Category: Sports

On Thursday, Italy won the Youth America’s Cup defeating the United States in a thrilling head-to-head final conducted in the Mediterranean Sea off Barcelona. The victory highlighted a strong effort by the Italian squad, who captured the prized trophy. This event acts as a warm-up for the forthcoming America’s Cup in October, when defending champions New Zealand will meet either Britain or Italy.

Following the finish line, the Italian crew celebrated joyously aboard their AC40 foiling monohull, exchanging heartfelt hugs and cheers. Unfortunately, the US team made a vital time error before the race began, resulting in a penalty that allowed Italy to take an early lead. The Italians took advantage of the chance, skilfully extending their lead throughout the six-leg race, with their hydrofoils allowing them to ‘fly’ over the waves.

“This is an incredible team,” remarked Italy’s co-helm Marco Gradoni in a post-race interview. “It was extremely difficult to reach this level, but we succeeded,” he said after his crew triumphed over a fleet of 12 boats. Meanwhile, US co-helm Harry Melges commended Italy on their outstanding accomplishment while also recognising his team’s efforts.

The AC40 boats will also compete in the inaugural Women’s America’s Cup next month.

On Wednesday, PM Narendra Modi received a special visit from India’s men’s and women’s chess teams at his house, where he witnessed an exciting game of bullet chess between R Praggnanandhaa and Arjun Erigaisi, both members of India’s 45th Chess Olympiad-winning team. The chess teams achieved history by winning gold in both the men’s and women’s categories in the recently ended Chess Olympiad, putting India among the elite nations to have won two gold medals in the same competition.

During the visit, PM praised their exceptional success and emphasised India’s growing significance in the world chess arena. He posted a video of Praggnanandhaa and Arjun playing a fast-paced bullet chess game on social media, captioned “Bullet Chess by two Grandmasters. Incredible! India’s chess future is quite promising.”

In the men’s tournament, the United States won silver, with Uzbekistan taking bronze. The Indian men’s team, which includes D Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa, Arjun Erigaisi, Vidit Gujrathi, and Pentala Harikrishna, won gold by defeating Slovenia. Similarly, Kazakhstan won silver in the women’s event, while the United States finished third. India’s women’s team, which included Harika Dronavalli, R Vaishali, Divya Deshmukh, Vantika Agarwal, and Tania Sachdev, defeated Azerbaijan in the final round and won gold.

At the 2024 FIDE Chess Olympiad in Hungary on Sunday, September 22, the men’s and women’s teams from India achieved history by becoming the first in their country to win gold medals. Upon their return to Chennai this morning, R Praggnanandhaa and his sister Vaishali were met with a warm welcome from admirers at the airport. Since very few nations have ever won the men’s and women’s titles at the same time, Praggnanandhaa hailed the feat as historic.

“This is a proud moment for all of us, and I believe this win will make chess more popular in India,” said he.

D Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi, Vidit Gujrathi, and Pentala Harikrishna were among the notable men’s players, while Tania Sachdev, Divya Deshmukh, R Vaishali, Vantika Agarwal, and Harika Dronavalli were among the women’s players.

While the women’s team won bronze in 2022 at the Chennai Olympiad, the men’s team had earlier shared gold with Russia during the COVID-19 event. Each team won gold this year, and individuals D Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi, Divya Deshmukh, and Vantika Agarwal also took home medals for their boards.

A Turkish man named Osman Gurcu achieved a new Guinness World Record (GWR) for the farthest blindfolded basketball hook shot by sinking a 65-foot (20-meter) shot. Gurcu, 42, broke the old mark of 60 feet with a stunning shot on an indoor court. GWR shared a video of Osman blindfolded as he makes the successful hook shot, thrillingly witnessing the ball sink through the hoop.

Osman said that he had been interested in trick shots since a young age, saying, “It was my dream to break a world record.” His excitement soared when GWR officially recognised his accomplishment. “I was very happy when I received the email confirming I was amazing,” he told me.

This isn’t Gurcu’s first world record. He previously held the record for the longest behind-the-backboard basketball shot, 36 feet, and a basketball bounce shot from 98 feet. His most remarkable feat was tossing a rubber chicken 114 feet in August 2024, shattering the previous record of 68 feet.

In addition, Julian “Zeus” McClurkin of the Harlem Globetrotters holds the record for the most blinded slam dunks in a minute, with nine in 2021.

Lando Norris had an outstanding performance at the Singapore Grand Prix, winning his third race of the season and reducing the gap on Max Verstappen in the Formula One championship. Starting from pole position, the McLaren driver dominated every lap of the difficult Marina Bay Circuit, finishing 20.945 seconds ahead of Verstappen. Despite several close encounters with the course walls, Norris maintained his composure throughout the race.

“It was a terrific race, with a few little incidents, but the car was flying. I could push, and in the end, I could relax. Still, it was difficult,” Norris acknowledged, gathering his breath after the race.

This victory decreased Verstappen’s advantage in the standings to 52 points with six rounds remaining. McLaren’s Oscar Piastri finished third, giving the team a 1-3 finish and extending its lead over Red Bull in the constructors’ title to 41 points.

