SPORTS DECEMBER 2015

SPORTS DECEMBER 2015

• India's Shiva Keshavan wins Silver at Asian Championships in Japan
  Seasoned Indian luger Shiva Keshavan won a silver medal at the Asian Championship which concluded in Nagano, Japan Of the three Olympic sliding sports, Luge is the fastest and most dangerous sports on ice.
  
  The race consisted of two heats closely contested by athletes. In the first heat Shiva was a mere 2/10th of a second behind, in the second heat, minor technical snags cost him the gold medal.
  
  The first place was claimed by Japan's Hidenari Kanayama, and third by Korea's Dong Hyeon Kim. Shiva had won two gold, silver and two bronze medals in the previous editions of the event.
  
• ICC suspends Pak spinner Yasir Shah for failing dope test
  The ICC provisionally suspended Pakistan leg spinner Yasir Shah after he failed a dope test conducted last month during the ODI series against England in Abu Dhabi.
  
  The sample Yasir provided in an in-competition test, which was conducted on November 13, was found to contain the presence of chlortalidone, a prohibited substance which appears in Section 5 of the WADA Prohibited List.
  
  In accordance with the ICC Anti-Doping Code , Yasir has been provisionally suspended, pending the outcome of the disciplinary process. Pakistan cricket's chief selector Haroon Rasheed today said that Yasir Shah's provisional suspension was a huge setback for the national team ahead of the upcoming New Zealand tour.
  
• Rakhi, Kavita win Gold in Senior National Weightlifting Championship
  In the ongoing Senior National Weightlifting Championships, Rakhi Haldar and Kavita Devi finished on top of the podium in their respective women's weight categories in Patiala on 29th December. Rakhi won the gold medal with an overall lift of 213 kilograms in 69 kilogram category.
  
  In 75 kilogram category, Kavita Devi clinched the yellow metal with a total lift of 217 kilograms. V A Christopher won the gold medal in Men's 105 kilogram category with an overall lift of 329 kilograms.
  
• Gujarat wins maiden Vijay Hazare title
  Gujarat have won their maiden Vijay Hazare Cricket Trophy. In the final of the limited overs tournament in Bengaluru on 29th December, they beat Delhi by 139 runs.
  
• Bajrang Punia, Ritu Phogat win Gold at National Wrestling Championship
  Bajrang Punia in Men's 65kg and Ritu Phogat in women's 48kg Freestyle categories won gold medals on the first day of the Senior National Wrestling Championship in New Delhi on 30th December.
  
  Jitender won the gold, while the silver went to Pardeep. Manoj and Dinesh settled for bronze.
  
• Vijender Singh becomes first Indian to score Pro-Boxing hat-trick
  Indian boxer Vijender Singh continued his dominant run in the professional circuit, notching up a third successive knockout by thrashing Bulgaria's Samet Hyuseinov in Manchester ON 20th December. In less than two rounds, Vijender cornered Hyuseinov with a flurry of combination punches to force the referee into stopping the bout and give the Indian a win via Technical Knockout.
  
  The former Olympic and World Championships bronze-medallist continues to remain unbeaten since making his debut in October.
  
• FIFA bans Sepp Blatter, Michel Platini from football for eight years
  Suspended FIFA President Sepp Blatter and European football chief Michel Platini have been banned from from all football-related activities for eight years from 21st December by the Ethics Committee of football's global governing body. The ban comes into force immediately. Blatter and Platini have also been fined 40,000 and 80,000 USD dollar respectively.
  
  The ethics inquiry began in the wake of the Swiss attorney general's decision to open criminal proceedings against Blatter over the payment to Platini. The office is also investigating the award of the 2018 and 2022 World Cup finals to Russia and Qatar.
  
• Singapore Squash: India's Abhay Singh wins boys U-19 title
  India's Abhay Singh won the boys Under-19 title, beating second seed Alwin Chai of Malaysia in the final of the Old Chang Kee Singapore Squash Open. Abhay, world number junior player, now has a tally of seven junior titles this year, two of them international.
  
