Rafael Nadal pulled out of Wimbledon and the Tokyo Olympics. He took the decision after consultations with his team in a bid to prolong his career.
The two-week gap between the French Open and Wimbledon, which starts on June 28, was not enough time for him to recuperate after a demanding clay court season where he played in five tournaments.
IOA Signs MPL as Principal Sponsor for Olympics
The Indian Olympic Association announced a Rs. 8 crore sponsorship deal with MPL Sports Foundation till the end of 2022 and covering major events in the period.
The deal will see MPL coming on board as the principal sponsor for the Indian contingents at the Tokyo Olympics and the 2022 Asian Games & Commonwealth Games.
In addition, it will also supply the official sports kit for the contingents at the Asian and Commonwealth Games.
The IOA said that diary giant Amul has agreed to be a sponsor for the Tokyo Games to be held from July 23 to August 8.
Jun 17, 2021
Federer Fails to Make Halle Open Quarterfinals for 1st Time
Roger Federer failed to reach the Halle Open quarterfinals for the first time when Félix Auger-Aliassime rallied from a set down to stun the former champion 4-6 6-3 6-2 in the second round.
Auger-Aliassime is 19 years younger than the Swiss great, who has won the Halle tournament a record 10 times. Both share the same birthday – August 8.
Federer had been going for his 18th quarterfinal in as many appearances at the grass-court tournament, but was unable to deal with his young opponent's change of tactics in the second set.
Vinesh Phogat Clinches Gold Medal in Poland Open
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 57 kg competition due to fever.
Jun 16, 2021
Shiv Naresh to Replace Li Ning
Indian apparel company Shiv Naresh has been roped in to replace Li Ning for sporting kits for the Tokyo-bound Indian delegation. The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) dropped Li Ning unceremoniously after facing uproar for continuing with the Chinese brand apparel despite announcing the intention to cut ties last year after the Galwan Valley clash.
Shiv Naresh, one of the regular suppliers of sports kits before IOA's Rs. 6 crore contract with the Chinese company, will supply new kits for the India squad without any branding. The Sports Ministry has given its consent to refund the amount. It is understood that the IOA had to hand Li Ning over Rs. 20 lakh to break the contract.
Ronaldo Becomes First Player to Feature in Five Euro Cup Finals
Portugal striker Cristiano Ronaldo became the first player to feature in games at five Euro 2020 finals tournaments.
He achieved the feat after being named in Portugal's playing XI for the match against Hungary in Budapest.
Ronaldo has represented Portugal in five Euros and his first appearance came way back in 2004 when Portugal had hosted the tournament.
Jun 15, 2021
Novak Djokovic Wins French Open 2021
Novak Djokovic won his 19th Grand Slam title after coming back from 2 sets down against 5th seed Stefanos Tsitsipas in the French Open 2021 men's singles final at Roland Garros in Paris. Djokovic clinched glory after downing the spirited Grand Slam final debutant 6-7 (6), 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4.
Novak Djokovic, who played 18 sets since his fourth-round match, became the first man in the Open Era to win all 4 Grand Slams at least twice. Roy Emerson and Rod Laver had achieved the feat before Djokovic, but they did it before the Open Era commenced in 1968
WTC Final
According to the International Cricket Council, the winners of the much-awaited ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final between India and New Zealand will take home a purse of USD 1.6 million along with the ICC Test Championship Mace.
The losing team will get USD 800,000 for finishing second in the nine-team competition, which was played over a near two-year cycle.
The prize money for the team finishing third in the ICC World Test Championship Standings is USD 450,000. The team fourth on the table will be awarded USD 350,000, the one that finishes fifth gets USD 200,000 while the remaining four teams will get USD 100,000 each.
The Test Mace, previously given to teams topping the ICC Men's Test Team Rankings, will now be given to the WTC winners. In case the final ends in a draw or a tie, the finalists will split the prize money for the first and second places and share possession of the Mace during the time they remain champions.
Jun 14, 2021
Wrestler Vinesh Phogat Wins Gold in Women's 53 kg Freestyle
Tokyo Olympic Games bound wrestler Vinesh Phogat won the women's 53kg freestyle gold with an 8-0 win over Khrystyna Bereza of Ukraine at the Poland Ranking Series in Warsaw. With less than 50 days to go for the Olympic Games to begin, Vinesh looked strong in defence and swift in attacks and counter-attacks.
The gold-winning effort of Vinesh is likely to improve her seeding in the 53kg freestyle event at the Olympics, to be held from July 23 to August 8. Khrystyna settled for silver.
Central Athlete Injury Management System Launched
Youth Affairs and Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju has launched the Central Athlete Injury Management System (CAIMS) for streamlining the sports medicine and rehabilitation support offered to the athletes.
It aims to provide the best of sports injury management support nearest to the athlete's geographical location. CAIMS will help to standardize appropriate injury treatment protocol for athletes across the country.
It will start with support for athletes who are a part of the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) development group expected to participate in 2024 and beyond. The core committee of CAIMS includes eminent top of the line experts such as Dr SKS Marya, Dr Dinshaw Pardiwala, Dr BV Srinivas and Shrikant Iyengar.
Speaking on the occasion, Rijiju hailed the move to start CAIMS. He said, it was long desired by everyone to have a Centralised Athlete Injury Management system in the country. The Minister said, he had seen sometimes that even for common injuries, treatment is not done in time which has led to affecting the career of the athlete.
Australian Swimmer Kaylee McKeown Shatters 100m Backstroke World Record
Swimmer Kaylee McKeown says the death of her father 10 months ago inspired her to break the 100-meter backstroke world record at the Australian Olympic trials.
The 19-year-old McKeown had a time of 57.45 seconds at the South Australian Aquatic Centre to improve on the previous mark of 57.57 set by American Regan Smith in 2019.
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