Sports - Current Affairs for June, 2016

Special Olympics and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) on 28th June announced an international partnership to help create change through sports

• Through this new partnership, WWE will support Special Olympics' 'Play Unified' campaign, which fosters friendships, understanding, and inclusive communities among people with and without intellectual disabilities by uniting them through the power and joy of sports.
• WWE superstars will participate in 'Play Unified' events with Special Olympics athletes from around the world.

Ace shooter Sanjeev Rajput clinched the silver medal for India in men's 50-metre rifle 3 position event of the ISSF World Cup on June 28th.

• Rajput shot 456.9 to win the silver medal in the last World Cup before the Rio Olympic Games.
• Latest Comment
  
• Croatia’s Petar Gorsa won the gold medal with 457.5, while Hyeonjun Kim of Korea bagged the bronze after he shot 445.5.

Anju Bobby George and Pullela Gopichand have been name part of Khelo India on 26 June 2016. - Khelo India is a national programme launched by the Union Government for the development of sports in the country.

• George, India's lone athletics World Championship medal winner and Gopichand, the chief national badminton coach are the two sportsperson who were included in the seven-member committee of Khelo India.
• The committee will be headed by Sports Secretary Rajiv Yadav

Following Dutee Chand, Odisha sprinter Srabani Nanda on 26th June qualified for the Rio Olympics in the women’s 200 metre event

• Srabani clocked 23.07 seconds in the 200m race at the G. Kosanov Memorial Meet in Almaty, Kazahkhstan
• The 24 year old athlete from Phulbani in Kandhamal district indicated she now aimed for a medal at the Rio Olympics
• State government announced cash award for Srabani of INR 1 lakh
• Odisha Olympic Association and Odisha Athletic Association also announced INR 50,000 for the sprinter
• On 25th June 2016, 20-year-old Duetee Chand also qualified for the Rio Olympics in the 100 m event after 36 years

Lionel Messi has retired following the shock defeat of Argentina at the hands of Chile in the Copa tournament.

• Messi failed to secure a crucial goal needed for the victory
• He announced his retirement on 27th June

Dutee Chand has qualified for Rio Olympics in the women’s 100m event after meeting the qualification mark at XXVI international meeting G. Kosanov Memorial in Almaty Kazakhstan

• She clocked 11:30s in the 100m heat at the memorial tournament since beating the Rio Olympics qualification mark of 11.32 secs
• She became the first women to qualify from India for the event since qualification started for it.
• PT Usha, a star Indian track and field athlete from India qualified for the event in 1980s Olympics.
• She is called the “queen of Indian track and field” and the “Payyoli Express.”

India’s men hockey team has jumped to fifth position ahead of Belgium, New Zealand and Argentina after the team lodged a protest against the penalty shootout before settling for historic silver after the jury announced a 1-3 result against Australia.

• India will now have 1689 points at the close of the Champions Trophy, 56 points ahead of sixth placed Belgium and just eight away from Great Britain on the fourth
• India was ranked fifth in 2004 last.
• This marks the first time in more than a decade that India Hockey Team has made it to the top 5 in the world rankings since the International Hockey Federation started the system in 2003

Anil Kumble, the former India test captain and country’s most successful bowler was named the coach of men’s cricket team.

• The announcement was made in Dharamshala where the BCCI is holding its first annual cricket conclave
• Ravi Shastri was rumoured to be bating coach
• This is the first coaching role for India’s great match winner Anil Kumble
• He has been mentor for RCB and MI in the IPL
• He also chairs the ICC cricket committee

Jitu Rai won silver in the 10m air pistol event at the ISSF World Cup in Baku, Azerbaijan. This was his sixth World Cup medal overall. He had an average start to the qualification round but stabilised soon.

• Jitu has more inner 10s than the other six so he qualified sixth in the round
• In the final, he won one of the top scores.

Cleveland Cavaliers wins NBA Championship by beating Golden State Warriors 93-89 in Game 7.

• They are the first team in history to win after trailing 3-1 in the final series
• Loss completes a devastating turnaround for the Warriors led by MVP Stephen Curry

Olympian Anju Bobby George has quit as president of the Kerala Sports Council. This is after the star athlete objected to charges of corruption alleged by the Kerala sports minister.

• She also said “sports is beyond the purview of any party or politics.”

