May 2021 Sports

Sakshi Education

Phil Mickelson wins PGA Championship; becomes oldest major winner in history
In Golf, Phil Mickelson won the PGA Championship by two shots over Brooks Koepka and South African Louis Oosthuizen yesterday to become the oldest major winner in history.

The 50-year-old Mickelson, who started the day with a one-shot lead, sealed the deal with a one-over-par 73 at the Ocean Course that left him at six under on the week.

The victory by Mickelson marked the sixth major championship win of his career and first since the 2013 British Open.
Monaco Grand Prix: Max Verstappen wins Formula One race; takes championship lead from Hamilton
In Monaco Grand Prix, Max Verstappen of Red Bull won the Formula One race to take the championship lead from Mercedes’s Lewis Hamilton, who finished seventh despite recording the fastest lap of the race.

Verstappen was on pole position after pole setter Charles Leclerc of Ferrari didn’t start the race due to a last-minute issue with the left driveshaft, which could not be fixed in time.

Ferrari celebrated a first podium this season with Carlos Sainz in second, followed by McLaren’s Lando Norris, who secured his second podium in 2021. Hamilton had his worst result since the Italian Grand Prix last year, when he was also seventh.
Lyon Open: Stefanos Tsitsipas beats Cameron Norrie to claim 2nd title of 2021
In Lyon Open tennis, Stefanos Tsitsipas teed himself up for the French Open in dominant fashion as he claimed his second title of 2021 with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Cameron Norrie.

Tsitsipas looked sharp throughout the week in central France and was in clinical form, pouncing on some minor mistakes from Norrie to triumph in straight sets.

Norrie was by no means an easy opponent, but five double faults handed Tsitsipas an edge he duly made the most of.

Having dropped just one set throughout his run this week, Tsitsipas will now switch focus to Roland Garros, where he reached the semi-finals in 2020.
Coco Gauff sweeps singles and doubles titles in Parma
In Emilia-Romagna Open tennis, American tennis player Coco Gauff made a clean sweep of the titles as she paired with compatriot Caty McNally to win the doubles championship in Parma.

The No. 4 seeded team defeated the No. 2 seeds Darija Jurak of Croatia and Andreja Klepac of Slovenia, 6-3, 6-2 to win the title late last night.

Coco, the world No. 30, needed an hour and 14 minutes to overcome the challenge from the 48th-ranked Chinese and add to her singles title collection, which she started as a lucky loser in Linz in 2019.
5 players included in Target Olympic Podium Scheme
Five players have been included in the Target Olympic Podium Scheme, TOPS.

The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has informed that Tennis player Ankita Raina, Rowers Arjun Lal Jat& Arvind Singh and Wrestlers Seema Bisla&Sumit Malik have been included in the core group of TOPS.

In order to improve India’s performance at Olympics and Paralympics, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports had started the Target Olympic Podium Scheme in 2014.

This scheme was revamped in 2018 for providing holistic support to the athletes. Under the scheme, all the necessary support is being provided to the athletes identified for the Tokyo, Paris and Los Angeles Olympic Games and Paralympic Games.

TOPS is a dynamic exercise wherein review of performance is done periodically fixing targets and intermediate milestones for the athletes.
Hansi Flick to take charge as German national team coach: GFF
The German Football Federation has announced that former Bayern Munich coach Hansi Flick will take charge as German national team coach once Joachim Loew quits after Euro 2020.

The agreement will be valid until after Euro 2024, which is set to take place in Germany.

Flick was tapped as the candidate to replace current Germany coach Loew after the latter said in February, he would step down following the Euro tournament, which starts next month.

Flick had reportedly also been an option for Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur and Spanish club Barcelona.
Mohali International Hockey Stadium dedicated to legendary centre-forward Balbir Singh Senior
The Mohali International Hockey Stadium in Punjab was dedicated to legendary centre-forward Balbir Singh Senior at a formal ceremony on his first death anniversary.

It was also decided that the sports department would start a scholarship in the name of the three-time Olympian for sportspersons belonging to the state.

Balbir was part of the Indian teams that won gold at the 1948 London Olympics, Helsinki 1952 and Melbourne 1956.

His record for most individual goals scored in an Olympic men’s hockey final remains unbeaten.

He had set this record when he scored five goals in India’s 6-1 win over the Netherlands in the gold medal match of the 1952 Games.
AchintaSheuli bags silver medal (73 kg) at Junior World Weightlifting Championships 2021 inTashkent
Indian weightlifter AchintaSheuli ended with the silver medal in the men’s 73 kilogram category at the Junior World Weightlifting Championships 2021 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan yesterday. AchintaSheuli, a national champion, lifted a total of 313 kg (141 kg snatch and 172 kg clean and jerk) to finish behind Indonesia’s RizkiJuniansyah, who lifted a world record 349 kg (155 kg snatch and 194 kg clean and jerk) for the gold medal.

