Current Affairs January 2017 - Sports
News 1 - Sivalingam Sathish Kumar of Railways clinched gold for sixth time
Sivalingam Sathish Kumar of Railways won the gold for the sixth consecutive year in the men’s 77kg category at the 69th men and 32nd women senior National weightlifting championships at Nagercoil in Tamalinadu. Ajay Singh of Services finished second and Papul Changmai of Assam came third.
Kojum Taba from Services clinched the gold medal in the 85kg men’s category. Lalchhanhimi of Mizoram took the gold in the women’s 69kg category.
News 2 - Rafael Nadal bagged the Mubadala Tennis Championships 2016
Rafael Nadal retained the title for the second consecutive year and his fourth win overall at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship. He defeated World No.11 Belgian David Goffin in the final 6-4, 7-6 to win the championship.
Andy Murray fought World No. 3 Milos Raonic to win the third place. The Mubadala World Tennis Championship carries a prize of $250,000. It is played at the International Tennis Centre at The Zayed Sports City, Abu Dhabi.
News 3 - Virat Kohli voted as India's Sportsperson of 2016
Virat Kohli has been voted as India's Sportsperson of the Year 2016 in a poll conducted by India Today. Kohli got 44.18% votes, badminton ace PV Sindhu was second with 31.51% while star all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin came third with 13.83% of the votes.
Paralympian Deepa Malik (4.05% votes), the Rio Olympics wrestler, Sakshi Malik (3.37% votes), Paralympian Devendra Jhajharia (3.04% votes) were the other top contenders for the sportsperson of the year 2016.
News 4 - Kush Bhagat creates history with 3 gold medals wins in chess championship
Mumbai prodigy Kush Bhagat has won all three gold medals on offer in the 1st Western Asia Youth Chess Championships held at Al Ain Chess Club in UAE. Kush was supreme in all the three categories - rapid, blitz and standard.
He achieved the feat of being the only Indian to bag all the crowns in the competition. Kush overcame the challenges from 158 participants from 20 countries across the world.
News 5 - Mithali Raj to captain India in Women's World Cup Qualifier
Mithali Raj to captain a 14-member Indian squad to the ICC Women's World Cup Qualifiers to be held in Colombo from February 3-21. The World Cup will be played in the UK from June 26 to July 23. In the upcoming ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifiers, India will play from Group A alongside Sri Lanka, Ireland, Zimbabwe and Thailand.
The top four sides from the Super Six stage will complete the eight-team line-up for the ICC Women's World Cup 2017.
News 6 - Arthur Morris inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame
Australia cricketer Arthur Morris was inducted into the International Cricket Council’s Hall of Fame by Steve Waugh in Sydney. With this, Morris became the 82nd player to be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. Arthur Morris is among the best left-handed openers with an exceptional average. He has scored 12,614 runs in 162 first class matches with 46 centuries and 46 half-centuries.
Other such Indian cricketers who have been honoured are Sunil Gavaskar, Bishan Singh Bedi, Kapil Dev and Anil Kumble.
News 7 - India won the SAFF women's Championship for the 4th consecutive time
India defeated Bangladesh 3-1 in the final of the 4th SAFF Women's Championship at the Kanchenjunga Stadium in Siliguri to win their fourth consecutive South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Women's Football Championship title.
The Indian eves are now unbeaten in 19 matches having won 18 and drawn one. This was Bangladesh's maiden final appearance in the championship. For India, the goals were scored by Dangmei Grace, Sasmita Malik and Indumathi. Bangladesh's lone goal came through Sirat Jahan.
News 8 - National Ice Skating Championship held in Gurugram, Haryana
The National Ice Skating Championship 2017 began in Gurugram, Haryana. The Around 300 ice skaters across the country participated in the two-day event being organised by the Ice Skating Association of India.
This championship was divided into two major disciplines - Figure Skating and Short Track Speed Skating with two separate competitions for boys and girls in different age categories. Winners of the competitions will receive medals and certificates along with cash prizes and for the first time, girl speed skaters will be conferred with the VASUDHA Trophy.