• Sania, Hingis named as Women’s Doubles World Champions by ITF
  Formidable pair of Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis has been named as Women’s Doubles World Champions by the International Tennis Federation (ITF). This is in recognition of their stupendous success in season 2015. Hingis is an ITF World Champion 15 years after last being named World Champion in singles in 2000. Sania and Martina joined forces in March this year but proved a force to be reckoned with in 2015, winning two Grand Slam titles at Wimbledon and the US Open, and seven further tournaments.
  
  They won their last 22 matches from the start of the US Open through wins in Asia at Guangzhou, Wuhan, Beijing and the WTA Finals. The duo ended the year with a 55-7 record. The ITF also announced American Serena Williams and Serbian Novak Djokovic as the 2015 ITF World Champions. Williams is named Women’s World Champion for the sixth time, while this is the fifth occasion that Djokovic has received the honour.
  
• Steve Smith named Test cricketer of Year, AB De Villiers ODI Player
  Australian cricketer Steve Smith has been named Cricketer of the Year for 2015 at the ICC Awards ceremony in Dubai. Smith became the fourth Australian and 11th overall to win the prestigious award named after Sir Garfield Sobers . The top-order batsman was also adjudged the Test Cricketer of the Year.
  
  During the voting period, which ran from 18 September 2014 to 13 September 2015, the 26-year-old from New South Wales finished as the leading run-scorer in Tests with 1,734 runs in 25 innings of 13 matches at an average of 82.57. This included seven centuries and six half-centuries.
  
  In 26 One-Day Internationals, Smith scored 1,249 runs at an average of just under 60 with four centuries and eight half-centuries. South Africa's ODI captain AB de Villiers was named the ODI Cricketer of the Year for the second time in a row. Australia's paceman Josh Hazlewood was adjudged the Emerging Player of the Year.
  
• Andhra Pradesh to host 2019 National Games
  National Games in 2019 would be held in Andhra Pradesh, Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh (SAAP) Chairman P R Mohan said on 23rd December.
  
  The Indian Olympic Association, at its meeting held in Guwahati, agreed to the proposal to host the Games made by the SAAP Chairman, Andhra Pradesh Olympic Association General Secretary Purushotham and other sports officials from the State.
  
• Sanjita, Ramana win gold at National Weightlifting C'ships
  Sanjita Chanu and Korada Ramana bagged gold medals in the women's and men's categories respectively on the first day of the Senior National Weightlifting Championships at the SAI centre in Patiala on 25th December.
  
  In Women's 48 kilogram, Sanjita Chanu lifted 78 kilogram in snatch and 95 kilogram in clean and jerk for a total of 173 kilogram to emerge on top. Mirabai Chanu finished with silver and Chandrika Tarafdar settled for bronze.
  
  In Men's 56 kilogram, Korada Ramana lifted 109 kilogram in snatch and 142 kilogram in clean and jerk for a total of 251 kilogram to win the yellow metal. Jamjang Deru bagged the silver and Guru Raja settled for bronze.
  
• India’s referee Ashok Kumar selected for officiating in Rio Olympics
  International referee from India, Ashok Kumar has been selected for officiating in the Rio Olympics. This is the first time in the in the Indian wrestling history that an Indian referee will officiate at the Olympic Games to be held at Rio-de-Janeiro from 5th to 21st August next year.
  
  Ashok Kumar has officiated in more than 50 international tournaments and presently serving in the Indian Air-Force as Warrant Officer. A total of 50 referees, including supervisors and instructors, have qualified for the Olympics. United World Wrestling has selected the referees based based upon their performance during the 2015 World Senior Wrestling Championship held at Las Vegas and subsequently the clinic conducted for these referees at Sochi in Russia.
  
• Assam CM Gogoi inaugurates mascot of 12th SAF games in Guwahati
  The mascot and logo of the 12th SAF games -Tikhor has been inaugurated in Guwahati on 13th December by Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi and Union Sports minister Sarbanand Sonowal. The mega event will be held in Guwahati and Shillong from 6th to 16th of February next year.
  
  The mascot Tikhor, the brand ambassador of the games carries the message of peace, stability, amity and progress in the South Asian region.
  