Sheuli’s medal brings an end to India’s campaign at the Junior World Weightlifting Championships. The other Indian in the fray, Jeremy Lalrinnunga finished fourth overall in the men’s 67 kg category, though he managed to win silver in the snatch.
European Shooting Ch’ship: Tejaswini Sawant tops MQS section of 50-m rifle prone event
In the European Shooting Championship in Croatia, former world champion Tejaswini Sawant topped the Minimum Qualification Score section of the 50-m rifle prone event.

The 40-year-old Tejaswini shot 622.7 to finish ahead of three other compatriots and six Iranians.

She will represent India in the 50-m rifle 3 positions event at the Olympic Games --- her maiden Olympics --- in July-August.

Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar shot 620.3 to finish second in the field of nine shooters while Sanjeev Rajput scored 619.7.

Anjum Moudgil, the fourth shooter in the field, shot 619.2.

Both Rajput and Tomar have qualified for the 50-m 3 positions event for men of the Olympic Games.
North Korea withdraws from 2022 World Cup qualifiers, confirms AFC
The Asian Football Confederation yesterday confirmed the withdrawal of North Korea from the Asian qualifiers for the 2022 FIFA World Cup and the 2023 AFC Asian Cup.

The matter will be referred to the organising committee for FIFA competitions, and that further details on the standings of the Asian qualifying Group H, which includes North Korea, will be announced in due course.

Prior to their withdrawal, North Korea ranked fourth in Group H after five matches, just one point behind group leaders Turkmenistan.

The group also includes South Korea, Lebanon and Sri Lanka.

The group’s remaining matches will be played in South Korea in a centralised manner in June.

The move comes after North Korea said in April that it would not participate in the Tokyo Olympic Games this July-August due to concerns over the Covid-19 pandemic.
Rafael Nadal beat Novak Djokovic to win Italian Open title
In tennis, Rafael Nadal beat world number one Novak Djokovic to win a 10th Italian Open title last night. Second seed Spaniard Nadal won through 7-5, 1-6, 6-3 against the defending champion. Nadal also equalled Djokovic’s record of 36 ATP Masters 1000 titles in his 12th Rome final.

The title also re-established Nadal as the overwhelming favorite for the French Open, where he will be aiming for an even harder-to-believe 14th title starting in two weeks.
Tejaswini Shankar bags men's high jump titles in Big 12 Outdoor Track & Field Championships
India's Tejaswini Shankar has bagged men's high jump titles in the Big 12 Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Manhattan, USA.

The 22 year old athlete cleared the bar at 2.28 meter to win high jump gold yesterday. However, despite the spectacular performance, Shankar fell short of the Tokyo Olympic Games qualification standard of 2.33 m.
Italian Open: Iga Swiatek wins Women's Singles title
Tennis, Polish teenager Iga Swiatek has won the Women's Singles title of Italian Open.

15th seed Swiatek defeated ninth seed Czech Karolina Pliskova 6-0, 6-0 with what is known as a "double bagel" score in the summit clash in Rome that lasted just 46 minutes.

The 19-year-old reigning French Open champion had entered the finals after trouncing 17-year-old American Coco Gauff 7-6, 6-3 in the last four.
Who has been named as batting coach of Indian women’s cricket team?> GK
Former Test opener Shiv Sunder Das has been named batting coach of the Indian women’s cricket team only for the upcoming seven-match tour of England.

Former Indian Railways player Abhay Sharma has been named the fielding coach, part of a nine-member support staff headed by chief coach Ramesh Powar.

Das, who has been appointed only for this series, had earlier worked with the India Women’s A team.
Sports Ministry approves assistance of Rs 2,50,000 to former Asian Games gold medallist Joseph James
The Sports Ministry has approved an assistance of Rs 2,50,00 to former Asian Games gold medallist Joseph James under the Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay’s National Welfare for the Sportspersons.

The winner of the Asian Games gold medal in 2006 and a gold at the Asian Powerlifting Championship in 2008, Joseph James developed serious breathing issues on 24th of April after contracting COVID-19.
Germany's World Cup winner midfielder Sami Khedira announces retirement
World cup winner Sami Khedira will retire from Football when the Bundesliga season finishes this weekend.

The former Germany midfielder told reporters in the German capital.

Khedira, a World Cup winner in 2014, made the last of his 77 appearances for his national team in the infamous 2-0 defeat to South Korea four years later in Russia, when the holders crashed out at the group stage.

The 34-year-old started his career at Stuttgart, where he won the 2007 Bundesliga title.

He joined Real Madrid after the 2010 World Cup finals, recovering from a serious knee injury at the start of 2013-14 to win that season's Champions League final.

