilin Polyesters season was the second and final season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).


1981 Tefilin Polyesters season, Summary
Tefilin's import from last season - Ira Terrell, is returning for the Open Conference, this time teaming up with former Royal Tru-Orange import Larry Pounds. Tefilin were tied with CDCP Road Builders after 18 games in the eliminations. Both sophomore ballclubs missed out a semifinal berth and were two games behind fourth qualifier Toyota Super Diesels.


1981 Tefilin Polyesters season, Summary
The Polyesters signed up Norman Black, who played for the Detroit Pistons in the Southern California Summer Pro league, as their import in the Reinforced Filipino Conference. Black led the Polyesters to move into the next round for the first time in four conferences.


1981 Tefilin Polyesters season, Scoring record
Norman Black poured in 71 points in Tefilin's 129-141 loss to Crispa in their quarterfinal game on October 27. Black's 71-point total was four points shy of the 75 points made by CDCP's Ronald McCoy in this same conference just a month before on September 26. Norman Black's total output was the fourth all-time best scoring record behind the 75 points jointly shared by Ronald McCoy and Harry Rogers of 7-Up in 1976, the 74 points made by Yco-Tanduay's Russell Murray, also in this same conference and the 73 points set by Carl Bird of Royal Tru-Orange in 1976.


1981 Tel Aviv Open
The 1981 Tel Aviv Open was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts that was part of the 1981 Volvo Grand Prix. It was played at the Israel Tennis Centers in the Tel Aviv District city of Ramat HaSharon, Israel and was held from October 5 to October 12, 1981. It was the third edition of the tournament. First-seeded Mel Purcell won the singles title.


1981 Tel Aviv Open, Finals, Doubles
Steve Meister /  Van Winitsky defeated  John Feaver /  Steve Krulevitz 3–6, 6–3, 6–3


1981 Tel Aviv Open – Doubles
Per Hjertquist and Steve Krulevitz were the defending champions, but did not participate together this year. Hjertquist partnered Peter Feigl, losing in the semifinals. Krulevitz partnered John Feaver, losing in the final.


1981 Tel Aviv Open – Doubles
Steve Meister and Van Winitsky won the title, defeating Feaver and Krulevitz 3–6, 6–3, 6–3 in the final.


1981 Tel Aviv Open – Singles
Harold Solomon was the defending champion, but did not participate this year.


1981 Tel Aviv Open – Singles
Mel Purcell won the tournament, beating Per Hjertquist in the final, 6–1, 6–1.


1981 Temple Owls football team
The 1981 Temple Owls football team was an American football team that represented Temple University as an independent during the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. In its 12th season under head coach Wayne Hardin, the team compiled a 5–5 record and was outscored by a total of 195 to 181. The team played its home games at Veterans Stadium (two games) and Franklin Field (two games) in Philadelphia.


1981 Temple Owls football team
The team's statistical leaders included Tink Murphy with 1,589 passing yards, Jim Brown with 883 rushing yards and 66 points scored, and Gerald Lucear with 493 receiving yards.


1981 Tennessee Volunteers football team
The 1981 Tennessee Volunteers football team (variously "Tennessee", "UT" or the "Vols") represented the University of Tennessee in the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. Playing as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the team was led by head coach Johnny Majors, in his fifth year, and played their home games at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee. They finished the season with a record of eight wins and four losses (8–4 overall, 3–3 in the SEC). The Volunteers offense scored 244 points while the defense allowed 265 points.


1981 Texas A&M Aggies football team
The 1981 Texas A&M Aggies football team represented Texas A&M University in the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season as a member of the Southwest Conference (SWC). The Aggies were led by head coach Tom Wilson in his fourth season and finished with a record of seven wins and five losses (7–5 overall, 4–4 in the SWC) and with a victory in the Independence Bowl.


1981 Texas Longhorns baseball team
The 1981 Texas Longhorns baseball team represented the University of Texas at Austin in the 1981 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Longhorns played their home games at Disch–Falk Field. The team was coached by Cliff Gustafson in his 14th season at Texas.


1981 Texas Longhorns baseball team
The Longhorns reached the College World Series, finishing third with wins over Michigan, Miami (FL) and eventual runner-up Oklahoma State and a pair of losses to eventual champion Arizona State.


1981 Texas Longhorns football team
The 1981 Texas Longhorns football team represented the University of Texas at Austin in the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Longhorns finished the regular season with a 9–1–1 record and defeated Alabama in the 1982 Cotton Bowl Classic.


1981 Texas Rangers season
The Texas Rangers 1981 season involved the Rangers finishing 2nd in the American League West with a record of 57 wins and 48 losses. The season was suspended for 50 days due to the infamous 1981 players strike and the league chose as its playoff teams, the division winners from the first and second halves of the season, respectively.


