October 24: Jeff Blatnick, 55

2012 Sports: In Memoriam

After defeating his battle with Hodgkin's lymphoma, Blatnick went on to win gold for the United States in Greco-Roman wrestling at the 1984 Summer Olympics. Blatnick passed away at the age of 55 after a complication from heart surgery. (AP Photo/Doug Pizac)

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January 2: Jim H... Longtime sports broadcaster and essayist Jim Huber died in Atlanta following a battle with acute leukemia. (AP Photo/Turner Sports, John Nowak)

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January 3: Gene ... Gene Bartow, the former basketball coach at Memphis State, UCLA and UBA, who also coached the Puerto Rico national basketball team in the 1972 Munich Olympic Games, died after a two-year battle with stomach cancer. (AP Photo)

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January 16: Mich... Current, who played 13 seasons in the NFL, was found dead in an Oregon wildlife refuge from an alleged self-inflicted gunshot wound. (AP Photo)

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January 22: Joe ... Head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lion’s football team for 46 seasons, Paterno passed away on January 22 after losing his battle to lung cancer. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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February 1: Ange... The Hall of Fame trainer schooled 15 world champions, including boxing legends such as Sugar Ray Leonard, Muhammad Ali, and George Foreman. Dundee died in Tampa, Florida, at the age of 90. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

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February 13: Fre... The beloved San Francisco 49ers wide receiver and member of two Super Bowl winning teams lost his nine-month battle with colon and liver cancer at the age of 59. (AP Photo/Risberg)

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February 16: Gar... The 11-time All-Star and three-time Golden Glove winner passed away at 57 after battling brain cancer. (AP Photo/Tom Puskar)

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March 3: Alex We... The star running back spent his entire career playing for the New York Giants. Webster died on March 3 at the age of 80. (AP Photo/Harry Harris)

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March 20: Mel Pa... The former Boston Red Sox pitcher was the winningest left-hander in Red Sox history, compiling a 123-75 record and 3.50 ERA. He died at the age of 89 after a long battle with cancer. (AP Photo)

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April 8: Blair K... The former Notre Dame star quarterback set the record for the longest pass in Irish history with a 96-yarder against Georgia Tech in 1981. Kiel, who died of natural causes at the age of 50, played in the NFL for five seasons. (AP Photo)

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April 15: Dwayne... Schintzius lead the University of Florida to its first three NCAA tournament appearances and remains the only SEC player with more than 1,000 points, 800 rebounds, 250 assists, and 250 blocked shots. He passed away on April 15 following complications from a failed bone marrow transplant. (AP Photo/Ron Frehm)

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April 19: Ray Ea... A member of the Falcons' famed "Grits Blitz" defense in the 1970s, Easterling died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. (AP Photo)

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April 27: Bill '... The former Yankee was a five-time World Series champion and one of only two players to hit three home runs in multiple Game 7s. The eight-time All-Star passed from congestive heart failure. (AP Photo)

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April 29: Thomas... The Hall of Fame card shark, known as the “World’s Greatest Gambler,” lost his battle with colon cancer on April 29. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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May 2: Junior Se... The 12-time Pro Bowl linebacker who spent 19 season in the NFL died at his home due to an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)

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May 10: Carroll ... Known for his Ford V8-Powered Shelby Cobra roadsters, Shelby died on May 10 after suffering serious heart ailments. He was believed to have been the only person to win Le Mans as a driver, manufacturer and team owner. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

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May 19: Bob Booz... Boozer played 11 years in the NBA and helped win the Olympic gold for U.S.A. in 1960. He passed away on May 19 from a brain aneurysm. (AP Photo/The Chicago Bulls)

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May 21: Bill Ste... The former West Virginia football coach died of a heart attack on May 21. (AP Photo/Jeff Gentner)

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May 27: Johnny T... The former world-champion boxer died at his home in Albuquerque, New Mexico, due to complications from heart disease and high blood pressure. (AP Photo/Adam Butler)

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May 30: Jack Twy... The NBA Hall of Famer passed away after complications due to an aggressive form of blood cancer on May 30. (AP Photo)

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May 31: Orlando ... Woolridge, who played in the NBA for 13 seasons and coached the WNBA's L.A. Sparks, passed away from a chronic heart condition at the age of 52. (AP Photo/Douglas Pizac)

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June 4: Pedro Bo... The former Cincinnati reliever lost his battle with cancer at the age of 65. He pitched 10 years for the Reds and still holds the team record for most career appearances with 531. (AP Photo/Al Behrman)

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June 11: Teofilo... The three-time Olympic heavyweight champion died of a heart attack in Havana, Cuba, on June 11. (AP Photo/Javier Galeano)