News 9 - Sania Mirza won the Brisbane women's doubles title
Indian tennis ace Sania Mirza picked up her first title of the season, combining with American Bethanie Mattek-Sands to lift the Brisbane International women's doubles title. The top-seeded Indo-American duo triumphed 6-2 6-3 against the second-seeded Russian team of Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina in the final.
The trophy, however, ended Sania's 91-week reign as the world No.1 doubles player in the WTA rankings. That position was taken over by her partner Bethanie.
News 10 - Djokovic won the Qatar Open tennis title
Novak Djokovic has won the Qatar ExxonMobil Open tennis title after he defeated Andy Murray 6-3 5-7 6-4 in the final. It was the 36th contest between the two, and Murray lost for the 25th time against his old rival. With this, Djokovic also ended Murray's winning streak of 28 consecutive ATP Tour matches.
It was the 67th career tour-level title for Djokovic. The Qatar Open is held annually in January at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex in Doha, Qatar, since 1993.
News 11 - Agut defeats Medvedev to win the Chennai Open title
Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain won the men’s singles title of the Chennai Open 2017 after he defeated Daniil Medvedev of Russia 6-3 and 6-4 in the final.
It was the fifth ATP singles title for Agut including two in 2016 when he won in Sofia and Auckland.
This was the second time that Agut was playing a final at the Chennai Open, having ended runner-up to Janko Tipsarevic in 2013.
News 12 - Abbu Ammaz from Kashmir bagged the National Boxing Championship
Kashmir’s 8-year-old boy Abbu Ammaz bagged gold medal in Thai Boxing Championship at the national level. He was felicitated by the district authorities and the civil administration as well as by the police.
Thai Boxing Indian Federation expanded its activities from Jammu & Kashmir to Kanyakumari through its 25 member states. This federation has provided the best semi-light full contact fighter in National & international Championships.
News 13 - Claudio Ranieri won FIFA Coach of the Year award
Claudio Ranieri from Leicester City was presented FIFA Football Coach of the Year award 2016. There were some other nominations such as Portugal’s Fernando Santos who bagged Euro 2016 championship and Zinedine Zidane who helped Real Madrid win Champions league.
Claudio led Leicester to the Premier League title in 2016 and so he was honoured with this award. Leicester City announced Ranieri as the club's new manager on a three-year contract in 2015.
News 14 - Cristiano Ronaldo presented with the World Soccer's Player of the Year award
With the historic wins of Champions League and the European Championships, Portuguese footballer Cristiano Ronaldo was presented with World Soccer’s World Player of the Year award at FIFA Football Awards held in Zurich, Switzerland. Cristiano Ronaldo won by 34.54% votes, leaving behind Lionel Messi with 26.42% votes. It was 4th time that Cristiano Ronaldo was presented with this award.
The awards were decided by votes from a panel of 100 journalists with points awarded to each selection. Best FIFA Women’s Player award was given to Carli Lloydll.
News 15 - Jimmy Adams appointed new Director of West Indies Cricket
West Indies appointed former batsman Jimmy Adams as the new director of cricket for helping to rebuild the side.
Adams played 54 Test matches for West Indies side and returned to Jamaica after ending a five-year spell as a head coach of the English county side Kent last October. He replaces Englishman Richard Pybus, who had been in the position since November 2013. However, the West Indies are still without a head coach after the departure of Phil Simmons in September.
News 16 - FIFA to expand competition to 48 teams in World Cup
FIFA has decided that the World Cup will be expanded to host 48 teams, up from 32. An initial stage of 16 groups of three teams will precede a knockout stage for the remaining 32 when the change is made for the 2026 tournament.
The number of tournament matches will rise to 80, from 64, however, the eventual winners will still play only seven games. The tournament will be completed within 32 days. The changes mark the first World Cup expansion since 1998.
News 17 - Cristiano Ronaldo won FIFA best player award
Cristiano Ronaldo was named the world's best player at the inaugural Best FIFA Football Awards in Zurich. Portugal forward Ronaldo beat Barcelona's Lionel Messi and Atletico Madrid's Antoine Griezmann to the prize.
Ronaldo also won the Ballon d'Or in December with both honours recognition for success in the Champions League with Real and Euro 2016 with Portugal. Carli Lloyd of the United States was named the world's best female player.