1981 Texas Rangers season, Player stats, Batting, Starters by position
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in


1981 Texas Rangers season, Player stats, Batting, Other batters
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in


1981 Texas Rangers season, Player stats, Pitching, Starting pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts


1981 Texas Rangers season, Player stats, Pitching, Other pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts


1981 Texas Rangers season, Player stats, Pitching, Relief pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts


1981 Texas Tech Red Raiders football team
The 1981 Texas Tech Red Raiders football team represented Texas Tech University in the Southwest Conference (SWC) during the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their first season under head coach Jerry Moore, the Red Raiders compiled a 1–9–1 record (4–5 against SWC opponents), were outscored by a combined total of 298 to 198, and finished in ninth and last place in the conference. The team played its home games at Clifford B. and Audrey Jones Stadium in Lubbock, Texas.


1981 Texas–Arlington Mavericks football team
The 1981 Texas–Arlington Mavericks football team was an American football team that represented  the University of Texas at Arlington in the Southland Conference during the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their eighth year under head coach Harold Elliott, the team compiled a 6–5 record and as Southland Conference champion.


1981 The Citadel Bulldogs football team
The 1981 The Citadel Bulldogs football team represented The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina in the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. Art Baker served as head coach for the fourth season. The Bulldogs played as members of the Southern Conference and played home games at Johnson Hagood Stadium.


1981 Tipperary Senior Hurling Championship
The 1981 Tipperary Senior Hurling Championship was the 91st staging of the Tipperary Senior Hurling Championship since its establishment by the Tipperary County Board in 1887.


1981 Tipperary Senior Hurling Championship
Borris-Ileigh won the championship after a 1-14 to 0-12 defeat of Roscrea in the final at Semple Stadium. It was their fourth championship title overall and their first title since 1953.


1981 Tirreno–Adriatico
The 1981 Tirreno–Adriatico was the 16th edition of the Tirreno–Adriatico cycle race and was held from 14 March to 19 March 1981. The race started in Rome and finished in San Benedetto del Tronto. The race was won by Francesco Moser of the Famcucine–Campagnolo team.


1981 Toledo Rockets football team
The 1981 Toledo Rockets football team was an American football team that represented the University of Toledo in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) during the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their fifth and final season under head coach Chuck Stobart, the Rockets compiled a 9–3 record (8–1 against MAC opponents), won the MAC championship, outscored all opponents by a combined total of 270 to 170, won the Mid-American Conference (MAC) championship, and defeated San Jose State, 27–25, in the 1981 California Bowl.


1981 Toledo Rockets football team
The team's statistical leaders included Jim Kelso with 975 passing yards, Arnold Smiley with 1,013 rushing yards, and Rodney Achter with 361 receiving yards.


1981 Tolly Cobbold Classic
The 1981 Tolly Cobbold Classic was the third edition of the professional invitational snooker tournament, which took place between 24th and 25 February 1981 at the Corn Exchange in Ipswich, England.


1981 Tolly Cobbold Classic
Graham Miles won the tournament beating Cliff Thorburn 5–1 in the final.


1981 Tolly Cobbold Classic, Group phase
All matches in the group phase were played over four frames.


1981 Tongan general election
This is the current revision of this page, as edited by Number 57 (talk | contribs) at 21:03, 30 March 2020 (corr). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this version.


1981 Tongan general election
General elections were held in Tonga on 1 May 1981. Seven nobles were elected by their peers, whilst a further seven People's Representatives were publicly elected.


1981 Tongan general election, Results
Amid a record voter turnout, four of the seven incumbent People's Representatives were unseated. Haʻapai MP ‘Uliti Uata was beaten by Pousima Afeaki; Tongatapu representatives Tomiteau Finau and Papiloa Foliaki were defeated by Joe Tuʻilatai Mataele and Sitili Tupouniua; and Vavaʻu MP Palavilala Tapueluelu was defeated by Ula Afuhaʻamango.


1981 Tooth Cup
The 1981 Tooth Cup was the 8th edition of the NSWRFL Midweek Cup, a NSWRFL-organised national club Rugby League tournament between the leading clubs and representative teams from the NSWRFL, the BRL, the CRL, the QRL and the NZRL.


1981 Tooth Cup
A total of 16 teams from across Australia and New Zealand played 23 matches in a round-robin format with teams playing 2 games each with the top 8 teams advanced to a knockout stage, with the matches being held midweek during the premiership season.


1981 Tooth Cup, Final
The 1981 Tooth Cup Final attracted a still standing (as of 2020) Leichhardt Oval attendance record of 23,000.


1981 Toray Sillook Open
The 1981 Toray Sillook Open was a women's singles tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo in Japan. The event was part of the Category 3 of the 1981 Toyota Series. It was the ninth edition of the tournament and was held from 14 September through 20 September 1981. Unseeded Ann Kiyomura won the title and earned $34,000 first-prize money.


1981 Torneo Descentralizado
The 1981 Torneo Descentralizado was the sixty-fifth season of Peruvian football. A total of 16 teams competed in the tournament. The season was divided into two phases. Melgar won its first national title and become the first club outside the Lima Region to win the title.


1981 Torneo Descentralizado, Format
The national league was divided into two phases. The first phase divided the sixteen teams into groups. Each team was placed into one of four groups depending on the region where the club was located. This dubbed regional tournament was contested in this season because the Peru national football team was using domestic players in preparation for the 1982 World Cup Qualifiers.