The world’s oldest professional footballer, Japan strike Kazuyoshi Miura has beaten his record as the oldest goalscorer in J-League history

• The 49-year-old footballer is in his 31st season as a professional
• He scored 22nd minute into he game and Yokohama FC lost to FC Gifu on 2-1 in the latest record he broke.
• The 49-year-old, who is in his 31st season as a professional, netted a header as his side Yokohama FC succumbed to a 2-1 defeat at home to FC Gifu in the Japanese second division.
• Miura, who goes into record as being the oldest footballer and oldest goal scorer in Japan’s professional league, is arguably Japan’s first superstar in football.

Athletes who have qualified will compete as members of the team of Russian Olympic Committee, according to IOC President Thomas Bach.

• Bach dismissed the idea that Russian track and field stars could compete under neutral or Olympic flag as indicated when IAAF extended the ban on Russian track and field stars on 17th June 2016

Three years after becoming the world’s oldest skydiver, Aida Gemanque became the oldest Olympic torch bearer when she carried the flame in the Amazonian city of Macapa, aged 106.

• Gemanque broke the record formerly held by Alexander Kaptarenko, who was 101 when he took part in the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics relay.
• Olympic flame is a symbol of the games

Australia won the trophy defeating India 1-0 in a shoot-out. Australia claimed the Champions Trophy title for the 14th time. Germany defeated Great Britain to win the bronze medal.

• Leading 4 countries were Australia, India, Germany and Great Britain

A doping ban keeping Russian athletes from taking part in global competitions was upheld by the International Association of Athletics Federation at a Vienna press conference

• The Russian Ministry of Sport is now appealing to members of the International Olympic Committee for respite
• Pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva has called the ban a violation of human rights

One man’s passion for racket sports translated into a win as Cdr. A. Pednekar’s win at a Rackelton international tournament marked the victory of the first Indian at this sport

• Pednekar clinched the Gold Medal in men’s amateur and veteran categories at Denmark’s Nordic Racket Games
• Rackelton is a new sport modelled on Decathlon/Triathlon and combines 4 racket games namely lawn tennis, table tennis, squash and badminton

The Rio 2016 organising committee revealed the official slogan for the first Olympic and Paralympic Games in South America – “A new world” – while also unveiling the medals, 52 days from the start of the quadrennial extravaganza.

• Along with the Olympic torch, the medals and the mascots, the slogan plays a major part in creating the unique identity of each Olympic Games.
• For Rio 2016, the core values of the slogan and the manifesto are unity, respect for diversity and the will for change.
• The Olympic motto of “Citius. Altius. Fortius” – Latin for “faster, higher, stronger” – serves as the starting point for slogans and manifestos for individual Games.

Indian men’s 4X400 relay team o 12th June 2016 created a new national record. They clocked 3:02.17 at the International Sprint and Relay Teams Cup at Turkey

• The Indan women’s 4x400m relay team clocked 3:30.16 and jumped to world No 12 in the rankings. In the 2016 South Asian Games, the women's relay team finished the race with a timing of 3:35.44 to win the gold. They also recorded their fastest time of 3:29.08 in the 2016 IAAF World Championships which took place in Beijing.
• The 4×400 metres relay or long relay is an athletics track event in which teams consist of four runners who each complete 400 metres or one lap.

Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal on 12 June 2016 won the women’s title of the Australian Open Super Series Badminton tournament.

• In the final match played at Sydney, Saina defeated Chinese Sun Yu 11-21, 21-14, 21-19.
• With this win, she also pocketed a cheque of 56250 US dollars.
• This was first title of year 2016 for 29-year-old Saina and second Australian Open title of her career. She won her first Australian Open title in 2014.

Jamaica’s Usain Bolt has won the 100m at the Racers Grand Prix athletics meeting clocking 9.88 seconds, the second fastest time in the world this year.

• Sprint superstar led three compatriots under 10 seconds in the race run in a wind of one meter per second
• Nickel Ashmeade and Yoahn Blake were timed in 9.94 seconds with Asafa Powell finishing in 9.98
• This marks the fourth time that Bolt, world record holder Powell and 2011 world champion Yohan Blake have clashed in Kingston
• World and Olympic champion Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce has won the women’s 100m in a subdued 11.09 seconds and American Barbara Pierre was second while Trinidad and Tobago’s Kelly Ann Baptiste took third position

Playing his first ODI for India at the Harare Sports Club on Saturday, Rahul remained unbeaten on 100, off 115 balls, and helped the visitors register a commanding nine-wicket victory to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

• In the process, he became the first Indian to reach the landmark on ODI debut.
• Robin Uthappa's 86 against England in Indore on April 15, 2006 was the highest score for India by a debutant in ODIs.
• Rahul made his Test debut against Australia in the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne in 2014 as a middle-order batsman, but managed to score just 3 and 1 in his first two innings of the longest-format.

