Current Affairs Sports News and Award 2012

 Awards are as follows:

· The ICC Cricketer of the year, ICC Test Cricketer of the Year and the People`s Choice Award: Kumar Sangakkara (Sri Lanka)

· The ICC Twenty20 International Performance of the Year : Richard Levi (South Africa)

· The Spirit of Cricket Award : Daniel Vettori (New Zealand)

· The Emerging Cricketer of the Year: Sunil Narine (West Indies)

· The Women`s ODI Cricketer of the Year : Stafanie Taylor (West Indies)

· Women`s T20 Cricketer of the Year : Sarah Taylor (England)

· Associate and Affiliate Cricketer of the Year : George Dockrell (Ireland)

Andy Murray: First British man to win a Grand Slam title after 76 years

September 13th, 2012 | 

§  Andy Murray defeated Novak Djokovic in the US Open men’s singles to become first British man to clinch the championship after 76 years.

§  Before this, Fred Perry was the British player to capture a grand slam in US Championship in 1936.

§  Murray had recently won Olympic Gold medal in Men’s singles and a silver medal in mixed doubles in the 2012 London Olympics.

§  Andy Murray is also the first British player, who bagged an Olympic Gold medal in 100 years.

Klitschko defeats Charr, retains WBC heavy weight title

September 13th, 2012 | 

Vitali Klitschko of Ukraine defeated Manuel Charr of Germany to retain his WBC heavyweight title. 

The medical team and the referee stopped the bout 56 seconds before the end of the fourth round after witnessing a cut mark on the opponent’s eye, the German Manuel Charr, 27.

September 10th, 2012 |

US Open Women’s Doubles:

Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci of Italy beat Czech pair of Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka.

Current Affairs in Sports Category

South Africa after defeating England 2-0 in the Test-match series grabbed the spot of the World’s Number One Test Cricket team. South Africa thus replaced England to take the top position.

Ankur Mittal clinches Bronze in the 4th International Junior Shotgun Cup

August 25th, 2012 | 

Ankur Mittal bagged Bronze medal in double trap in the 4^th International junior shotgun Cup in Orimattila, Finland.

Maharashtra registered Maximum Number of Deaths due to SAEs during Drug Trials

August 25th, 2012 |

As per the data of the Drug Controller-General of India, India recorded 2061 drug trial-related deaths during the period (January 2008- January 2012). Maharashtra registered maximum number of 268 deaths due toSAEs (Serious Adverse Events) during drug trials while Madhya Pradesh recorded the least number of such deaths.

August 24th, 2012 | 

Vijay Kumar who won silver medal in shooting event and Yogeshwar Dutt who clinched Bronze in wrestling at London Olympics will be conferred with country’s highest sporting honour Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award for the year 2012.

Can Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award be conferred on more than one person in a year ?

Sportspersons for Arjuna Awards:

• §  Deepika Kumari (Archery)
• §  Laishram Bombayla Devi (Archery)
• §  Sudha Singh (Athletics)
• §  Kavita Ramdas Raut (Athletics)
• §  Ashwani Ponnappa (Badminton)
• §  Parupalli Kashyap (Badminton)
• §  Aditya S Mehta (Billiards and Snooker)
• §  Vikas Krishan (Boxing)
• §  Yuvraj Singh (Cricket)
• §  Sardar Singh (Hockey)
• §  Yashpal Solanki (Judo),
• §  Anup Kumar (Kabaddi)
• §  Samir Suhag (Polo)
• §  Annu Raj Singh (Shooting)
• §  Omkar Singh (Shooting)
• §  Joydeep Karmakar (Shooting)
• §  Deepika Pallikal (Squash)
• §  Sandeep Sejwal (Swimming)
• §  Ng. Sonia Chanu (Weightlifting)
• §  Narsingh Yadav (Wrestling)
• §  Rajinder Kumar (Wrestling)
• §  Geeta Phogat (Wrestling)
• §  M. Bimoljit Singh (Wushu)
• §  Deepa Mallick (Athletics - Paralympics)
• §  Ramkaran Singh (Athletics - Paralympics)

Roger Federer and Li Na clinch Cincinnati Masters

August 23rd, 2012 | 

Tennis star Roger Federer clinched a record fifth Western & Southern Open Title (Cincinnati Masters ) at Cincinnati. He defeated Novak Djokovic.
In women’s singles China’s Li Na vanquished German Angelique Kerbar to bag the title.