1981 Torneo Descentralizado, Format
In order to reduce the impact of the absence of these key players in the national league, the regional tournament was played in which the winner contested the second berth to the 1982 Copa Libertadores against the Descentralizado runner-up. The second phase of the league was the Descentralizado in which all sixteen teams competed in a single league table and its winner was crowned national champion while its runner-up faced the first phase winner for the second berth of the Copa Libertadores.


1981 Torneo Descentralizado, Torneo Regional
The Torneo Regional was divided into 4 groups. The groups of the North, South and Central had its group winners advance to a Provincial final group where the top two advanced to the semifinals of the regional tournament. In the Metropolitan group, the top two advanced directly to the semifinals.


1981 Torneo Descentralizado, Torneo Regional, Group stage, Metropolitan group
This group had special rules. Matches ending in draws were decided by a penalty shootout.


1981 Torneo Descentralizado, Torneo Regional, Group stage, Metropolitan group
In addition, the top two of this group advanced to the semifinals.


1981 Torneo Godó
The 1981 Torneo Godó or Trofeo Conde de Godó was a tennis tournament that took place on outdoor clay courts in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It was the 29th edition of the tournament and was part of the 1981 Grand Prix circuit. It was held from October 5 through October 11, 1981. Ivan Lendl won the singles title.


1981 Torneo Godó, Finals, Doubles
Anders Jarryd /  Hans Simonsson defeated  Hans Gildemeister /  Andres Gomez 6–1, 6–4


1981 Torneo di Viareggio
The 1981 winners of the Torneo di Viareggio (in English, the Viareggio Tournament, officially the Viareggio Cup World Football Tournament Coppa Carnevale), the annual youth football tournament held in Viareggio, Tuscany, are listed below.


1981 Torneo di Viareggio, Format
The 16 teams are seeded in 4 groups. Each team from a group meets the others in a single tie. The winner of each group progress to the final knockout stage.


1981 Toronto Argonauts season
The 1981 Toronto Argonauts finished in fourth place in the East Division with a 2–14 record and failed to make the playoffs.


1981 Toronto Argonauts season, Regular season
In spite of a 2-14 record, the Argonauts actually ended their season occupying the final playoff spot in the East (the crossover rule, intended to prevent such a weak third place team from making the playoffs, had not yet been implemented). Had the Montreal Alouettes lost their final regular season game against the Ottawa Rough Riders, they would have also finished 2-14 in which case the Argonauts would have qualified has they had scored more points in head-to-head games. However, Montreal won their last game to finish 3-13 and in third place.


1981 Toronto Blue Jays season
The 1981 Toronto Blue Jays season was the franchise's fifth season competing in Major League Baseball. Games were suspended for 50 days due to the 1981 Major League Baseball strike, causing a split season. The Blue Jays finished both halves of the season in seventh place in the seven-team American League East. Managed by Bobby Mattick, the Blue Jays played their home games at Exhibition Stadium and had an overall record of 37 wins and 69 losses.


1981 Toronto Blue Jays season, Regular season
The Blue Jays were one of the worst teams in the majors in the first half of the split season, as the Blue Jays had a record of 16 wins and 42 losses, a percentage of .276. Although the Blue Jays had future stars Jesse Barfield, George Bell, and Lloyd Moseby in the lineup, the team continued to struggle.


1981 Toronto Blue Jays season, Regular season
On May 15, 1981, Len Barker of the Cleveland Indians pitched a perfect game against the Blue Jays. It was the tenth perfect game ever pitched, is one of only seventeen in the history of the major leagues, and remains the last no-hitter thrown by an Indian.


1981 Toronto Blue Jays season, Regular season
The result of the season was one of the more controversial times in franchise history. The President of the Blue Jays, Peter Bavasi, went to see the team in Anaheim against the California Angels. Bavasi's father, Buzzie Bavasi was the president of the Angels, and his team had gotten off to a lacklustre start. Buzzie wanted to fire Angels manager Jim Fregosi, and Peter Bavasi had the idea to fire his manager, Bobby Mattick. Both thought it would be big news if father and son fired their manager on the same night. One of the Blue Jays executives advised the Jays Vice-Chairman of the Board, Peter Hardy. After a brief conversation, Hardy made it clear to Peter Bavasi that Mattick would not be fired in this way.


1981 Toronto Blue Jays season, Regular season
After the strike was resolved, the Blue Jays started the second half of the season with a close to .500 winning percentage. Peter Bavasi was heard to muse aloud the requirement to print World Series tickets. The Jays would finish the second half with 21 wins and 27 losses, seven and a half games out of first place. Despite the attempted Bavasi firing, Mattick would resign as manager at the end of the season. On November 22, 1981, Hardy forced Bavasi to resign from the Blue Jays.


