Hungarian teenager Kristof Milak shattered Michael Phelps' 10-year-old world record in the 200 metres butterfly while Adam Peaty sewed up a third straight breaststroke double with victory in the 50 metres at the world championships.
Budapest-born Milak won gold in a time of 1:50.73, lopping 0.78 seconds off Phelps' 1:51.51 set in Rome in 2009.
At 19, Milak is the youngest winner of the 200 butterfly since Phelps triumphed as an 18-yearold in 2003, the second of the American great's five world titles in the event.Peaty, meanwhile, shattered a record of his own, becoming the first swimmer to go under 57 seconds in the 100 breaststroke semi-finals and while he could not repeat the feat in the 50 he was still streets ahead of his rivals.
The Briton posted 26.06, the third fastest 50 of all time and 0.6 seconds ahead of his nearest challenger, Brazilian Felipe Lima.
Messi suspended from opening World Cup qualifier
Argentina star Lionel Messi was hit with a one-game suspension over his dismissal during the Copa America thirdplace play-off against Chile earlier in July 2019.
It will see him miss the first of Argentina's qualification matches for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Tokyo Olympic medals unveiled
With exactly one year to go until the Tokyo Olympics open, organisers marked the day by unveiling the gold, silver, and bronze medals that will symbolize the 2020 Games.
Thousands of politicians, sponsors, and fans jammed a massive exhibition hall in central Tokyo, piling on speeches, musical interludes, and dancing performances to celebrate the one-year mark.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made a cameo appearance to welcome the guests.
Despite all the talk and theatrics, the centre stage belonged to the medals by Japanese designer Junichi Kawanishi. He wrote that the medals are to "resemble rough stones that have been polished and which now shine with light and brilliance."
Tokyo is spending about $20 billion to prepare the city to host the Games. Five of the eight new venues are already finished, and the centrepiece, the $1.25 billion National Stadium, is to open by the end of 2019.
Day 1 of the four-day Test at Lord's: England loses to Ireland
Ireland bowled out the host nation England for a derisory 85 on the first day at Lord's as they eyed one of the biggest shocks in Test history.
Tim Murtagh took five wickets on a ground where he plays for Middlesex and at tea Ireland's batsmen were cruising at 127 for two in replay—a first innings lead of 42 runs.
Andrew Balbirnie and Paul Stirling, also both Middlesex players, were 51 and 35 not out in a match only scheduled to last four days rather than the usual five for a Test.
Just three England batsmen made it into double figures—Joe Denly, who top-scored with 23, Olly Stone and Sam Curran—in an innings that was over inside 24 overs on a baking day in London.
Kohli in Instagram's top-10 list for sportspersons
Virat Kohli's most recent post, of him dead-lifting mega-weights has received 6.2 million views (and counting).
The Indian cricket captain also has 38.1 million followers on this video-sharing platform.
Kohli is paid $196,000 per promoted post on average, according to a survey conducted by HopperHQ.com. In Indian money that is ~1.35 crore every single time Kohli tells which shoes he likes or which headphones everyone should wear.
This puts him 23rd on the list of global influencers, behind only one other Indian (or Asian), 19th-placed Priyanka Chopra, who charges on average $271,000 per branded post.
While Kohli was the only sportsperson from the continent of Asia to feature in the list's top-100, his Instagram earnings was ranked ninth across sports from around the world.
Topping the sportspersons section was Juventus' Cristiano Ronaldo, whose $975,000 per Insta-post put him at No.3 on the over-all list, behind only Kylie Jenner ($1,266,000) and singer Ariana Grande ($996,000).
The next highest paid sportsperson on Instagram after Ronaldo is Brazil's Neymar ($722,000), and the difference in their pay per post is almost as much as the sportsperson in the sixth spot— Ronaldinho ($256,000).
Ronaldinho isn't the only retired footballer in the upper reaches of this list; David Beckham, at $357,000 per post, clocks in at No.4 in sports and seventeenth over all.