Khedira won a World Cup winners medal in Brazil despite having to withdraw from Germany's starting line-up before the final after picking up an injury during the warm-up.
Mission Olympic Cell approves Rs 20.21 lakh grant for wrestler Vinesh Phogat
Mission Olympic Cell of Sports Authority of India approved a grant of Rs 20.21 lakh for Olympic-bound woman wrestler Vinesh Phogat to train in Europe.

Vinesh secured Olympic berth in women’s 53-kg freestyle event during the 2019 World Wrestling Championships.

SAI has also approved a five-week international exposure tour for national men’s double scull rowing team of Arjun Lal Jat and Arvind Singh who have qualified for Tokyo Olympics.

The two will train in Portugal from June 1.
Indian wrestler Seema Bisla qualifies for Tokyo Olympics
Indian wrestler Seema Bisla has secured a Tokyo Olympics berth in women's 50kg after reaching the finals of the World Olympic Qualifier at Sofia in Bulgaria.

Seema becomes the fourth woman and eighth overall wrestler to qualify for the quadrennial event. With this, India equals its previous best qualification of eight wrestlers from the 2016 Olympics.

Seema joins the elite company of Ravi Kumar Dahiya (57kg), Sumit Malik, (125kg) Bajrang Punia (65kg) and Deepak Punia (86kg) in men's freestyle and Vinesh Phogat (53kg), Anshu Malik (57kg) and Sonam Malik (62kg) in women weights for those who have qualified for the Olympics.
Mary Kom to compete in flyweight (51kg) in Asian women's Boxing Championships
Six-times AIBA Women's World Champion and five-times ASBC Asian Women's Champion Mary Kom will compete in the flyweight (51kg) in Dubai in the upcoming Asian women's Boxing Championships.

The upcoming ASBC Asian men's and women's Boxing Championships, which scheduled to be held in New Delhi have been relocated to Dubai, United Arab Emirates due to the current COVID-19 situation.
Wrestler Sumit Malik earns Olympic quota in Men's 125kg Freestyle category
Wrestler Sumit Malik has secured a Tokyo Olympics berth after reaching the final in the 125 kilogram free style category of the World wrestling qualifier at Sofia in Bulgaria.

The six wrestlers who have already booked their berth in the Olympics are Ravi Kumar Dahiya in 57 kilogram, Bajrang Punia in 65 kilogram and Deepak Punia in 86 kilogram in Men's freestyle and Vinesh Phogat in 53 kg, Anshu Malik in 57 kg and Sonam Malik in 62 kg in women weights category.
Formula One: Lewis Hamilton secures victory at Spanish Grand Prix
In the Formula One, Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes secured victory at the Spanish Grand Prix on May 9th after an intense pitstop strategy battle with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.

This was Hamilton’s third win this season and 98th of his career, and he also matched Michael Schumacher’s record of most Spanish Grand Prix wins with six triumphs each.

Verstappen settled for second place with Hamilton’s team-mate Valtteri Bottas in third.

The Briton leads the drivers’ championship with a 14-point advantage over Verstappen.

Next stop is the traditional Monaco Grand Prix in Monte Carlo on May 23.
ICC considering expanding T20 World Cup to 20 teams from 2024
The International Cricket Council (ICC) is reportedly considering expanding the T20 World Cup to 20 teams from its current number of 16.

While the upcoming 2021 tournament to be held in India, will remain unchanged, the ICC is looking to add four more teams to the tournament from the 2024 edition.

Additionally, there is also speculation over the possibility of the ICC expanding the number of teams participating in the 50-over World Cup. The World Cup had been reduced to 10 teams from 14 in 2019 with the argument that broadcasters would prefer the lesser participation so as to reduce one-sided matches.
Thisara Perera announces retirement from international cricket
Former Sri Lanka ODI and T20 skipper Thisara Perera announced his retirement from international cricket yesterday.

The 32-year-old all-rounder, in his letter addressed to Sri Lanka Cricket, said that he felt “the time is right” for him to step aside and pave the way for younger and more talented players to take over the reins.

Perera played 166 ODIs and 84 T20Is besides competing in the Indian Premier League.

In the 133 ODI innings Perera played, a left-handed batsman, scored 2338 runs, with his highest being 140.

He also took 175 wickets with his right-arm medium pace bowling.

In the 74 T20I innings, the Sri Lankan scored 1204 runs.

He also took 51 wickets during his career.
Mark Selby becomes World Champion for 4th time in Snooker
In Snooker, Mark Selby became the World Champion for the fourth time. Selby won the Championship defeating Shaun Murphy by 18-15 victory at Crucible Theatre, Sheffield.

Runs of 66, 68 and a superb 120 helped him break Murphy's resistance in a high-quality encounter with the prize money of five hundred thousand pounds. He has now moved up to second spot in world rankings, next only to Judd Trump.

The concluding sessions of the Championship marked a pleasant return of capacity crowd to a major UK sporting event for the first time since March 2020.