1981 Toronto Blue Jays season, Player stats, Batting, Starters by position
Note: Pos = position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; Avg = Batting average; SB = Stolen bases


1981 Toronto Blue Jays season, Player stats, Batting, Other batters
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; Avg = Batting average; SB = Stolen bases


1981 Toronto Blue Jays season, Player stats, Pitching, Starting pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts


1981 Toronto Blue Jays season, Player stats, Pitching, Other pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts


1981 Toronto Blue Jays season, Player stats, Pitching, Relief pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts


1981 Toronto International Film Festival
The 6th Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) took place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada between September 10 and September 19, 1981. The festival screened films from more than twenty different countries. Ticket to Heaven, a Canadian film, was selected as the opening film. Another Canadian film, Threshold, was chosen as the closing film. The People's Choice Award was awarded to Chariots of Fire, directed by Hugh Hudson; the film later won an Oscar for Best Picture.


1981 Toronto International Film Festival
The Canadian documentary Not a Love Story, about the pornography industry, was also featured at the festival. Initially it was banned by the Ontario Censor Board, but later they allowed a single screening of film during the festival. With all the media attention surrounding this decision, public interest in the film increased. However, the Censor Board refused to permit a second screening of the film.


1981 Toronto International Film Festival, Programme, Culture Under Pressure
A curated program of films about minority groups under cultural pressure from the majority.


1981 Toronto International Film Festival, Programme, Laughing Matters
A program of classic comedy or comedy-drama films from throughout cinematic history,


1981 Toronto International Film Festival, Programme, 3-D
A late-night program of genre and cult films exhibited in 3D film format.


1981 Toronto International Film Festival, Programme, World of Animation
Several programs of animated short films, presented under the titles Best British Animation, NFB Animation, Independent Animation, Ottawa Festival I & II, Animation & Commercials, Cinémathèque québécoise I & II and Best of Animation. However, sources are not currently available to confirm the titles of individual short films aired within the programs.


1981 Toronto Molson Light Challenge
Vitas Gerulaitis won in the final 6–4, 4–6, 6–3, 6–3 against John McEnroe.


1981 Tour de France
The 1981 Tour de France was the 68th edition of the Tour de France, taking place between 25 June and 19 July. The total race distance was 24 stages over 3,753 km (2,332 mi). It was dominated by Bernard Hinault, who led the race from the sixth stage on, increasing his lead almost every stage. Only Phil Anderson was able to stay close to him, until the 16th stage when he fell behind by about 7:00, and then on the 17th stage he would lose another 17 minutes. In the end only Lucien Van Impe, Robert Alban and Joop Zoetemelk were able to finish inside 20:00 of the now three time champ.


1981 Tour de France
The points classification was won by Freddy Maertens, who did so by winning five stages. The mountains classification was won by Lucien Van Impe, Peter Winnen won the young rider classification, and the Peugeot team won the team classification.


1981 Tour de France, Teams
Late 1980, there were plans to make the tour "open", which meant that amateur teams would also be allowed to join. This would make it possible for teams from Eastern Europe to join. The plan did not materialize, so only professional teams were invited. In January 1981, the organisation decided that there would be 15 teams with 10 cyclists, or 16 teams with 9 cyclists each. At that point, 16 teams had already submitted a request to join, and the organisation was in discussion with four additional Italian teams, and the American national team. In the end, the American team did not apply, and the Italian teams decided to focus on the 1981 Giro d'Italia. The organisation selected 15 teams, who each selected 10 cyclists, for a total of 150 participants.


1981 Tour de France, Pre-race favourites
Bernard Hinault, the winner of the 1978 and 1979 Tour de France and reigning world champion, was the main favourite. His knee problems, that caused him to leave the 1980 Tour de France, were solved, and he was in form: Hinault had won important races in the spring, and he had skipped the 1981 Giro d'Italia to focus on the Tour.


1981 Tour de France, Pre-race favourites
His main rivals were 1980 Tour de France winner Joop Zoetemelk, 1976 Tour de France winner Lucien Van Impe and Joaquim Agostinho, although they had never been able to beat Hinault when he was in form, and of these rivals only Zoetemelk was ever able to keep Hinault within striking distance.


1981 Tour de France, Pre-race favourites
Freddy Maertens, the winner of the points classification in the Tour de France in 1976 and 1978, had won only three minor races in 1979 and 1980, but in 1981 he was selected again for the Tour.


1981 Tour de France, Route and stages
The route for the 1981 Tour de France was revealed in December 1980. Originally, the thirteenth stage was planned as a time trial, followed by a transfer of more than 500 km on the same day, with the fourteenth stage the next day as a mountain stage. A few months before the Tour, there were many teams interested in the Tour, and the Tour organisation was afraid that there would not be enough time on 9 July to have the time trial for that many cyclists, followed by the transfer.


1981 Tour de France, Route and stages
For this reason, the thirteenth stage was changed into a criterium, and the fourteenth stage became the time trial. The 1981 Tour de France started on 25 June, and had two rest days, in Nantes and Morzine. The highest point of elevation in the race was 2,000 m (6,600 ft) at the summit of the Col de la Madeleine mountain pass on stage 19.


1981 Tour de France, Race overview
Hinault started out strong and won the prologue. Freddy Maertens showed he was still able to win sprints by winning the first part of the first stage. The second part was a team time trial, won by Ti-Raleigh, which put Gerrie Knetemann in the lead of the race. Ti Raleigh also won the second team time trial in stage four.