Current Affairs in Sports Category

Rory Mcllroy wins US PGA Golf Championship

August 22nd, 2012 | 

Rory Mcllroy won the US PGA Golf Championship at Kaiwah island.
This victory has made Mcllroy world number one player surpassing Luke Donald.

Winners	Event	Medal
Vijay Kumar	Shooting, 25m rapid fire	Silver
MC Mary Kom	Boxing	Bronze
Saina Nehawal	Badminton	Bronze
Gagan Narang	Shooting	Bronze
Sushil Kumar	Wrestling	Silver
Yogeshwar Dutt	Wrestling	Bronze

Where does India stand in Olympics?

The First participation from India was in Paris Olympics 1900 after Norman Pritchard, an Anglo-Indian, participated in two events and won silver in both the events. India sent its first contingent to Summer Olympics in Antwerp Olympics 1920 and since then it sends its team in every Olympics.

In the last 112 years of modern Olympics, India has won only 9 gold and 8 of them have come from hockey and one in individual shooting event. If these six medals of Londond 2012 are included India now stands at 26.

Major Performers at London Olympics 2012

•    Michael Phelps won 6 medals (4 Gold+2 Silver) in swimming to become the most decorated Olympian ever with 22 medals.

•    Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt bagged 3 gold in three separate events (100 meter race, 200 meter race and 4X100 meter relay team race). He set up a new Olympic of 9.63 seconds in 100 metres.

•    Germany beat Netherlands 2-1 to win gold in men’s hockey.

•    Mexico defeated Brazil 2-1 to bag Soccer gold.

•    In Men’s Basketball, US beat Spain to win gold

•    Andy Murray of Great Britain defeated Roger Federer of Switzerland to clinch tennis men’s singles gold

•    Russia beat Brazil to win men’s volleyball gold.

•    In Men’s singles Badminton, Dan Lin of China won gold after beating Malaysian Chong Wei Lee.

Mascots at Olympics

Since Munich Olympic Games in 1972 when Waldi, a dachshund, was made the symbol of Munich games, mascots have been assigned to every Olypics.

Mascots for London Olympics were Wenlock and Mandeville.

Wenlock was mascot for Olympics and Mandeville was mascot for Paralympics.

Usain Bolt bags Olympic gold in 100m

August 8th, 2012 |

Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt clinched his second straight Olympic gold medal in the men's 100m.

Phelps 3rd consecutive win creates history

August 8th, 2012 |

Star swimmer Michael Phelps of US created history as he won Gold in the Men's 200-metre Individual Medley. Phelps has now become the first man to win this event at three consecutive Olympic Games.

Current Affairs in Sports Category

Vijay Kumar bags silver medal in 25m rapid fire pistol

Pistol Shooter Vijay Kumar won a silver medal for India. He stood second in the 25 metres Rapid Fire Pistol event.

Saina clinches Bronze in Badminton : Olympics

Saina Nehwal bagged a Bronze medal for India at the London Olympics in women's Badminton as Xin Wang of China retired hurt.

§  Clinched gold in 4x200 metre freestyle relay.

§  4^th Olympic appearance for Phelps

§  Total medal tally: 15 gold, 2 silver and 2 bronze

§  Surpassed the record of Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina who won 18 medal b/w 1956 and 1964.

§  Won World Swimmer of the Year Award 6 times

§  Won maximum number of gold medals (8) won in a single Olympics during 2008 Beijing Games. He thus outshined Mark Spitz's of America who clinched 7 gold record at Munich in 1972).

A multi-year broadcast deal inked b/w Hockey India & ESPN STAR

ESPN STAR Sports inked a multi-year broadcast deal Hockey India. The channel will now have the exclusive right to broadcast all international hockey test matches under Hockey India to be played in India for the next 5 years.

As per the contract the ESPN STAR Sports will also exclusively coverHockey India League (HIL), which is expected to be kicked off in January 2013.

Gagan Narang clinches first medal for India at London Olympics

Star Shooter Gagan Narang has clinched first medal for India at the London Olympics. Gagan bagged a bronze medal in the 10 metre air rifle event.

Current Affairs in Sports Category

London Olympics kicks off; Sushil Kumar leads Indian contingent

The London Olympics 2012 opened with a spectacular opening ceremony. Head of State Queen Elizabeth II declared the Games open amidst boisterous spectators in the capacity crowd of 80,000, signaling the launch of the biggest sporting event, which the Britain is hosting after a gap of 64 years.

