Every year, sports fans remember the deaths of famous athletes and long-retired legends, each of whom influenced their sport in different ways.
Al Jazeera presents the sporting lives of the five biggest names to leave in 2024:
Franz Beckenbauer (September 11, 1945 – January 7, 2024)
The German football legend who won the World Cup for his country as a player and manager has died aged 78.
Born in Munich just four months after the end of World War II, Beckenbauer is regarded as the greatest German footballer of all time.
On the field, he changed the game in Europe. While still a teenager with Bayern Munich, he pioneered what is now known as “complete football”.
Internationally, he led West Germany to victory in the 1974 World Cup.
Beckenbauer is one of only nine players to have won the FIFA World Cup, the European Champions Cup, and the Ballon d'Or.
As a manager, he was equally successful, taking Germany to two consecutive World Cups in 1986 and 1990, and winning the trophy for his country at the second attempt in Rome.
In his later years, Beckenbauer is best remembered as one of the world's greatest diplomats.
Kelvin Kiptum (December 2, 1999 – February 11, 2024)
Kenya's marathon record holder has died at the age of 24.
Kiptum broke out in the marathon in October 2023 when he ran two hours and 35 seconds in Chicago, taking 34 seconds off Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge's record.
The death of the 24-year-old, who was driving in western Kenya in February when his car overturned, left the sports world in shock. Kiptum is expected to be one of the top athletes at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
Kiptum was born in Chepkorio, a village in the Rift Valley which is between Kenyan speed; in a strange twist of fate, it was also the place where his tragic death took place.
His funeral was attended by thousands of friends, relatives and fans. Kenyan President William Ruto was one of those who paid tribute to the fastest running talent in history.
OJ Simpson (July 9, 1947 – April 10, 2024)
A former NFL Hall of Fame football player and actor turned serial killer has died at the age of 76.
Nicknamed “The Juice”, Simpson was one of America's biggest and most popular athletes in the late 1960s and '70s.
In nine seasons with the Buffalo Bills and two with the San Francisco 49ers, Simpson became one of the greatest ball carriers in NFL history. In 1973, he became the first NFL player to rush for over 2,000 yards in a season. He retired in 1979.
Simpson has parlayed his football background into a career as a sports star, promoter and Hollywood actor in films including The Naked Gun.
Everything changed after his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ronald Goldman, were found murdered in a double homicide outside their Los Angeles home on June 12, 1994.
Simpson quickly emerged as a suspect. He was ordered to hand himself in to police but five days after the murder, he fled in his white Ford Bronco with his former team-mate – carrying his passport and a disguise. A slow chase through the Los Angeles area ended at Simpson's home and he was later charged with murder.
What ensued was one of the most famous US trials and television shows of the 20th century. Prosecutors made a memorable mistake when they asked Simpson to try on a pair of blood-stained gloves found at the scene of the murder, believing they would fit better and prove he was the killer. In the high-profile showdown, Simpson struggled to put on the gloves and show the judges that they didn't agree.
Simpson was later acquitted of the murders on October 3, 1995.
On October 3, 2008 – exactly 13 years after his acquittal in the murder case – he was convicted by a Las Vegas jury of criminal charges, including robbery and armed robbery related to the 2007 incident at the casino hotel.
Simpson was released on parole in 2017 and moved to Las Vegas. He was granted parole in 2021 for good behavior at the age of 74. Three years later, he died of cancer.
Jerry West (May 28, 1930 – June 12, 2024)
The American basketball player and great has died at the age of 86.
It's not hard to say that Jerry West is the most important player in the game:
- West, who played in the NBA from 1960 to 1974, and won the NBA title in 1972, was the first person to be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame as a player.
- The official logo of the NBA, created in 1969, has its own shape.
- West restored the way the defense was played; his perfect leaping image, graceful movement and incredible movement made a huge impression on basketball players who followed him in the NBA for decades to come, from Michael Jordan to Kobe Bryant.
Like Beckenbauer, he had great success after his career, winning eight NBA championships as a senior with the team he played for his entire career, the Los Angeles Lakers.
West couldn't leave the game he loves, working as an NBA consultant until the year he passed and building good relationships with many of today's basketball stars.
Willie Mays (May 6, 1931 – June 18, 2024)
An American baseball legend with the greatest talent in the world has died at the age of 93.
Mays was a beloved African-American football player and is considered by many to be the greatest player in the history of the game.
Nicknamed “the Say Hey Kid”, Mays was an amazing player who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1951 to 1973.
His long playing career spanned the good and bad times of US baseball history. He was born into the Great Depression and endured prejudice and discrimination throughout much of his career; He was also part of the original player advocacy movement that eventually led to MLB players being granted free agency in 1976, a legacy that continues to this day.
His career highlights included four MLB home run titles, four stolen base titles and one batting title. He was the seventh player to hit 50 home runs in a single MLB season, accomplishing the feat while playing for the New York Giants in 1955.
