Sports Current Affairs

 

·         Indian pugilist Mary Kom, lost to two-time world champion Nazym Kyzaibay of Kazakhstan, to settle for silver medal at the 2021 ASBC Asian Boxing Championships in Dubai. 

·         Pooja Rani won the gold medal in the 75kg Women’s Middle category final at the Asian Boxing Championships. She defeated Mavluda Movlonova in the gold medal clash.

·         Chelsea defeated Manchester City 1–0 in the final, to lift the 2020-21 UEFA Champions League title, on May 29, 2021, played at the Estádio do Dragão in Porto, Portugal.

·         The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has confirmed that the IPL 2021 Phase 2 will be held in the UAE during the September-October window. In a Special General Meeting chaired by BCCI president Sourav Ganguly, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) confirmed to the State units that the tournament will have to be shifted out of India on account of ‘monsoon.’

·         India’s pugilist Sanjeet Kumar won a gold medal in the 91 kg weight category at the ASBC Asian Boxing Championships. 

·         The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced that the Men’s Cricket World Cup in 2027 and 2031, will once again be a 14-team, 54-match tournament. Earlier in the 2019 World Cup, only 10 teams contested, compared to 14 teams in the 2015 World Cup.

·         World No. 1 Novak Djokovic captured the 83rd title of his career with victory on home soil at the Belgrade Open. The Serbian superstar lost his serve three times in the first set before changing his game to defeat Slovakian qualifier and first-time ATP Tour finalist Alex Molcan 6-4, 6-3 in 88 minutes at the Novak Tennis Center.

·         Red Bull’s Sergio Perez won a chaotic Azerbaijan Grand Prix with both Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton failing to finish. This was the first win for Perez since joining Red Bull.

·         Germany’s FIFA World Cup-winner, Sami Khedira has announced retirement. He began his career at VfB Stuttgart and helped them win the league title in the 2006-07 season before moving to Real Madrid, where he won the league and Champions League in a trophy-laden spell.

·         Oman has been named as the host of the inaugural International Hockey Federation (FIH) Hockey5s World Cup. The FIH said the men’s and women’s events will take place in Oman’s capital city Muscat in January 2024. The governing body said its Executive Board named Oman as host, after a recommendation from the organisation’s Events Bidding Task Force.

·         Indian star cricketer Virender Sehwag has launched an experiential learning portal for Cricket coaching named CRICURU. CRICURU is India’s first AI-enabled coaching website, to offer a personalised learning experience for the younger players. The website can be accessed at www.cricuru.com

·         ICC Elite Panel match referee, Chris Broad will oversee the World Test Championship (WTC) final between India and New Zealand, scheduled to commence at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton from June 18. The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced the officials for the match. ICC Elite Panel’s Richard Illingworth and Michael Gough will be the on-field umpires.

·         Sunil Chhetri surpasses Argentina’s Lionel Messi and he has become the second-highest active international goal-scorer with 74 strikes. He made this record in a joint preliminary qualifying round match for the 2022 FIFA World Cup and 2023 AFC Asian Cup. He is currently behind Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo (103) in the active international goal-scorer list.

·         Lending and digital payments startup, BharatPe has announced that it has inked a three-year-long deal to become an official partner with International Cricket Council (ICC). As per the agreement, BharatPe will promote the association across broadcast and digital platforms, as well as execute in-venue brand activations at all the ICC events until 2023.

·         The Athletics Federation of India (AFI), announced that the Indian Grand Prix 4 will be held on June 21 at the National Institute of Sports in Patiala. The decision to host the domestic events was made to give Indian athletes the maximum chance to qualify for Tokyo.

·         The Australian city of Brisbane moved closer to landing the 2032 Olympics after winning the approval of the International Olympic Committee’s executive board and the choice will be put to a final vote next month.

·         D. Gukesh sensationally won the $15,000 Gelfand Challenge chess title and with it, a ‘wild card’ for the elite Meltwaters Champions Chess Tour. He won all four rounds, including the key battle against Praggnanandhaa, and emerged on top after a series of favourable results from the games involving other title-contenders.

·         The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced Scotland’s Kathryn Bryce and Bangladesh’s Mushfiqur Rahim as the winners of the ICC Player of the Month Awards for May.  ICC Player of the Month Awards aims to recognise and celebrate the best performances from both male and female cricketers across all forms of international cricket throughout the year.