§  This is the 30^th Olympics event.

§  As per the tradition Greece entered first into the arena for the march past while Great Britain as the host nation was the last contingent to enter the stadium.

§  Indian contingent was lead by Beijing Bronze winning wrestlerSushil Kumar who held high the Indian Flag.

§  The magnificent show at the opening ceremony was orchestrated by Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire director Danny Boyle.

Departments will now have the right to give out of turn promotions to 3 sportspersons, 2 for coaches

The Govt allowed departments to give 3 out of turn promotions to sportspersons who do perform extraordinarily in big events and 2 for coaches.

Objective: Encouraging sportsperson for excellence in sporting events.

According to Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), the medal winning show in sports events eligible for out of turn promotion will be restricted to regular disciplines of Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, Asian Games, World Championships and record breaking medal winning performance in National Games conducted by Indian Olympic Association.

A new test for Human Growth Hormone (HGH) to identify drug cheats in Olympics: WADA

WADA or World Anti-Doping Agency launched a new weapon to tackle the menace of drug cheats in London Olympics. It is for the first time a high-end new test for Human Growth Hormone (HGH), have been introduced at the Olympic Games.

Why this new test has been introduced ?

§  Earlier the detection of HGH was not possible by conventional urine analysis.

§  Also there was a need to have test that could differentiate b/w the natural and synthetic HGH.

§  The new test is a bio-marker test which can differentiate b/w naturally produced HGH and synthetic one.

§  The test will supplement the already existing tests for HGH.

What is HGH?

§  HGH is growth stimulating peptide hormone.  It is released by the somatotroph cells within the lateral wings of the anterior pituitary gland.

§  Somatotropin (STH) refers to the growth hormone 1 produced naturally in animals, whereas the term somatropin refers to growth hormone produced by recombinant DNA technology, and is abbreviated "HGH" in humans.

The use of HGH is banned by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

Bradley Wiggins: First British cyclist to clinch Tour De France

July 25th, 2012 | 

Bradley Wiggins became the 1^stBriton to cinch the Tour de France.

He also helped Sky teammate Mark Cavendish achieve his fourth straight sprint victory on the Champs-Elysees.

Jeev Milkha Singh clinches Scottish Open Golf title

July 18th, 2012 | Comment|

Jeev Milkha Singh won the Scottish Open golf title after a final round with Italy's Francesco Molinari.
This is his 4^th European Tour title.

Current Affairs in Sports Category

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July 16th, 2012 | 

July 16th, 2012

1.   England

2.   Australia

3.   South Africa

4.   Pakistan

5.   India

6.   SriLanka

7.   New Zealand

8.   West Indies

9.   Bangladesh

July 14th, 2012 | 

Mithali was earlier displaced by ICC Women's Cricketer of the Year 2011, West Indies' Stafanie Taylor.
Jhulan Goswami has maintained her 4^th position in the ICC Women's ODI Rankings for bowlers

Mark Boucher bids adieu international cricket

July 11th, 2012 |

Mark Boucher, the South African wicket keeper, has retired from international cricket after undergoing surgery for eye injury he received on the opening day against Somerset when a googly from Imran Tahir, hit the stumps and a dislodged ball hit Boucher in the left eye.
South African captain Graeme Smith read Boucher's statement announcing his retirement. Boucher concluded his international cricket journey with a record 998 international dismissals.

‘Delphinus’ - IAF swimming team creates English Channel record

July 10th, 2012 |

Delphinus - An Indian Air Force, swimming team that has set a record by successfully crossing the English Channel b/w the UK and France twice within a fortnight.

The team has already crossed the Channel in 12 hours and 14 minutes on the June 26, 2012. The team became the fastest Asian relay teamever. The team once again successfully crossed the Channel on July 5, 2012 in 11 hours, 25 minutes, breaking its own record. The stunning achievement makes Delphinus the first team in the world to have crossed the Channel twice in the same year and that too in the first tide which is considered the toughest. Delphinus is the first team from the Indian armed forces to swim the English Channel. It will also compete for the Endurance Trophy
Team members:

· Wing Commander Paramvir Singh

· Flight Lieutenant Narayanpethkar

· Corporal AK Patel

· Corporal S Srihari

·        

Current Affairs in Sports Category

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July 9th, 2012 |

§  If we include this title then Federer now keeps 17 Grand Slam.

§  He had clinched earlier Wimbledon titles on 6 different occasions.