  Tikhor means someone who is sharp, naughty and sporty resembling one horn rhino. On the other hand, the logo which has also been launched today has eight petals representing the countries participating in the mega event.
  
  According to the Union Sports minister Sarbanand Sonowal the logo and mascot was designed under the guidance of Nani Borpujari. The organization committee is looking forward to see the heads of the participating countries during the event. Nearly 4 thousand 500 players and officials are likely to take part in 23 events.
  
• Vijay Kumar wins gold at shooting nationals
   Olympic medallist Vijay Kumar shot his way to the men's 25-metre centre fire pistol gold medal on day 12 of the 59th National Shooting Championship in New Delhi on 13th December. Vijay, who has not yet secured a quota for the upcoming Rio Olympics, is trying to get back to his best after being laid low by injury over the past couple of years.
  
  Gurpreet Singh of the Army won the silver while national rapid fire pistol champion Pemba Tamang bagged the bronze to make it a clean sweep for the Army team.
  
  Vijay shot a combined score of 588 over the rapid and precision rounds to edge out Gurpreet who finished with a 586. Pemba managed 582 to secure the third place.
  
• IPL player draft: Pune picks MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina goes to Rajkot
  India's ODI captain MS Dhoni will be representing the Pune franchise in the upcoming IPL season after becoming the first pick of the players draft in Mumbai on 15th December. Dhoni will be joined by Ravichandran Ashwin, Faf du Plessis, Ajinkya Rahane and Australian star Steve Smith.
  
  On the other hand, the Rajkot franchise made IPL's top run-getter Suresh Raina as their first draft pick and the left-hander will be joined by local hero Ravindra Jadeja,New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum, all-round James Faulkner and Dwayne Bravo.
  
  New Rising, the Pune franchise bought by Sanjiv Goenka, expectedly picked Indian limited overs captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni as the first player for Rs 12.5 crore in the first-ever player draft of the Indian Premier League in Mumbai.
  
  A total of 10 players went through the draft system, leaving the rest of the players to go under the hammer in February for the final auction before IPL 9 kicks off in April.
  
  Pune and Rajkot won the recent franchise bids from the BCCI to replace Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals for 2016 and 2017 seasons after the two franchises were suspended by the IPL administrative committee.
  
• Rajasthan's Apurvi Chandela wins gold at National Shooting Championship
  Rajasthan's Apurvi Chandela bagged a Gold medal in the 10-metre Air Rifle event on the final day of the 59th National Shooting Championship in Delhi on 15th December. In the Final, she and her compatriot Geetakshi Dixit got the better of Anjum Moudgil of Haryana who had led throughout. While Geetakshi claimed the silver, Anjum had to settle for a Bronze.
  
  Army man Chain Singh won the coveted yellow metal in the 50-metre Rifle 3 Positions event. Chain Singh, also a Rio Olympic Qualifier, claimed the Men's 50M Rifle 3 Positions Gold at the Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range. In the Men's 50M Rifle 3 Positions, largely considered one of the toughest Olympic events, army man Chain shot 452.8 in the final round, comfortably ahead of Air India's Gagan Narang.
  
• Mary Kom loses in semifinals of Olympic Test event
  Five-time world champion M C Mary Kom settled for a bronze medal at the International Boxing Association's (AIBA) Olympic Test event in Rio de Janeiro after going down in the semifinals.
  
  The London Olympic bronze-medallist lost on points to United States' Virginia Fuchs in the Brazilian city, which will host the Olympic Games next year. This was Mary Kom's first competitive appearance in over a year. She had been laid low by a shoulder injury after winning the gold medal at the Asian Games in Incheon last year.
  
• India beat South Africa by 337 runs in 4th Test
  India crushed South Africa by 337 runs in the fourth and final Test at the Feroz Shah Kotla ground to clinch the Test series 3-0 on 7th December.
  
  Ashwin was adjudged the Man-of the-series for his brilliant bowling in the entire series. After completing a 3-0 drubbing of South Africa in the four-Test series, India moved into the second place of the ICC Test Championship table.
  