LA Lakers' LeBron James is the highest paid non-footballer on the list with $272,000 per post.
And in the seven nonfootballers that sprinkle the sixteen sportspersons in the over-all top-100, UFC legend Conor McGregor and Kohli are the only two non-American sports stars to feature in it.
Jul 24, 2019
Mayweather Takes up Advisory Role
Retired superstar Floyd Mayweather has been named "special advisor" to China's boxing team as they look to improve their medal count at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
American legend Mayweather had pledged to go all-out to use his influence and resources to support the Chinese boxing project in achieving excellent results at the Tokyo Olympics.
Boxing legend Mayweather had a perfect 50-0 record in the ring with 27 knockouts.
He won world titles in five different weight divisions and was considered the best pound-for-pound boxer in the sport.
Malinga to Retire from ODIs
Sri Lanka fast bowling ace Lasith Malinga will retire from 50-over internationals after first match against Bangladesh.
Malinga played his last Test in 2010 but continued playing the shorter formats and has taken 335 wickets from 225 One-Day Internationals for Sri Lanka, the third highest for the island country behind Muttiah Muralitharan and Chaminda Vaas.
BCCI Approves Players' Body
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has approved the Indian Cricketers Association (ICA), the body formed as per the board's new constitution to look after the interest of former players.
Former India cricketers Kapil Dev, Ajit Agarkar and Shantha Rangaswamy are the directors at ICA and will hold their positions until elections are held.
Russian Boxer Dies after Bout
Russian boxer Maxim Dadashev has died from injuries sustained in a fight in Maryland.Maxim Dadashev has died in the United States following injuries sustained during his fight with Subriel Matias.
The 28-year-old underwent emergency brain surgery in Washington after his superlightweight bout with Puerto Rican Matias was stopped in the 11th round by his cornerman James "Buddy" McGirt.
Dadashev, known as "Mad Max", was unable to walk to the dressing room and was immediately hospitalised.
Narine, Pollard Recalled for First Two T20Is vs India
The veteran duo of Sunil Narine and Kieron Pollard were recalled to a 14-member West Indies squad for the first two games of the three-match T20 International series against India, beginning on August 3 in Florida.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Anthony Bramble is the only uncapped player in the squad selected. The first two T20Is will be played on August 3 and 4, 2019 at the Broward County Stadium, Lauderhill, Florida.
The selection panel could make changes to the squad for the third T20I on August 6, 2019 at the Guyana National Stadium.
The squad, to be led by captain Carlos Brathwaite, also includes all-rounder Andre Russell subject to passing a fitness assessment prior to the series. Russell had made an early exit from the World Cup to undergo an operation on his troublesome left knee.
hris Gayle had notified that he was unavailable for the series due to playing commitments at the GT20 in Canada. This has given the opportunity for left-handed compatriot John Campbell to fill the slot.
Left-handed opener John Campbell and left-arm spinner Khary Pierre have also been included alongside a number of regulars, as the interim selection panel seeks to explore options with the ICC T20 World Cup looming next year in Australia.
Jul 23, 2019
India bows out of Asia Junior C'ships
Maisnam Meiraba put up a brave effort before India bowed out of the Asia Junior Championships after suffering a 0-3 loss to Indonesia in the quarterfinals of the Mixed Team event in Suzhou, China.
In an absorbing battle between two top 20 junior players, World No. 14 Meiraba managed to take a game off his 17th ranked opponent, Bobby Setiabudi but the Indonesian proved too strong in the end with a 21-17, 15-21, 21-11 win in 59 minutes.
In girls' singles, Malvika Bansod was unlucky to miss out on winning a tight first game and eventually went down fighting 20-22, 7-21 to junior World No. 4 Putri Kusuma Wardani.
Tanisha Crasto and Sathish Kumar Karunakaran suffered a 15-21, 18-21 defeat to Leo Rolly Carnando and Indah Cahya Sari Jamil in mixed doubles.