§  William Renshaw's and Pete Sampras are the only players who have won the prestigious Wimbledon singles title on 7 occasions.

Highlights of Wimbledon 2012

§  Serena Williams of US conquered Ladies’ singles title by beating Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland.

§  In mixed doubles Mike Bryan and Lisa Raymond beat the pair of Leander Paes and Elena Vesnina to lift the Mixed Doubles final.

§  Jonathan Marray and Frederick Nielson won Men’s doubles by defeating Robert Lindstedt.

§  The pair of Serena Williams and Venus Williams won Ladies’ doubles title as they defeated Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka.

India gets Olympic berth in swimming

July 8th, 2012 | 

FINA, the world swimming body has granted India an Olympic berth in swimming. FINA awarded the berth to Karnataka swimmer Gagan AP Ulalmath in the men's 1,500 metres freestyle event of the London Olympics under the 'Universality' quota.

FINA

§  Fédération Internationale de Natation (International Swimming Federation)

§  FINA is recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for administering international competition in the aquatic sports

§  Based in Lausanne, Switzerland.

§  FINA currently oversees competition in five aquatic sports: swimming, diving, synchronized swimming, water polo and open water swimming.

FIFA concocting to vote on introduction of Goal Line Technology

July 6th, 2012 |

FIFA, the Football’s governing body is concocting to vote on the initiation of GOAL LINE TECHNOLOGY. Pressure is developing on the football authorities following a series of high profile errors by referees, including one in the latest European Championships. A goal by Ukraine against England was disallowed in spite of television footage indicating that the ball had undoubtedly crossed the line. FIFA is anticipated to sanction two systems - a camera based system and one which uses a censor in the ball.

Person in News: Oscar Pistorius

July 5th, 2012 | 

 Oscar Pistorius named for Olympics in 4x400 race, is the first 'disabled athlete' to qualify for an able bodied event in the 2012 London Olympics in 400 metres race.

§  Full name: Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius

§  Pistorius named South Africa’s 4x400 relay team for the London Olympics.

§  Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius is adouble amputee (i.e. doesn’t have his both limbs) South African sprint runner.

§  Famous as the "Blade Runner" and "The Fastest man on no legs".

§  He is the world record holder in the 100, 200 and 400 metres (sport class T44) events and runs with the aid of Cheetah Flex-Foot carbon fibre transtibial artificial limbs by Ossur.

§  Pistorius is set to become the first amputee track athlete ever to compete at the games.

§  The 25-year-old South African runs on carbon fiber blades.

§  Pistorius made history in 2011 by qualifying for the world championships, where he won silver in the 4x400. The decision to leave him out of the final race caused controversy.

§  Pistorius won medals at the Beijing and Athens Paralympics.

Spain clinches Euro Cup 2012

July 3rd, 2012 | Comment|

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June 30th, 2012 | Comment|

South Africa will host the 4th edition of the Champions League Twenty20 to be held in October, 2012 with Pakistan’s Sialkot Stallions being the new entrant.

The tournament has been shifted out of India due to the Monsoon and the Durga Pooja celebrations will coincide with the event.

The Mumbai Indians would participate as the 4th Indian team in the 8-team tournament.

Pakistan’s Sialkot Stallions has been approved as the new entrant in the tournament. They will participate in the qualifiers to make the cut in the main draw, which will feature 4 teams from India, 2 from Australia and 1 from South Africa.

The confirmed participants of CL T2o are Kolkata Knight Riders, Chennai Super Kings and Delhi Daredevils.

Pinky Karmakar will be Indian 'torch bearer' at London Olympics

June 27th, 2012 | Comment|

Pinky Karmakar, a 17 year old girl and a student of class X from a remote tea garden in Assam will be among India's 'torch bearer' at the London Olympics. She will represent India among 20 countries at the Olympic torch relay inNottinghamshire on June 28, 2012. 

Her father is a painter and her mother a tea-leaf plucker in a tea garden.Pinky runs a daily sports programme at her school and teaches for about 40 women, including her mother. She has also actively participated in the programmes that create awareness about child marriage, adult literacy and alcoholism.

Pinky is part of the International Inspiration Programme, a sports legacy project of London 2012, run in partnership with UK Sport, Unicef and the British Council.
The motto of the programme is to reach young people all around the world and connect them to the inspirational power of the Games so they are inspired to choose sport.