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June 9: Edward C... Former Auburn football player Edward Christian was fatally shot during a pool party near the school's campus. (AP Photo/Auburn University, Todd J. Van Emst)

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June 9: Ladariou... Former Auburn football player Ladarious Phillips was fatally shot during a pool party near the school's campus. (AP Photo/Auburn University, Todd J. Van Emst)

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June 24: Darrel ... The former major league pitcher and pitching coach lost his battle with pancreatic cancer at the age of 50. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

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July 4: Jimmy Bi... The boxing legend was awarded the unprecedented ranking of No. 1 contender in the light heavyweight and heavyweight divisions in 1942. Bivins died of pneumonia. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan)

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August 12: Jimmy... The former NFL player and assistant coach died at the age of 79. (AP Photo)

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August 13: Johnn... Baseball great Johnny Pesky played second base, managed, and served as a broadcaster for the Red Sox in a career that lasted more than 60 years. Pesky passed away from natural causes at the age of 92. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

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August 23: Steve... The Hall of Fame running back died of pneumonia at the age of 91. He still holds team records for rushing yards in a single game (205) and most consecutive games with a rushing touchdown (eight) for the Philadelphia Eagles. (AP Photo)

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September 6: Art... Baltimore Ravens owner Art Modell died shortly after being admitted to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore on September 6. (AP Photo/Ricky Carioti)

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September 28: Ch... A member of multiple halls of fame, Economaki was known as the dean of American motorsports journalism and worked in the media for over 30 years before taking over the National Speed Sports News. Economaki passed away from natural causes at the age of 91. (AP Photo)

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September 18: St... Co-founder and president of NFL Films, Sabol’s writing, editing, directing and producing talent made him one of the pioneers of the industry. Sabol was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor in 2011 and passed away just 18 months later. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

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October 10: Alex... Alex Karras played his entire NFL career with the Detroit Lions and was known as one of the toughest defensive tackles. He died after suffering from kidney failure at the age of 77. (AP Photo)

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October 11: Bean... Beano Cook, a legendary college football personality, passed away in his sleep at the age of 81. (AP Photo/ESPN)

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October 18: Slat... Standing at 5'10", Martin was a seven-time All-Star and five-time NBA champion. Martin died after a sudden illness at the age of 86. (AP Photo)

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October 24: Jeff... After defeating his battle with Hodgkin's lymphoma, Blatnick went on to win gold for the United States in Greco-Roman wrestling at the 1984 Summer Olympics. Blatnick passed away at the age of 55 after a complication from heart surgery. (AP Photo/Doug Pizac)

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October 24: Marg... The tennis legend won more than 30 Grand Slam singles and doubles titles over three decades and ranked No. 1 in the world from 1947 until 1950, died at the age of 94 from natural causes. (AP Photo)

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October 25: Eman... Owner of the legendary Kronk Gym, Steward was a fighter, trainer, and boxing pioneer who trained fighters such as Thomas Hearns, Evander Holyfield, Oscar De La Hoya, Lennox Lewis and Wladimir Klitschko. Steward died on October 25 after battling colon cancer. (Kerstin Joensson/dapd)

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November 1: Pasc... The All-Star pitcher died from fatal stab wounds that he received after an apparent home invasion. (AP Photo/Mark D. Phillips)

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November 7: Darr... The former University of Texas football coach and father of the wishbone offense, died after battling Alzheimer's disease for several years. (AP Photo)

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November 8: Lee ... Lee MacPhail, who shaped the New York Yankees' farm system into one of the strongest in the game, was the oldest living Hall of Famer at the time of his death. (AP Photo/Marty Lederhandler)

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November 24: Hec... Hector Camacho ended his career with a 79-6-3 record and earned world titles in the super lightweight, lightweight, and junior welterweight divisions in the 1980s. Camacho was critically wounded in a shooting outside a bar in Puerto Rico and was pronounced dead after being taken off life support four days later. (AP Photo/Stephen Chernin)

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November 27: Mar... Considered one of the most important figures in baseball of the last 50 years, Marvin Miller passed away only three months after being diagnosed with liver cancer. (AP Photo/Burnett)

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December 1: Rick... Rick Majerus, the former Utah head coach that lead the Utes to the 1998 NCAA final and had only one losing season in 25 years with four schools, died of heart failure. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

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December 1: Jova... The Kansas City linebacker was responsible for a tragic murder-suicide that claimed the life of his young girlfriend on Dec. 1. After fatally shooting Kasandra Perkins, Belcher took his own life outside of the Chiefs facility. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)

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December 22: Rya... Ryan Freel, who played eight years in the major leagues, took his own life on Dec. 22, 2012. (AP Photo/Chris Park)

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