India had beaten Mongolia and Macau China by an identical score of 5-0 while they lost to Korea 1-4 in the round-robin. Finishing second to Korea in the group stage had confirmed their quarterfinal berth.
Fraser-Pryce Blazes to 100m Glory
Shelly-Ann FraserPryce produced a superb display to outclass local favourite Dina Asher-Smith and Ivory Coast's Marie-Josee Ta Lou as she won the women's 100 metres in 10.78 seconds at the London Diamond League.
The 32-year-old double Olympic champion dominated the race from start to finish, giving AsherSmith (10.92) and Ta Lou (10.98) no chance of catching her.
Hellen Obiri sealed the women's 5,000m in a time of 14:20.36 while fellow Kenyan Agnes Tirop also finished ahead of new mile world record holder Sifan Hassan who was third.
Akeem Bloomfield won the men's 400m race with his season's best of 44.40 seconds, ahead of Barbados's Jonathan Jones and Jamaican compatriot Nathon Allen. Swede Daniel Stahl surpassed Gerd Kanter's 2010 record in discus with a 68.56m effort.
Australia Retain Women's Ashes
Australia retained the women's Ashes after the only Test in the series played across multiple formats ended in a draw at Taunton.
After Australia had declared their first innings on 420/8, England avoided the follow-on and asked Australia to bat again, declaring at 275/9. However, the visitors elected not to set a victory target and had reached 230/7.
Elysse Perry was again the pick of the Australian batters, following up her first innings 116 with an unbeaten 76.
The result means Ashes holders Australia, who lead England 8-2 on points having won all three of the ODIs, will retain the trophy. England can only level the series if they win the three remaining T20 international games.
India Wrap Series with Eight-Wicket Win
India A's top-order, led by opener Ruturaj Gaikwad, fired in unison to steer the team to a convincing eight-wicket win in the fifth and final unofficial one-dayer against the West Indies A, completing a 4-1 series triumph.
Jul 22, 2019
Sathiyan-Archana Win Mixed Gold
India added another golden chapter to the 21st Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships when its mixed doubles pair of G Sathiyan and Archana Kamath defeated Singapore's Peng Yu En Koen–Goi Rui Xuan 3-0 in the final.
The gold count, on the penultimate day of the championships, stood at three.
This had, in a way, avenged the earlier loss of A. Sharath Kamal and Sreeja Akula in the semi-final by the same Singaporean pair as well as the defeat of Sharath in the quarter-finals by Peng.
The Indian pair was on top in the final as they piled on the agony of their rivals, particularly on a tired Peng who could not cope with the pressure applied by the topseeded duo.
But the second-seeded Sharath Kamal squandered three match points and then the quarter-final, shattering his hope.
Though Sharath failed to go past the semifinals in mixed doubles, he would definitely rue the loss to the younger Peng in the quarters.
The other Indians that made the grade included top-seeded G Sathiyan, who beat Nigerian Bode Abiodun 4-0 and Harmeet Desai who beat Sushmit Sriram 4-1.
Sanil Shetty joined Sharath when he went down to England's Thomas Jarvis 1-4.
Earlier, the top-seeded Ho TinTin of England beat the unseeded Archana Kamath, the reigning national champion, 4-1 to enter the women's semi-finals.
But the second-seeded Madhurika Patkar and fourth seed Ayhika Mukerjee easily followed the English woman in the last-four stages while Sreeja Akula defeated Sutirtha Mukherjee 4-2 even as Madhurika downed Krittiwika Sinha Roy 4-1 and Ayhika beat Mousumi Paul in straight games.
Netherlands Wins 'Mini Worlds Chennai' title
A team of school students from the Netherlands won the Mini Worlds Chennai 2019 tournament in the Tamil Nadu capital by defeating a team from Hong Kong.