Alonso lifts European Grand Prix

June 25th, 2012 | 

§  Fernando Alonso of Ferrari won European Grand Prix

§  This victory has made him the 1^st driver to win two races this season

§  Kimi Raikkonen of Lotus stood 2^nd

§  Michael Schumacher finished 3^rd

Alan Isaac to command the reins of ICC

June 25th, 2012 |

Alan Isaac of New Zealand will replace Sharad Pawar as ICC President as the term of the latter comes to an end. Sharad Pawar will complete his two-year term. 

Indian women Kabaddi and Basketball teams clinch Gold in Asian Beach Games, China

June 25th, 2012 | 

Current Affairs in Sports Category

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June 23rd, 2012 |

Centre passes proposals worth Rs. 23 Crore to build sports infrastructure facilities

June 16th, 2012 |

Govt approved the proposals financial assistance worth Rs 23 crore under the Urban Sports Infrastructure, to build sports infrastructure facilities in 4 states.

This include:

§  Rs 6 crore to construct a multi-purpose hall in the tribal district of Kondagaon in Chhattisgarh

§  Rs 5 crore to the Haryana state government to lay a synthetic hockey playfield in the sports complex at Hisar.

§  Rs 12 crore to buid a multi-purpose indoor hall one each in Karauli district,Rajasthan and Senapati district,Manipur

June 12th, 2012 |

§  Goalkeeper Bharat Chetri will be the Captain of the 16-member team in the Olympic Games.

§  Ace midfielder Sardar Singh will be the Vice Captain.

§  Other members on the squad: P R Sreejesh, V R Raghunath, Ignace Tirkey, Sandeep Singh, Gurbaj Singh, Birendra Lakra, Manpreet Singh, S V Sunil, Gurwinder Singh Chandi, Shivendra Singh, Danish Mujtaba, Tushar Khandker, Dharamvir Singh and S K Uthappa.
Standby players: Sarvanjit Singh and Kothajit Singh.

§  8-time Olympic Champ India will clash with the Netherlands in their 1^st match at London Olympic Games 

June 12th, 2012 | 

Spain's Rafael Nadal beat Serbia's Novak Djokovic in the final of French Open. With this win he overtook Sweden's Bjorn Borg who won 6 Roland Garros titles
Shattered Djokovic's dream of becoming the 3^rd man to win 4 consecutive grand slams.

June 10th, 2012 | 

 and thus became the 10^th woman to complete a career Grand Slam.

·  

Current Affairs in Sports Category

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June 10th, 2012 |

June 9th, 2012 |

The Sports Ministry granted Rs 77 crore to 26 states for organizing annual sports competitions under the Panchayat Yuva Krida Aur Khel Abhiyan scheme.  The states include Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Nagaland, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. The Scheme has so far covered around 52,000 village panchayats and more than 1,500 block panchayats.

Objective:

§  To develop playfields at block, district, state and national levels

§  To conduct Yearly sports competitions at block, district, state and national levels

PYKKA:

§  A rural sports go-ahead introduced by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Govt of India to promote youth and social development via sports.\

§  Launched on 1 April 2008

§  3 decision making bodies of PYKKA and their respective heads

1.   General Council - Union Sports Minister of the Government of India

2.   Executive Committee - Secretary of Sports, Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports

3.   Mission Directorate - Joint Secretary of Sports, Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports

§  A Central Government sponsored scheme and it is implemented by State and Union Territory administrations.

Funding Structure:-

§  Union Govt : State Government = 90 : 10 (For North Eastern States)

§  Union Govt : State Government = 75 : 25 (For Rest of India)

Modus Operandi:-

§  PYKKA furnishes funds for the development and maintenance of sports grounds in villages and block panchayats.

§  For several sporting disciplines, PYKKA alleviates the conduct of district-state and national level competitions.

French Open: Sania, Bhupathi clinch maiden mixed doubles title

June 8th, 2012 |

Sania Mirza and Mahesh Bhupathi won their 2^ndGrand Slam title together and first French Open trophy. They defeated the Mexican-Polish duo of Santiago Gonzalez and Klaudia Jans Ignacik in the mixed doubles final held in in Paris. Earlier, Sania and Bhupathi had won the 2009 Australia Open as their first Grand Slam title. Individually, it is 2^nd career Grand Slam title for Sania and 12^th major trophy for Bhupati. Bhupati has 8 mixed doubles trophies.

June 6th, 2012 |

New Zealand grabbed the 21st Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament in their maiden final. They defeated Argentina in the top clash at Ipoh, Malaysia. 5-time champions India beat Great Britain and won thebronze medal.