1981 Tour de France, Race overview
The Pyrenees were only briefly visited, in the fifth stage. For the last mountain, Hinault was the lead group, together with Lucien Van Impe and Phil Anderson. Van Impe escaped in the last kilometers and won the stage, 27 seconds ahead of Hinault. Anderson, who finished in third place, became the new leader, the first Australian cyclist to wear the yellow jersey. Anderson had started as domestique for Jean-René Bernaudeau, and nobody was expecting him to be able to follow Hinault. In the time trial of stage six, Hinault won as expected, and became the race leader. Anderson surprised with a third place, and he now followed Hinault by 13 seconds in the general classification.


1981 Tour de France, Race overview
In the following stages, through Northern France and Belgium, Hinault slowly increased his margin over Anderson by winning amelioration sprints, until lead by 57 seconds after stage 13. In stage 14, Hinault won the time trial, and added two more minutes to the margin.


1981 Tour de France, Race overview
In the sixteenth stage in the Alps, Anderson was not able to follow anymore. He lost 4 minutes to Hinault, but stayed in second place. Anderson lost this second place in the 17th stage, where he lost 17 minutes, making Van Impe the new second placed cyclist, nine minutes behind. Hinault showed his dominance by winning the eighteenth stage.


1981 Tour de France, Race overview
The time trial in stage 20 was also won by Hinault, who increased the margin to Van Impe to more than 14 minutes.


1981 Tour de France, Race overview, Doping
In the 16th stage, Claude Vincendeau was randomly selected to undergo a doping test. Vincendeau abandoned during that stage, and had already left to his hotel. One of the doctors then went to his hotel to obtain a urine sample, but Vincendeau was unable/unwanting to give it. This counted as a positive test.


1981 Tour de France, Classification leadership and minor prizes
There were several classifications in the 1981 Tour de France, four of them awarding jerseys to their leaders. The most important was the general classification, calculated by adding each cyclist's finishing times on each stage. The cyclist with the least accumulated time was the race leader, identified by the yellow jersey; the winner of this classification is considered the winner of the Tour. The time bonus for stage winners had been absent in the years before, but it returned in 1981; 30, 20 and 10 seconds for the first three cyclists in every stage.


1981 Tour de France, Classification leadership and minor prizes
Additionally, there was a points classification, were cyclists got points for finishing among the best in a stage finish, or in intermediate sprints. The cyclist with the most points lead the classification, and was identified with a green jersey.


1981 Tour de France, Classification leadership and minor prizes
There was also a mountains classification. The organisation had categorised some climbs as either hors catégorie, first, second, third, or fourth-category; points for this classification were won by the first cyclists that reached the top of these climbs first, with more points available for the higher-categorised climbs. The cyclist with the most points lead the classification, and wore a white jersey with red polka dots.


1981 Tour de France, Classification leadership and minor prizes
Another classification was the young rider classification. This was decided the same way as the general classification, but only cyclists younger than 24 were eligible, and the leader wore a white jersey.


1981 Tour de France, Classification leadership and minor prizes
The fifth individual classification was the intermediate sprints classification. This classification had similar rules as the points classification, but only points were awarded on intermediate sprints. In 1981, this classification had no associated jersey.


1981 Tour de France, Classification leadership and minor prizes
For the team classification, the times of the best three cyclists per team on each stage were added; the leading team was the team with the lowest total time. The riders in the team that led this classification were identified by yellow caps. There was also a team points classification. Cyclists received points according to their finishing position on each stage, with the first rider receiving one point. The first three finishers of each team had their points combined, and the team with the fewest points led the classification. The riders of the team leading this classification wore green caps.


1981 Tour de France, Classification leadership and minor prizes
In addition, there was a combativity award given after each mass-start stage to the cyclist considered most combative. The split stages each had a combined winner. The decision was made by a jury composed of journalists who gave points. The cyclist with the most points from votes in all stages led the combativity classification. Bernard Hinault won this classification, and was given overall the super-combativity award. The Souvenir Henri Desgrange was given in honour of Tour founder Henri Desgrange to the first rider to pass a point in the Landes forest 42 km (26 mi) before the end of stage 7 in Bordeaux. This prize was won by Theo de Rooij.


1981 Tour de France, Aftermath
The 1981 Tour de France is seen as the year in which the globalization of the Tour became important. Before that most cyclists came from France, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Luxemburg and the Netherlands, with only occasional successes by other European cyclists. Anderson was the first non-European cyclist to lead the Tour de France, and more would follow in the coming years. The plans to make the Tour de France open to amateurs were not forgotten, and it happened in 1983.


1981 Tour de France, Aftermath
Anderson would again wear the yellow jersey in the next year, when he also won the young rider classification.


1981 Tour de France, Aftermath
Hinault won five stages as reigning world champion. This had happened before, most recently in 1979 with Gerrie Knetemann and in 1980 with Jan Raas, but after 1981 it became a rare occurrence. The next time that this happened was in 2002 with Óscar Freire, and after that in 2011 with Thor Hushovd.


1981 Tour de France, Aftermath
Maertens who also won five stages would make his comeback year complete by winning the 1981 UCI Road World Championships later that year, but after that never reached his 1981 level again.