·         Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat won the gold medal in the 53 kg category at the Poland Open. It is her third title of the season. Earlier, She had won gold at the Matteo Pellicone event (March) and Asian Championship (April). She defeated Ukraine’s Khrystyna Bereza in the final. Khrystyna Bereza won the silver medal at the Poland Open. Earlier, Indian wrestler Anshu Malik pulled out of the 57kg competition due to fever.

·         Global sports brand Puma India has extended partnership with former Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh, who has been associated with the brand for over a decade. Moving from cricket to the fast lane, Yuvraj will now be seen in a new avatar as the face of Puma Motorsport in India, showcasing his passion for fast cars and sports-inspired fashion. With this, Yuvraj has joined the brand’s global league of legends like Thierry Henry, Boris Becker and Usain Bolt.

·         Ireland all-rounder Kevin O’Brien has announced his retirement from one-day internationals. The 37-year-old Dubliner, who remains available for Test and T20 cricket, won 153 caps in the 50-over format, scoring over 3,000 runs and taking a national record 114 wickets in the format with his lively medium pace.

·         Max Verstappen (Netherlands-Red Bull) has won the 2021 French Grand Prix. This race is the seventh round of the 2021 FIA Formula One World Championship.

·         The New Zealand weightlifter Laurel Hubbard is poised to make history and headlines, as well as significant controversy, after being confirmed as the first transgender athlete to compete at an Olympic Games. The 43-year-old, who will be the fourth oldest weightlifter at an Olympics, is regarded as a genuine medal contender in the women’s super heavyweight 87kg-plus category in Tokyo.

·         Jamaican sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce became the second-fastest woman of all-time behind 100 metres world record holder Florence Griffith-Joyner when she clocked 10.63 seconds at a meet in Kingston.

·         Midfielder Manpreet Singh was named captain of the 16-member Olympic-bound Indian men’s hockey team, while experienced defenders, Birendra Lakra and Harmanpreet Singh, were named vice-captains. This will be Manpreet’s third Olympics. 

·         Rani Rampal was named the captain of the 16-member Olympic-bound Indian Women’s Hockey Team, announced Hockey India. Rani is the obvious choice not just for her on-field exploits but also for her innate ability to guide the youngsters in the team. 

·         Australian swimmer Kaylee McKeown breaks the 100-meter backstroke world record at the South Australian Aquatic Centre with a time of 57.45 seconds from the previous mark of 57.57 seconds set by American Regan Smith in 2019. Emily Seebohm finished second in 58.59 to qualify for her fourth Olympics.

·         Cristiano Ronaldo has become the joint-top scoring men’s international player of all time. He is currently tied with Iran legend Ali Daei, who scored 109 times in 149 matches between 1993 and 2006. Cristiano Ronaldo scored two penalties to tie the overall men’s scoring record with 109 goals in 176 matches and Portugal advanced to the round of 16 at the European Championship after a 2-2 draw with France.

·         Max Verstappen (Netherlands-Red Bull) has won the 2021 Styrian Grand Prix. This is the fourth win of Verstappen in the 2021 Formula One season.

·         The ace Indian archer Deepika Kumari, created a new world record as she claimed three back-to-back gold medals in a single day, during the Archery World Cup Stage 3, held in Paris.The fourth gold medal came by Abhishek Verma, from men’s individual event in the compound section.

·         ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, originally slated to be held in India, will now be shifted to the UAE. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which holds the hosting rights of this year’s event, will inform the International Cricket Council (ICC) in this regard.

·         Madhya Pradesh all-rounder Anshula Rao became the first women cricketer to be handed a four-year ban after failing the dope test. She was handed the ban by the panel of the National Anti-Doping Agency for faking a dope test which dates back to July 2020.

·         Opener Shafali Verma has become the youngest Indian cricketer to make a debut in all formats, when India took on England in the first ODI in Bristol. She took 17 years and 150 days to make her debut in all formats. She has become the fifth-youngest cricketer overall in the list of all format debuts.

·         India’s Rahi Sarnobat clinched the gold medal in the women’s 25m pistol event at the ISSF shooting World Cup. She is the first Indian to win one silver and two bronze medals in the ongoing tournament. She scored 591 out of a maximum of 600 in the qualifying stage.