Sachin’s new innings, takes oath as member of Rajya Sabha

June 4th, 2012 | 

Current Affairs in Sports Category

Kevin Pietersen retires from Limited-Overs edition of International Cricket

June 3rd, 2012 |

Star England Batsman Kevin Pietersen declared to retire from limited-overs edition of International cricket. However, he will continue to play test cricket

Kevin Pietersen

§  South African- born English cricketer

§  Right handed batsman and occasional off-spin bowler

§  Debut: 2004

§  ODIs: 127, Total ODI Runs: 4184, Avg: 48.14

§  T20: 36

§  Quickest batsman to reach both 1,000 and 2,000 runs in ODI cricket

Indian Tennis Team will take part in 2012 Euro Africa Circuit, Swedish Open & Brazil Open: Sports Ministry

June 3rd, 2012 |

Sports Ministry approved the participation of Indian Tennis Team in the 2012 Euro Africa Circuit, Swedish Open and Brazil Open tournament. It will be 13 member team that includes: Sharath Kamal, Achanta Kamail, Subhajit Saha, Sanil Shankar Shetty, Mouma Das, Harmeet Rajul Desai, Divya Deshpandey and Monika Batra

§  The Euro Africa Circuit and Swedish Open will be organized at Helsingborg, Sweden.

§  Brazil Open will be held at Santos of Brazil.

May 31st, 2012 |

§  Indian Grand Master Viswanatan Anand retained the FIDE ( Federation Internationale des Echec) World Chess Title for the record5^th time

§  Defeated Boris Gelfand of Israel after 2^ndround of tie breaker game in Moscow

§  The title has been held by Anand since 2007

Hari Ram Grand Prix: India at the top

May 30th, 2012 | 

Results:

§  India (1^st position):2 golds, 3 silvers, and 5 bronze

§  USA (2^nd position): 1 gold, 5 silvers, 1 bronze

§  Korea (3^rd position): 1gold, 2 silvers, 3 bronze

Indian Winners:

§  Gold : Praveen Rana, Rajneesh

§  Silver: Nitin, Neha Rathi

§  Bronze: Vinod Kumar, Kamlesh, Manoj, GursharanPreet Kaur,Pawan Kumar

About Hari Ram Grand Prix:

Services beat Tamil Nadu

May 30th, 2012 |

Services clinched their second beating Tamil Nadu in the finals.

It is an annual Indian football tournament which is participated by states and government institutions

§  Trophy named after late Maharaja Sir Manmatha Nath Roy Chowdhary of Santosh, which is now part of Bangladesh

§   

§  The first winners of the tournament Bengal top list with 31 titles till date

Current Affairs in Sports Category

May 17th, 2012 |

April 29th, 2012 | 

London Olympics: Motto revealed as 'Inspire a generation'

April 19th, 2012 |

In Britain the official London 2012 motto has been revealed as 'Inspire a generation'.

Wisden Cricketers' Almanack expresses fears about future of international cricket

April 14th, 2012 |

‘Wisden Cricketers' Almanack’ (Wisden) expressed severe fears in its latest edition about the future of international cricket. It also criticised India for the slow death of Test matches.

In its 149^th edition, Lawrence Booth, the youngest editor of Wisden at 37, has held that international cricket "stands at a precipice" due to the ever-growing popularity of the Twenty20 format of Cricket. He held that held the Indian officials (BCCI) and the lucrative IPL (Indian Premier League) are responsible for the current state of International Test cricket.

As per him the disintegration of India's celebrated batting lineup has co-occurred with the rise of a Twenty20-based nationalism, the growth of private marketeers and high level conflicts of interest.

What is Wisden Cricketers' Almanack?

Shiva Thapa becomes youngest Indian boxer to make cut for Olympics

April 12th, 2012 |

The 18-year old Assam’s Shiva Thapa (56kg) has become the youngest Indian boxer to make the cut for the Olympics. In Astana, Kazakhstan, he defeated Japan's Satoshi Simizu to enter the final and book himself a London berth.

Current Affairs in Sports Category

Indian Boxer Vijender Singh qualifies for London Olympics

April 10th, 2012 |

Vijender Singh of India qualified for the London Olympics in the 75 kg category by reaching the semi-final of the Asian Olympic qualifier, at Astana in Kajakhstan. Vijender Singh is the first Indian boxer to qualify for the Olympics for the third time in succession. 