1981 Tour de France, Aftermath
Jacques Boyer became the first American to ride in the Tour de France, acting as a domestique for Hinault.


1981 Tour de France, Prologue to Stage 11
The 1981 Tour de France was the 68th edition of Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. The Tour began in Nice with a prologue individual time trial on 25 June and Stage 12a occurred on 8 July with a flat stage to Brussels, Belgium. The race finished on the Champs-Élysées in Paris on 19 July.


1981 Tour de France, Prologue to Stage 11, Prologue
25 June 1981 — Nice, 5.85 km (3.6 mi) (individual time trial)


1981 Tour de France, Prologue to Stage 11, Stage 1b
26 June 1981 — Nice, 40 km (24.9 mi) (team time trial)


1981 Tour de France, Prologue to Stage 11, Stage 2
27 June 1981 — Nice to Martigues, 254 km (157.8 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Prologue to Stage 11, Stage 3
28 June 1981 — Martigues to Narbonne, 232.5 km (144.5 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Prologue to Stage 11, Stage 4
29 June 1981 — Narbonne to Carcassonne, 77.2 km (48.0 mi) (team time trial)


1981 Tour de France, Prologue to Stage 11, Stage 5
30 June 1981 — Saint-Gaudens to Pla d'Adet, 117.5 km (73.0 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Prologue to Stage 11, Stage 6
1 July 1981 — Nay to Pau, 26.7 km (16.6 mi) (individual time trial)


1981 Tour de France, Prologue to Stage 11, Stage 7
2 July 1981 — Pau to Bordeaux, 227 km (141 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Prologue to Stage 11, Stage 8
3 July 1981 — Rochefort to Nantes, 180 km (110 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Prologue to Stage 11, Stage 9
5 July 1981 — Nantes to Le Mans, 194 km (121 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Prologue to Stage 11, Stage 10
6 July 1981 — Le Mans to Aulnay-sous-Bois, 258.5 km (160.6 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Prologue to Stage 11, Stage 11
7 July 1981 — Compiègne to Roubaix, 246 km (153 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Stage 12a to Stage 22
The 1981 Tour de France was the 68th edition of Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. The Tour began in Nice with a prologue individual time trial on 25 June and Stage 12a occurred on 8 July with a flat stage from Roubaix. The race finished on the Champs-Élysées in Paris on 19 July.


1981 Tour de France, Stage 12a to Stage 22, Stage 12a
8 July 1981 — Roubaix to Brussels, 107.3 km (66.7 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Stage 12a to Stage 22, Stage 12b
8 July 1981 — Brussels (Belgium) to Circuit Zolder (Belgium), 133.8 km (83.1 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Stage 12a to Stage 22, Stage 13
9 July 1981 — Beringen (Belgium) to Hasselt (Belgium), 157 km (97.6 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Stage 12a to Stage 22, Stage 14
10 July 1981 — Mulhouse, 38.5 km (23.9 mi) (individual time trial)


1981 Tour de France, Stage 12a to Stage 22, Stage 15
11 July 1981 — Besançon to Thonon-les-Bains, 231 km (144 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Stage 12a to Stage 22, Stage 16
12 July 1981 — Thonon-les-Bains to Morzine, 200 km (120 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Stage 12a to Stage 22, Stage 17
14 July 1981 — Morzine to Alpe d'Huez, 230 km (140 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Stage 12a to Stage 22, Stage 18
15 July 1981 — Le Bourg-d'Oisans to Le Pleynet, 134 km (83 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Stage 12a to Stage 22, Stage 19
16 July 1981 — Veurey to Saint-Priest, 117.5 km (73.0 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Stage 12a to Stage 22, Stage 20
17 July 1981 — Saint-Priest, 46.5 km (28.9 mi) (individual time trial)


1981 Tour de France, Stage 12a to Stage 22, Stage 21
18 July 1981 — Auxerre to Fontenay-sous-Bois, 207 km (129 mi)


1981 Tour de France, Stage 12a to Stage 22, Stage 22
19 July 1981 — Fontenay-sous-Bois to Paris Champs-Élysées, 186 km (116 mi)


1981 Tour de Romandie
The 1981 Tour de Romandie was the 35th edition of the Tour de Romandie cycle race and was held from 5 May to 10 May 1981. The race started in Morat and finished in Vernier. The race was won by Tommy Prim of the Bianchi team.


1981 Tour de Suisse
The 1981 Tour de Suisse was the 45th edition of the Tour de Suisse cycle race and was held from 10 June to 19 June 1981. The race started in Wohlen and finished in Zürich. The race was won by Beat Breu of the Cilo–Aufina team.


1981 Tour du Haut Var
The 1981 Tour du Haut Var was the 13th edition of the Tour du Haut Var cycle race and was held on 22 February 1981. The race started in Nice and finished in Seillans. The race was won by Jacques Bossis.


1981 Tour of Flanders
The 65th running of the Tour of Flanders cycling classic was held on Sunday, 5 April 1981. Dutch rider Hennie Kuiper claimed a solo victory ahead of his fellow Dutchmen Frits Pirard and Jan Raas. 45 of 184 riders finished.