To win the medal, she covered the distance with her season's best timing of 2:00.61 (2 minutes point Six One seconds).

• The reigning Asian champion was second behind 2013 World Youth Championship gold winner Anita Hinriksdottir of Iceland who ran the distance in 2:00.54 (2 minutes point five four seconds).
• 27-year-old Luka is still a long way to go as she is placed at 30th spot among the season's top list.
• Former world champion and London Olympics silver medallist Caster Semenya of South Africa is leading with 1:56.64 (1 minute, 56.six Four seconds).
• Semenya is followed by world indoor champion Francine Niyonsaba of Burundi with 1:56.92 (1 minute, 56.92 seconds) and Renelle Lamote of France with 1:58.01 (1 minute, 58.01 second).
• The Kerala runner, Luka holds the national record of 1:59.17 (1 minute, 59.17 second) which she did way back in 2010 at Continental Cup, Croatia.

Russian tennis player Maria Sharapova was banned for 2 years by the International Tennis Federation on 8th June after a failed drugs test.

• The 29 year old has been banned in March after testing positive for banned substance Meldonium at the Australian Open
• The drug was banned in January 2016. The athlete said she hd been taking the drug since 2006 for health issues.
• The 5 time Grand Slam winner has said she will appeal against the verdict

Novak Djokovic launched the French Open final victory over Andy Murray as the biggest moment of his career. The Serb became the third man to hold 4 grand slam titles at the same time. World number one Djokovic rallied from losing the opening set to down Murray.

• He now joins Don Budge and Rod Laver as the only players in tennis history to posses French Open, Australian Open, US Open and Wimbledon trophies.

Five sports, including baseball, skateboarding and surfing, are set to feature at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics after the IOC recommended them to attract a younger audience and boost local support for the Games.

• The International Olympic Committee must now rubber-stamp the inclusion of skateboarding, surfing, sports climbing and karate plus the joint baseball/softball bid at its session in Rio de Janeiro in August.
• The IOC Executive Board voted unanimously in favour of the proposal put forward by Tokyo 2020, recommending it as a package.
• Under new rules, Olympic host cities can hand-pick sports they want in the Games to join the existing 28 core sports.

Garbine Muguruza defeated Serena Williams to claim her maiden grand slam title with a 7-5 6-4 win over the world number one and defending champion in the French Open final. The 22-year-old fourth seed, who lost to Williams in last year’s Wimbledon final,

• She became the first Spaniard to lift the Suzanne Lenglen Cup since Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in 1998.
• Veteran Indian tennis star Leander Paes completed a ‘Career Slam’ in mixed doubles with Swiss partner Martina Hingis with a hard-fought win over compatriot Sania Mirza and Ivan Dodig at Roland Garros.
• It was 18th Grand Slam title for Paes and 10th in the mixed doubles. For 35-year-old Hingis, it was Grand Slam title number 22nd and fifth trophy in the mixed double

A consortium headed by American businessmen Jason Levien and Steve Kaplan has purchased a controlling stake in Premier League club Swansea

• Deal concludes following lengthy negotiations and will see Huw Jenkins in an executive role charged with running of the club

Argentina remained atop the FIFA rankings ahead of Belgium and Colombia with continental championships in Europe and Latin America

• Centenary Copa America is currently underway with holders Chile ranked fifth, Uruguay ninth and Brazil seventh
• With Euro 2016 starting June 10 in France, Germany is ranked fourth while title holders Spain are sixth and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal is eight. Austria at 10th have pushed England out of the top 10
• France is 17th yet a hot pick for becoming champions for the third time after 1984 and 2000.

Professional boxers can compete at the upcoming Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro the sports governing body ruled in a landmark decision on Wednesday, June 1st.

• 88 members of the International Boxing Association in Switzerland voted for this move
• For most professionals like Vladimir Klitschko, it is too late to participate in qualifying contest.

Indian boxer Sonia Lather (57kg) settled for a silver medal at the AIBA Women’s World Championships after going down to top seed Alessia Mesiano of Italy in a hard-fought summit clash.

• Sonia lost 1-2 but her silver ensured that India did not return empty-handed after what was a throughly disappointing campaign overall.
• The 24-year-old from Haryana was off the blocks confidently and managed to rattle Mesiano in the opening round with her precisely-placed combination punches.