April 3rd, 2012 | 

(*Rupert Murdoch remember ??? He is the same person who was in news in July 2011 when he faced allegations that his companies, including the News of the World, owned by News Corporation, had been regularly hacking the phones of celebrities, royalty and public citizens. He faced police and government investigations into bribery and corruption in the UK and FBI investigations in the US.)

In 2009, News Corporation restructured STAR Asia into four units – STAR India, STAR Greater China, STAR Select and Fox International Channels Asia.

Sher-e-Punjab wins the inaugural edition of the World Series Hockey tournament

April 3rd, 2012 |

Sher-e-Punjab has won the inaugural edition of the World Series Hockey tournament. In the final match Sher-e-Punjab defeated Pune Strykers at the MHA Mahindra Stadium in Mumbai.

Geeta created history by becoming the first Indian female wrestler to have qualified for the Olympics following her winning a gold medal in the Asian Qualifying Tournament in Astana, Kazakhstan. She defeated G Yuun Yum of Korea in the 55kg category. Both the gold and silver medalists from the Asian qualifying event got a ticket to the London Games.

This is the first time an Indian female grappler has qualified for the Olympics since women's wrestling was introduced in the quadrennial extravaganza in 2004. Apart from Geeta, male wrestlers Amit Kumar (55kg) and Yogeshwar Dutt (60kg) had earlier qualified for the London Olympics by clinching a gold and silver medal respectively at the Asian Qualifying event. But the fancied Sushil Kumar was unable to make the cut.

Miami Open Tennis tournament: Results (50th Doubles Title for Paes)

Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska wins Women's Singles title

Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska won the Women's Singles title. In the finals, she defeated Russia's Maria Sharapova.

Russian pair Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova wins Women's Doubles title

Meanwhile, the Russian pair of Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova won the Women's Doubles title. They defeated the Italian duo of Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci.

India's Leander Paes, Czech Radek Stepanek win doubles title

India's Leander Paes, Czech Radek Stepanek win doubles at the Men's Doubles title in the Miami Open Tennis tournament at Florida. In the title clash, they defeated the Belarusian-Canadian combine of Max Mirnyi and Daniel Nestor.

Indo-Czech duo of Leander Paes and Radek Stepanek had won the Australian Open earlier this year. Paes became the 24^th player in ATP World Tour history to win 50 doubles titles.

Serbian Novak Djokovic wins Men's Singles title

Serbia's World Number One Novak Djokovic won the Men's Singles title. In the finals he defeated fourth seeded Briton Andy Murray.

Current Affairs in Sports Category

Lalit Modi loses libel case, has to pay 90,000 pounds to Chris Cairns

Former New Zealand all-round Cricketer Chris Cairns was relieved after winning a libel suit against axed IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi, who had accused him of  match-fixing. Chris Cairns held the London High Court's verdict has lifted a "dark cloud" that has been over him for the past two years. Modi will have to pay 90,000 pounds (app Rs 73 lakh) in damages to the all-rounder but the embattled administrator has decided to appeal against the judgement. After hearing the arguments from both sides in a nine-day trial, Justice David Bean of the London High Court ruled in favour of Cairns.

Mary Kom (Five-time world champion) and Sarita Devi clinched gold medals in the 6^th Asian Boxing Championships in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, helping India  finish a creditable second in the overall standings. Whilst Mary Kom overcame current world champion and Asian Games gold medallist Ren Cancan of China 14/8 in the 51kg category, Sarita Devi in 60kg category, overcame Chorieva Mavzuna of Tajkistan 16-9. With 2 gold medals, 4 silver and two bronze, India finished runners-up behind China.

Ireland beat Namibia to qualify for World T20

Ireland became the second team to qualify for the ICC World Twenty20 Sri Lanka after beating Namibia by nine wickets in the second final of the Qualifiers at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium (DICS). Afghanistan has already qualified for the tournament.

Afghanistan qualifies for ICC World Cup Twenty 20

Afghanistan qualified for the World Cup Twenty 20 tournament to be held in Srilanka in 2012. Afghanistan defeated Namibia by 47 runs in their qualifying match at Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

26th Northeast Games kicked off in Mizoram

The 26th Northeast Games kicked off in the hilly state of Mizoram at the newly constructed Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in the state capital Aizawl. The theme of the games, being hosted by Mizoram third time, is‘Unity through Sports’.

