The ABC Sportsman Of The Year Awards were started in 1951 and first televised in 1957. Despite the gender-specific title, both males and females were eligible. The awards were eventually re-named the ABC Sports Award Of The Year in 1984 and later merged with the Sport Australia Awards to become the Australian Sports Awards. They continued until 2006.

The 1980 ABC Sportsman Of The Year was hosted by Norman May, with the major award won by motor racing driver Alan Jones.

See also: Saturday 3 January 1981 — MELBOURNE

Source: TV Week, 3 January 1981 (Except programs marked * Source: The Sun-Herald, 29 December 1980)

	ABN2	ATN7	TCN9	TEN10	SBS0/28
6AM			6am King Leonardo And His Short Subjects 6.30 Rocky And His Friends
7AM		7am Michael Bentine’s Potty Time 7.20 Tom And Jerry 7.40 Merrie Melodies	7am The Ghost Busters 7.30 All-Star Laff-A-Lympics
8AM		8am The Kids From CAPER 8.30 Monster Squad	8am Nobody’s House 8.30 How	8am Waterline 8.30 Gardening’s Fun. Laurie McDonald
9AM		9am Sounds. Donnie Sutherland	9am Special: Me And Dad’s New Wife	9am Rickety Rocket 9.30 QT Hush
10AM			10am McDuff The Talking Dog 10.30 Big John Little John	10am John’s Workshop 10.30 Aquaman
11AM			11am Movie: Good Times. 1967 [IMDB]	11.30 The Magic Wok. Philip Paxton
12PM		12pm Tennis: World Challenge		12pm The Doris Day Show 12.30 Green Acres
1PM	1pm Sportsview 1.02 Soccer: Match Of The Day	1pm Tennis: Australian Men’s Open. Live from Kooyong, Melbourne	1pm Special: Battle Of The Network Stars	1pm Let’s Go Greek — Endaxi
2PM	2pm Equestrian: Strathalbyn 1980 — The President’s Cup			2pm Movie: The Man Behind The Gun. 1953 (B&W) [IMDB]
3PM	3pm Special: To Walk The Vertical 3.30 South Pacific International Track Series		3pm Grandstand 3.50 Cricket: First Test. Australia v India. Live from the Sydney Cricket Ground	3.40 Movie: For Those Who Think Young. 1964 (B&W) [IMDB]
4PM	4.15 Rugby Union: All Nations Cup 1980. Scotland v France, England v Wales (Rpt)
5PM	5.10 Pacing: The Benson And Hedges Pacing Cup 5.15 World Sports Roundup 5.25 Race And Sporting Roundup 5.35 Survival			5.30 Wild Kingdom	5.30pm Cartoons
6PM	6.05 The Magic Show 6.55 Weather	6pm Seven National News. Peter Ford 6.30 Young Ramsay	6pm National Nine News 6.30 Diff’rent Strokes	6pm Eyewitness News. Gordon Elliott, Graham McNeice 6.30 Special: Soundfactor	6pm The Orphan (France) 6.30 In The Wake Of Odysseus (Germany)
7PM	7pm ABC News 7.15 Sports Review 7.30 Parkinson	7.30 The Unknown War	7pm Angie 7.30 Little House On The Prairie	7.30 Switch	7pm Along The Mediterranean (Yugoslavia) 7.30 Josephine (France)
8PM	8.35 Special: ABC Sportsman Of The Year 1980. Norman May	8.30 Return Of The Saint	8.30 Movie: The Hunters. 1956 [IMDB]	8.30 The Runaways
9PM	9.35 ABC News, Weather 9.45 Target	9.30 How The West Was Won		9.30 Movie: Bang The Drum Slowly. 1973 [IMDB]	* 9pm Movie: I Only Wish You Loved Me (Germany) [IMDB]
10PM	10.35 The Val Doonican Music Show		10pm Cricket: First Test. Australia v India. Highlights 10.30 Upstairs Downstairs		10.30 Close
11PM	11.25 Close	11.30 Nightmoves. Lee Simon	11.30 The Evil Touch	11.20 Movie: Charleston. 1978 [IMDB]
12AM			12am Movie: The Killers. 1946 (B&W) [IMDB]
1AM		1.30am Close		1.10am Close
2AM			2am Movie: The Gamblers. 1970 [IMDB]
3AM			3.50 Movie: The Brasher Doubloon. 1947 (B&W) [IMDB]
4AM
5AM			5.10 Danger Man (B&W) (Continues to 6am)