  The 3-0 series win has helped India to gain 10 points, which has lifted it from 100 points to 110 points, ahead of Australia and Pakistan. Both the teams slipped one place each. Australia slipped to third position, and Pakistan slipped to fourth spot. Hashim Amla's side has retained its Number One Test Ranking, but its lead at the top has been slashed from 16 points to just four points.
  
• Pune, Rajkot become interim IPL franchises to replace CSK, RR
  Pune and Rajkot on 8th December became the new franchises in the Indian Premier League (IPL), replacing the suspended teams of Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals for a period of two years.
  
  The Pune franchise was bought by Kolkata-based business tycoon Sanjiv Goenka's company New Rising, while the Rajkot bid was won by Intex Mobiles.
  
  The process was necessitated by the suspension of CSK and RR for the involvement some of their officials and co-owners in the 2013 IPL spot-fixing scandal. However, both the CSK and RR will be allowed back in the league after serving out their suspension.
  
• Carolina Marin wins Female Player of the Year award
  All England and World champion Carolina Marin on 8th December pipped India ace Saina Nehwal to win the Female Player of the Year award from BWF President Poul-Erik Hoyer in Dubai.Marin, who won five World Super series titles, held off competition from China's Zhao Yunlei, Saina and China's Bao Yixin.
  
  China's Chen Long retained the Male Player of the Year award that he won last year. His young compatriot Zheng Si Wei was acknowledged as the Most Promising Player of the Year. Korea's Lee Sam Seop and Norway's Helle Sofie Sagoy won the Para-Badminton Player of the Year awards in the male and female categories respectively.
  
• ICC World T-20 India 2016 schedule announced
  The schedule of matches in next year's T-20 Cricket World Cup to be played in India has been announced. Team India is set to play Pakistan in Dharamsala on the 19th of March. The two arch rivals have been drawn together in the same group.
  
  The mega event will start on March 8 and the final will be played on April 3 at the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata. New Zealand and Australia, the other two teams in India's group, will clash with the hosts on March 15 in Nagpur and on 27 March in Mohali respectively.
  
• Three Indian athletes qualify for Rio Olympics
  Three Indian athletes have qualified for the Rio Olympics. This has been possible after the world governing body of the sport, the IAAF lowered the entry standards "to have more athletes" taking part in the track and field events in the 2016 Games.The earlier qualification standards were issued in April.
  
  Besides ace discus thrower Vikas Gowda, the other two Indians who have benefitted from the revision of entry standards were National Games champion Sapna in women's 20 kilometer race walk and title holder Indian Elite Men's section in Delhi half marathon last month,Nitendra Singh Rawat in men's marathon. As many as 15 Indian athletes (eight men and seven women) have so far attained the Rio Olympic Games qualifications.
  
• PV Sindhu lifts Macau Open for 3rd consecutive time
   PV Sindhu has lifted the Macau Open Grand Prix Gold Badminton tournam ent for the third consecutive time. In the title clash, Sindhu, seeded fifth, defeated lower placed Minatsu Mitani of Japan
  
  This was Sindhu's first title of the season and the fifth overall.
  
  World number one Saina Nehwal did not take part in the competition, while none of the Indian shuttlers, besides Sindhu, could cross the quarter-final stage.
  
• Great Britain win Davis Cup for 1st time since 1936
  Great Britain have won the Davis Cup for the first time since 1936 after Andy Murray beat Belgium's David Goffin to clinch the decisive point in Ghent.
  
  Murray won to give the visitors an unassailable 3-1 lead in the best of five tie. Britain have now won the team Tennis title 10 times, while Murray adds the Davis Cup to his other major titles at Wimbledon, the US Open and the Olympic Games.
  
• Anil Kumble resigns as chief mentor of Mumbai Indians
  Former Indian Test Captain Anil Kumble has stepped down as the Chief Mentor of IPL franchise Mumbai Indians with immediate effect from yesterday. Kumble had been associated with Mumbai Indians since January of 2013. His decision comes after a BCCI crackdown on conflict of interest in the board.
  
  Earlier, India team director Ravi Shastri was removed from the IPL Governing Council while Roger Binny was asked to leave selection committee. In a statement, Mumbai Indians thanked Kumble for his contribution.