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Current Affairs in Sports Category

Govt launches special website for London Olympics 2012

Government launched a special website called,OPEX London 2012 (Operation Excellence London 2012), for upcoming London Olympics game. The website to have full information regarding Indian players participating in the game in various disciplines, detail of coaches, international exposure and national and international coaching camps which are being conducted. The objective is to create more transparency in the functioning of authorities involved in the preparedness of the Olympics.

Victoria Azarenka bags women’s singles title in the BNP Paribas Open Tennis tournament, California.

World Number One Victoria Azarenka of Belarushas won the Women’s Singles title in the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament at the Indian Wells in California. She defeated Russia’s Maria Sharapova 6-2, 6-3.

Top-seeded Americans Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond kept up their incredible run, winning their fourth straight title and 16th straight match with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over No. 2 seeds Sania Mirza and Elena Vesnina in the BNP Paribas Open women's doubles final.

Roger Federer wins men’s singles title at the BNP Paribas Open Tennis tournament, California.

Switzerland’s Roger Federer won the Men’s Singles title in the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament at the Indian Wells in California. Third seed Roger Federer defeated John Isner of the United States in straight sets, 7-6, 6-3. Roger Federer became the first player to bag the BNP Paribas Open for the fourth time. Federer, thus equaled Rafael Nadal’s record of 19 ATP World Tour Master’s 1000 titles.

In the Men’s Doubles title the Spanish duo of Rafael Nadal and Marz Lopez defeated the American pair of John Isner and Sam Querrey 6-2, 7-6 in the finals.

North Korea wins AFC Challenge Cup 2012 Football

North Korea won the AFC Challenge Cup 2012 Football Championships. North Korea defeated Turkmenistan 2-1 in the final at Kathmandu’s Dashrath Stadium.

Thus, North Korea is now through to the Asia Cup 2015 to be held in Australia.

Current Affairs in Sports Category

West Bengal lifts Vijay Hazare Cricket Trophy 2012

West Bengal lifted the Vijay Hazare Cricket Trophy (also known as the Ranji One Day Trophy) 2012. In the final they beat Mumbai by 6 wickets at the Feroz Shah Kotla-Delhi. 

For Bengal, it was their maiden title win in the tournament and it was also Ganguly's maiden national title as Bengal captain having made his first-class debut way back in 1990.

Vijay Hazare Trophy was started in 2002-03 as a limited-over domestic competition involving state teams from the Ranji Trophy plates.

It is named after the famous Indian cricketer Vijay Hazare. Tamil Nadu have won the trophy maximum (4) times.

Formula One team Marussia appoints female test driver ‘Maria De Villota’

Formula One team Marussia have appointedSpaniard Maria De Villota, an experienced racer in women's autosport, as one of their test drivers. A day before International Women's Day, the Russian outfit announced that De Villota, the daughter of former F1 driver and British Formula One series champion Emilio de Villota, would be joining their set-up. De Villota has raced in a variety of single-seater and sports car categories, including Spanish F3, the Daytona 24 Hours, the Euroseries 3000 and Superleague Formula Championship.

Two women have previously raced in Formula 1: Italians Maria Teresa de Filippis, who competed in three races in 1958, coming 10th in the Belgian Grand Prix, and Lella Lombardi, who drove in the mid-1970s. She came sixth in the 1975 Spanish Grand Prix. Britain s Divina Galica in 1976 and 1978; South African Desire Wilson in 1980; and Giovanna Amati, of Italy, in 1992 have also driven in Formula One but failed to qualify.,

Rahul Dravid declared retirement from international Cricket. Dravid ended his Test career with 13,288 runs in 164 matches with 36 hundreds and 63 half centuries at an average of 52.31. The 270 against Pakistan is Dravid's highest score. He scored 10,889 runs from 344 ODIs with 12 centuries and 83 half centuries at an average of 39.16. He captained India in 25 Tests and 79 ODIs. Dravid also holds the world record of highest Test catches -- 210. The 39-year-old Dravid became the first of the three ageing greats of Indian cricket, besides Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman, to retire in the aftermath of India's disastrous Test tour of Australia. Dravid was synonymous with “Wall” of Indian Cricket.

ODI CAREER

§  Scored 10,889 runs from 344 matches

§  ODI debut on April 3, 1996 against Sri Lanka

§  Last ODI on September 16, 2011 against England

§  Has made 12 centuries in ODIs

§  Top scorer at the 1999 World Cup in England with 461 runs