News 18 - Sreejesh became the member of FIH Athletes' Committee
The Indian hockey team captain PR Sreejesh became a member of International Hockey Federation Athletes' Committee. The Committee comprises a total of eight current and former hockey players who have the responsibility to act as a liaison between the FIH and the athletes to make sure the players have voice in the FIH decision making process.
Sreejesh's role will be to seek and provide feedback to the FIH on behalf of all athletes.
News 19 - 'Diplomats Cricket Championship Cup' launched in Dubai
To promote sportsmanship among the diplomatic missions of UAE, Consulate General of India announced launch of the 'Diplomats Cricket Championship Cup' in association with the Skyline University College, Sharjah at Dubai. Various members of diplomatic missions, embassies and their respective families will participate in the event.
Countries like Sri Lanka, South Africa, Pakistan, New Zealand and Afghanistan will be part of event. First edition of this two days event, is scheduled to happen on 20th and 21st of February.
News 20 - Alphonce and Bornes bagged the 14th Mumbai Marathon
The 14th Mumbai Marathon race winners were Tanzania’s Alphonce Felix Simbu in Men’s category and Kenya’s Bornes Kitur Chepkirui in women’s category. Kenya’s Bornes finished off race in her style in 2:29 seconds whereas Alphonce Felix finished off race in 2:09 seconds.
Indian athletes, army soldier Kheta Ram and Jyoti Shanker Gawte bagged the men and women's category in the full marathon. Other top Indian athletes who were part of race were Elam Singh, Mohammed Yunus, and Ladakh's self-trained runners, Jigmet Dolma and Tsetan Dolkar.
News 21 - Gujarat won the Ranji Trophy title beating Mumbai
Gujarat won their first ever Ranji Trophy title beating Mumbai by five wickets in the final at the Holkar stadium held at Indore.
Mumbai had a good start to the day, picking up three wickets in the first session while Gujarat did manage to score 99 runs.
Juneja decided to take the aggressive route whereas Parthiv had a fair share of luck. This collaboration put on 116 for the fourth wicket which lead to the victory.
News 22 - Sports Minister Vijay Goel inaugurated Khelo India competitions
Minister of State (I/C) for Youth Affairs and sports Shri Vijay Goel inaugurated Khelo India National Level Competitions. The competitions in Delhi have been organized by SAI under aegis of Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in Swimming, Cycling and Wrestling.
Approximately 1000 participants from more than 25 states/Union territories are taking part in the National Competitions. Khelo India National Level Competitions will be conducted in different disciplines in January and February, 2017.
News 23 - Valtteri Bottas to join Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes
Valtteri Bottas has been named as Lewis Hamilton's new team-mate for the forthcoming Formula One season at Mercedes. Bottas replaced world champion Nico Rosberg following his retirement from the sport.
Rosberg will stay on with Mercedes in an ambassadorial role. Bottas has agreed a one-year contract with Mercedes. Bottas has an impressive track record in the junior categories and nine podiums in F1. He has claimed nine podiums to date but is yet to secure his first Grand Prix victory.
News 24 - Farrukh Amonatov Wins the Delhi International Chess Tournament
Grandmaster Farrukh Amonatov of Tajikistan won the 15th edition of the Parsvnath Delhi International Chess tournament after he drew with Grandmaster Diptayan Ghosh in the 10th and final round. Ghosh stood second while Dzhumaev Marat secured the third position.
Amonatov won Rs. 4 lakh as prize money while the other two players won Rs. 3 lakh and Rs. 2 lakh respectively. Arpita Mukherjee won the Women's International Master norm. Suhaib Ahmad won the first prize in group C.
News 25 - Punjab Royals bagged the championship of Pro Wrestling League Season 2
Punjab Royals bagged the Pro Wrestling League Season 2 title held in New Delhi and defeated Haryana Hammers 5-4. Punjab reigned supreme with their imports Vladimir Khinchegashvili, Vasilisa Marzaliuk and Ilias Bekbukatov, besides India's Nirmla and Jitendra doing the damage in the crucial ties of the day.
The winners were honored with the Champions trophy along with a prize money of whopping 1 crore and 90 lacs. The runners up were given prize money of 1 crore and 10 lacs.