The three-day tournament, held by the Indian Schools Debating Society (ISDS) with sponsorship from the Ramco Group of companies, was India's first international debating tournament in the World Schools format.
A total of 15 teams — from 12 nations and three from India— participated in the tournament. The Indian team was knocked out in the semi-finals by Hong Kong. The 90-minute final was adjudicated on the motion.
Jul 21, 2019
Hima Grabs 5th gold of month
The timing is slower than her personal best of 50.79 seconds, which she managed at the Jakarta Asian Games and she also narrowly missed out on the World Championships qualifying mark of 51.80.
However, it was better than the timing of 52.88 seconds, which she managed earlier in the season.
It was Hima's fifth gold medal since July 2 when she ran her first competitive race in Europe. In her first competitive 200m race of the year, she clocked 23.65 seconds on her way to gold at the Poznan Athletics Grand Prix in Poland on July 2.
After that, she won her second 200m gold at the Kutno Athletics Meet, also in Poland, on July 7 with a time of 23.97 seconds.
On July 13, she won her third 200m gold at the Kladno Athletics Meet in Czech Republic with a time of 23.43 while her fourth gold came at the Tabor Athletics Meet in the same country on Wednesday.
It was the first 400m competition for the 19-year-old since she struggled to finish the Asian Athletics Championship in April this year because of a back issue.
Sindhu enters season's 1st final
PV Sindhu enjoyed one of her finest hours of the season as she entered the final of the Indonesia Open BWF Tour Super 1000 tournament with a straight-game win over All England champion Chen Yufei of China.
Sindhu, who has been struggling a bit this season, showed her brilliance once again as she saw off world No 3 Chen 21-19, 21-10 to enter her first final of the season.
The world No 5, who reached the semi-finals at Singapore and India Open, set up a summit clash with Japan's fourth seed Akane Yamaguchi. Sindhu holds a 10-4 advantage over Yamaguchi, whom she has beaten in their last four meetings.
Thapa becomes 1st Indian gold winner in President's Cup
Four-time Asian medallist Shiva Thapa became India's first gold-medallist at the President's Cup boxing tournament after getting a walkover in the finals in Astana, Kazakhstan.
Making his international debut in the newly-introduced Olympic category of 63kg, Thapa was to fight Kazakhstan's Zakir Safiullin in the summit clash but his opponent had to pull out due to injury.
Thapa had lost to Safiullin in the Asian Championship semifinal earlier in 2019.
Signing off with a silver medal was woman boxer Parveen (60kg) who lost her final bout to local hope Rimma Volosenko.
Thapa couldn't make the cut for the September world championships after losing in the trials to Commonwealth Games silverwinner Manish Kaushik. Thapa had defeated Kyrgyzstan's Argon Kadiribekuulu 4-1 in the last-four stage bout. Earlier, Sweety Boora (81kg) and Duryodhan Singh Negi (69kg) had ended their campaign with bronze medals.
Algeria beat Senegal, win African Cup
Algeria won the Africa Cup of Nations for the second time when a freak second-minute goal by Baghdad Bounedjah gave them a 1-0 win over gallant Senegal in the final.
Bounedjah, who missed a penalty in the quarter-final against Ivory Coast and spent the last few minutes of that game in tears after being substituted, stunned the Lions of Teranga with a shot which took a wicked deflection off Salif Sane and looped over the bewildered goalkeeper Alfred Gomis and into the net.
Algeria, who committed 32 fouls according to official match statistics, sat back after that and had to scrap for their win in a match that was certainly not a classic but was tense and gripping throughout.
Senegal, beaten by Cameroon on their only previous appearance in the final in 2002, were awarded a penalty for handball in the second half but the decision was revoked following a VAR review.
The final whistle provoked wild celebrations among the large contingent of travelling Algeria fans. It was a fitting end to a tournament that, with 24 teams for the first time, produced plentiful drama even if quality was sometimes lacking.