1981 Tour of Flanders, Route
The race started in Sint Niklaas and finished in Meerbeke (Ninove) – covering 267 km. There were 11 categorized climbs:


1981 Tour of the Basque Country
The 1981 Tour of the Basque Country was the 21st edition of the Tour of the Basque Country cycle race and was held from 6 April to 10 April 1981. The race started in Lazkao and finished at Iturriotz. The race was won by Silvano Contini of the Bianchi team.


1981 Tournament Players Championship
The 1981 Tournament Players Championship was a golf tournament in Florida on the PGA Tour, held March 19–23 at Sawgrass Country Club in Ponte Vedra Beach, southeast of Jacksonville. The eighth Tournament Players Championship, it was the fifth consecutive at Sawgrass and the champion was Raymond Floyd.


1981 Tournament Players Championship
The final round on Sunday was washed-out by thunderstorms and played on Monday. After 72 holes, three players were tied at 285 (−3): Floyd, Barry Jaeckel, and Curtis Strange. The playoff began at the par-3 15th hole, where Floyd made par and the other two had bogeys.


1981 Tournament Players Championship
In addition to the winner's share of $72,000, Floyd won a $250,000 bonus for consecutive victories during the tour's Florida swing; he won at Doral near Miami the previous week.


1981 Tournament Players Championship
Defending champion Lee Trevino finished four strokes back, in a tie for twelfth place.


1981 Tournament Players Championship, Venue
This was the fifth and last Tournament Players Championship held at Sawgrass Country Club; it moved to the nearby TPC at Sawgrass Stadium Course in 1982. The new course was scheduled to make its debut in 1981,  but heavy rains during construction pushed it back a year.


1981 Tournament Players Championship, Eligibility requirements
2. Winners of major PGA Tour co-sponsored or approved events beginning with the 1980 Tournament Players Championship and concluding with the tournament immediately preceding the 1981 TPC


1981 Tournament Players Championship, Eligibility requirements
Lee Trevino, Doug Tewell, Craig Stadler, Seve Ballesteros, Roger Maltbie, Tom Watson (3), Mark Pfeil, Curtis Strange, Bruce Lietzke, David Graham, John Mahaffey, Larry Nelson, Jack Nicklaus, Bob Gilder, Scott Simpson, Billy Kratzert, Scott Hoch, Howard Twitty, Peter Jacobsen, Don Pooley, Wayne Levi, Phil Hancock, Ben Crenshaw, Mike Sullivan, Dan Halldorson, Danny Edwards, David Edwards, Johnny Miller, John Cook, Hale Irwin, Andy Bean, Tom Kite, Raymond Floyd


1981 Tournament Players Championship, Eligibility requirements
4. Leaders in the PGA Tour Official Standings as necessary to complete the field, beginning with the 1980 TPC and concluding with the Jackie Gleason-Inverrary Classic, which concludes March 8, 1981


1981 Tournament Players Championship, Field
John Adams, Buddy Allin, Wally Armstrong, Butch Baird, Seve Ballesteros, Miller Barber, Andy Bean, Chip Beck, Mike Brannan, Brad Bryant, George Burns, George Cadle, Rex Caldwell, Bill Calfee, Roger Calvin, Antonio Cerda Jr., Jon Chaffee, Bobby Clampett, Jim Colbert, Bobby Cole, Frank Conner, Charles Coody, John Cook, Ben Crenshaw, Rod Curl, Jim Dent, Bruce Devlin, Terry Diehl, Mike Donald, Bruce Douglass, Skip Dunaway, Bob Eastwood, Danny Edwards, David Edwards, Dave Eichelberger, Lee Elder, Keith Fergus, Ed Fiori, Raymond Floyd, John Fought, Buddy Gardner, Gibby Gilbert, Bob Gilder, Jaime Gonzalez, Mike Gove, David Graham, Lou Graham, Hubert Green, Jay Haas, Joe Hager, Gary Hallberg, Dan Halldorson, Phil Hancock, Morris Hatalsky, Mark Hayes, Vance Heafner, Dave Hill, Lon Hinkle, Scott Hoch, Joe Inman, Hale Irwin, Peter Jacobsen, Barry Jaeckel, Tom Jenkins, Grier Jones, Gary Koch, Billy Kratzert, Wayne Levi, Bruce Lietzke, Gene Littler, Lyn Lott, Mark Lye, John Mahaffey, Roger Maltbie, Rik Massengale, Terry Mauney, Mike McCullough, Mark McCumber, Jerry McGee, Pat McGowan, Artie McNickle, Steve Melnyk, Johnny Miller, Jeff Mitchell, Gil Morgan, Mike Morley, Bob Murphy, Jim Nelford, Larry Nelson, Jack Newton, Bobby Nichols, Jack Nicklaus, Mike Nicolette, Lonnie Nielsen, Andy North, Mark O'Meara, Peter Oosterhuis, Arnold Palmer, Jerry Pate, Calvin Peete, Mark Pfeil, Gary Player, Dan Pohl, Don Pooley, Greg Powers, Tom Purtzer, Dana Quigley, Sammy Rachels, Victor Regalado, Mike Reid, Jack Renner, Chi-Chi Rodríguez, Bill Rogers, Mark Rohde, John Schroeder, Bob Shearer, Jim Simons, Scott Simpson, Tim Simpson, J. C. Snead, Ed Sneed, Mick Soli, Craig Stadler, Dave Stockton, Curtis Strange, Ron Streck, Mike Sullivan, Alan Tapie, Doug Tewell, Barney Thompson, Leonard Thompson, Jim Thorpe, Lee Trevino, Howard Twitty, Tommy Valentine, Bobby Wadkins, Lanny Wadkins, Bobby Walzel, Tom Watson, D. A. Weibring, Tom Weiskopf, Larry Ziegler, Fuzzy Zoeller