News 26 - Alibaba announced as global partner of Olympic Games through 2028
The International Olympic Committee and Alibaba Group jointly announced a long-term partnership through 2028. Joining the Olympic Partner (TOP) worldwide sponsorship program, Alibaba will become the official “Cloud Services” and “E-Commerce Platform Services” Partner, as well as a Founding Partner of the Olympic Channel.
Alibaba will help the IOC achieve with a variety of key objectives outlined in Olympic Agenda 2020, while positively shaping the future of the Olympic Movement.
News 27 - Pan-India initiative for girl’s football launched
On the National Girl Child Day, a pan-India football based program for girls between the age of 10 to 15 years was launched.
The program named "Khelegi toh Khilegi" was flagged off by Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas at Delhi, where over 700 girls participated. It aims at developing girls football in the country, with an intention to empower the girl child. Starting from Delhi, the initiative will be held at 15 cities across India in the first year.
News 28 - Virat Becomes Fastest Batsman to Score 1000 Runs as ODI Captain
Virat Kohli surpassed AB de Villiers’s record, and became fastest batsman to score 1000 ODI runs as captain. Kohli is playing only his fifth match as ODI captain but he has led the team in the 50 over-format, thereby scoring 1000 runs in 17 innings as captain.
The list is followed by South Africa’s AB de Villiers at the 2nd position, Kane Williamson at the 3rd place, Alistair Cook at the 4th and Sourav Ganguly at the 5th place. Kohli has 27 ODI centuries where he scored the maximum he could.
News 29 - Hayden, David and Betty inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame
Veteran batsmen, David Boon and Matthew Hayden and the brilliant women's all-rounder Betty Wilson will be announced to be inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame at the 2017 Allan Border Medal ceremony. Mathew Hayden has always been famous for his role as an excellent opening batsman and an outstanding fielder.
Betty Wilson was famous for her smart all-round skills as a batter and off-spinner. Boon made 7,422 runs in his 107 Tests in the 1980s and 1990s. He was famous for his tough techniques.
News 30 - 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia finals to be held at Kremlin
Russia will organize 2018 FIFA World Cup finals at Kremlin, which is scheduled for December 1. It has a capacity of 6000 viewers. Russia will host the 2018 World Cup between June 14 and July 15 at 12 stadiums in 11 cities including Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Kazan and Sochi. These four cities will also host 2017 Confederations Cup.
A UNESCO World Heritage site, the Kremlin is a fortified complex in the heart of Moscow. Russia bagged bids from Belgium/Netherlands, England and Portugal/Spain to host the 2018 World Cup at a vote in December 2010.
News 31 - Roger Federer lifted his 18th Grand Slam Tennis title
Swiss star Roger Federer lifted his 18th Grand Slam Tennis title and defeated Spain's Rafael Nadal in five sets 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3.
The 35-year old Federer has also become the second-oldest winner of a Grand Slam tournament in the Open Era after Australian Ken Rosewall who won the Australian title at the age of 37 in 1972. American-Colombian duo of Abigail Spears and Juan Sebastian Cabal bagged the Mixed doubles title beating Indo-Croatian pair of Sania Mirza and Ivan Dodig in the final. The American-Colombian pair won in straight sets 6-2, 6-4.
News 32 - Serena Williams bagged her 23rd major singles title
Serena Williams bagged her 23rd major singles title in the women’s category, defeating her sister Venus Williams with a 6-4, 6-4 victory. With this win, Serena becomes seven-times winner of the Australian Open. This was the ninth time the sisters had met in a grand slam final. Serena clinched the record for an Open-era major titles, nearly 18 years after winning her first.
Serena received £2.24m prize money and Venus, being runner-up received £1.15m as prize money.
News 33 - Tokyo 2020 olympics ambassador unveiled
Japan's cult animated character ‘Son Goku’ was finalized as brand ambassador of 2020 Olympics to promote and celebrate its rich influence on modern culture. It will appear on all the official Olympics 2020 merchandise. Son Goku is an animated character from Dragonball Z.
Other cartoon characters have also been sporting ambassadors such as Mario, Naruto and Sailor Moon. Announcement was made Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe at closing ceremony of Rio 2016.