1981 Tournament Players Championship, Round summaries, Final round, Playoff
The sudden-death playoff began and ended at the par-3 15th hole.


1981 Toxteth riots
The Toxteth riots of July 1981 were a civil disturbance in Toxteth, inner-city Liverpool, which arose in part from long-standing tensions between the local police and the black community. They followed the Brixton riot earlier that year and were part of the 1981 England riots.


1981 Toxteth riots, Background
The Merseyside police force had, at the time, a poor reputation within the black community for stopping and searching young black men in the area, under the "sus" laws, and the heavy-handed arrest of Leroy Alphonse Cooper on Friday 3 July near Granby Street, watched by an angry crowd, led to a disturbance in which three policemen were injured. The existing tensions between police and people had already been noticed by local magistrate, Councillor and Chair of the Merseyside Police Committee, Margaret Simey, who was frequently critical of the hardline tactics used by the then Chief Constable Kenneth Oxford. She said of the rioters "they would be apathetic fools ... if they didn't protest", although she was unprepared for the personal criticism that followed.


1981 Toxteth riots, Background
With the economy in recession, unemployment in Britain was at a 50-year high in 1981, with Merseyside being one of the worst hit regions for unemployment, with Toxteth being one of the worst hit districts of the city of Liverpool.


1981 Toxteth riots, Events
Over the weekend that followed, disturbance erupted into full-scale rioting, with pitched battles between police and youths in which petrol bombs and paving stones were thrown. During the violence, milk floats were set on fire and directed at police lines. Rioters were also observed using scaffolding poles to charge police lines. The Merseyside Police had issued its officers with long protective shields but these proved inadequate in protecting officers from missile attacks and in particular the effects of petrol bombs. The overwhelming majority of officers were not trained either in using the shields or in public order tactics. The sole offensive tactic available to officers, the baton charge, proved increasingly ineffective in driving back the attacking crowds of rioters.


1981 Toxteth riots, Events
At 02:15 hours on Monday 6 July 1981 Merseyside police officers fired 25–30 CS gas grenades, the first occasion on which these had been in the UK other than in Northern Ireland. The gas successfully dispersed the crowds. The rioting lasted nine days, during which Merseyside Police said 468 police officers were injured, 500 people were arrested, and at least 70 buildings were damaged so severely by fire that they had to be demolished. Around 100 cars were damaged or destroyed, and there was extensive looting of shops. Later estimates suggested the numbers of injured police officers and destroyed buildings were at least double those of the official figures.


1981 Toxteth riots, Events
Such was the scale of the rioting in Toxteth that police reinforcements were drafted in from forces across England, including Greater Manchester Police, Lancashire, Cumbria, Birmingham and even Devon to try to control the unrest.


1981 Toxteth riots, Events
A second wave of rioting began on 27 July 1981 and continued into the early hours of 28 July, with police once again being attacked with missiles and a number of cars being set alight. Twenty-six officers were injured. However, on this occasion the Merseyside Police responded by driving vans and Land Rovers at high speed into the crowds quickly dispersing them. This tactic had been developed as a riot control technique in Northern Ireland by the Royal Ulster Constabulary and had been employed with success in quelling the Moss Side riots by the Greater Manchester Police. A 23-year-old local man, David Moore, died after being struck by a police vehicle trying to clear crowds. Two police officers were charged with his manslaughter but cleared in April 1982.


1981 Toxteth riots, Events
Dozens of senior citizens were evacuated from the Princes Park Hospital during the riots.


1981 Toxteth riots, Aftermath
The subsequent Scarman Report (although primarily directed at the Brixton Riot of 1981) recognised that the riots did represent the result of social problems, such as poverty and deprivation. The Government responded by sending Michael Heseltine, as "Minister for Merseyside", to set up the Merseyside Task Force and launch a series of initiatives, including the Liverpool international garden festival and the Mersey Basin Campaign.


1981 Toyota Series Championships
The 1981 Toyota Series Championships was a women's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts at the Byrne Meadowlands Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey in the United States that was the season-ending tournament of the 1981 Virginia Slims World Championship Series. It was the fifth edition of the tournament and was held from December 15 through December 20, 1981. Third-seeded Tracy Austin won the singles title and earned $75,000 first-prize money.


1981 Toyota Series Championships, Finals, Doubles
Martina Navratilova /  Pam Shriver defeated  Rosemary Casals /  Wendy Turnbull 6–3, 6–4