Verstappen, while disappointed with second place, admitted that it was a nice result on a difficult weekend. Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari came in fifth and sixth, respectively, after Mercedes’ George Russell.

Despite the circuit’s notoriety, there were only two retirements and no safety car delays, raising the stakes in the championship fight as Norris confronts Verstappen’s supremacy.

Ravichandran Ashwin reached a crucial milestone during India’s dominant 280-run win against Bangladesh in the first Test. Ashwin grabbed six wickets in Bangladesh’s second innings, breaking Anil Kumble’s record for the most fourth-innings Test wickets by an Indian, now with 99 wickets to Kumble’s 93.

The 38-year-old spinner also claimed his 37th five-wicket haul, tying Shane Warne for the second-most in Test cricket history, trailing only Muttiah Muralitharan (67).

Ashwin was important in shredding Bangladesh’s batting, earning Player of the Match honours. His outstanding effort included a rapid 113-run hit in the first innings, giving him his fastest Test century in 108 balls. Ashwin currently owns the record for most Player of the Series accolades in India (10).

Bangladesh, chasing a challenging 515-run mark, collapsed for 234, with only captain Najmul Hossain Shanto hitting 82.

Ashwin, supported by Ravindra Jadeja’s 3-58, ended the important stand by removing Shakib Al Hasan for 25 early on Day Four, sparking a collapse in which Bangladesh lost six wickets for 40 runs. The second and final test of the series will take place in Kanpur.

Saiyami Kher made history as the first Indian actress to complete the Ironman 70.3 triathlon in Berlin. The gruelling race comprised a 1.9 km swim, a 90 km bike ride, and a 21.1 km run, all performed in order.

Reflecting on her achievement, Saiyami stated, “I didn’t realise anything during the race because I was so focused on the activities for eight hours straight.” After that time, the excitement set in because it was something I had always wanted to do.”

The 32-year-old actress, known for her love of marathons, has long wanted to compete in the Ironman race. Her intentions were delayed by COVID-19, but she ultimately met her goal this year. She discussed how difficult it was to juggle her 12- to 14-hour filming schedule with rigorous training. She started preparing in February and steadily increased her stamina.

“Initially, jogging 3 kilometres and swimming 50 metres would weary me. But I kept diligent and trained for six months. I’d get up at 3:30 a.m. to train before shooting.”

Kher emphasised that the triathlon challenged her physical endurance while also strengthening her mental resilience. “Sports help clear my mind and boost my confidence, which positively impacts my acting career,” she told me.

On September 22, India achieved a historic feat in the Chess Olympiad in Budapest, winning gold in the men’s and women’s categories. An impressive double for India was completed when the women’s team—including coach Abhijit Kunte, Harika Dronavalli, Vaishali Rameshbabu, Divya Deshmukh, Vantika Agrawal, and Tania Sachdev—won first place, following the triumph of the men’s team.

India defeated Azerbaijan by a score of 3.5 to 0.5 in the last round. Vaishali was in a tie, while Harika, Divya, and Vantika all came out on top. What happened between the United States and Kazakhstan would determine India’s medal fate. As a result of the United States’ 2-2 draw, India won the championship. A tie-break would have been triggered had Kazakhstan won.

Prior to this, Vantika Agrawal had a key role in winning the ninth round against Grandmaster Irina Krush to tie India with the United States. In spite of setbacks, such as R Vaishali’s defeat and Tania Sachdev’s failed opportunity to secure a victory, the squad demonstrated resiliency.

The men’s Indian team had earlier won the Chess Olympiad for the first time, defeating Slovenia. Their main rival, China, lost ground to the United States, giving India the victory.

Liam Livingstone of England has risen to the top of the ICC T20I All-Rounder rankings after outstanding efforts against Australia. He was named Player of the Match in the second T20I after scoring 87 runs off 47 balls and collecting two wickets for 16 runs in three overs, securing England’s victory and marking an important career milestone.

Livingstone had a great series, taking three wickets for 22 runs and hitting 37 runs in the opening T20I. His new career high of 253 points gives him a comfortable 42-point lead over Marcus Stoinis of Australia, who sits second with 211 points. Following Stoinis are Zimbabwe’s Sikandar Raza (208) and Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan (206).

In addition to his all-round performance, Livingstone moved up 17 places to 33rd in the Batting Rankings. Meanwhile, Australia’s Josh Inglis moved into the top ten after hitting 37 and 42 runs in the series.

On the bowling front, Adam Zampa surpassed Anrich Nortje, completing a spinner-dominated top six. Zampa’s 662 rating puts him just one point behind Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga, while England’s Adil Rashid leads with a rating of 721.

India’s men’s hockey team won their fifth Asian Champions Trophy, defeating China 1-0 in a hard-fought final. Despite dominating possession with 84% in the first half, India struggled to break down China’s strong defence. Wang Weihao, the goalkeeper, gave an excellent effort, blocking many attempts, including four drag-flicks from skipper Harmanpreet Singh.

China, ranked 23rd, made India work harder than anticipated. With increasing confidence, the underdogs earned five penalty corners, even more than India. However, poor penalty corner execution helped India to stay in the game despite missing multiple opportunities of their own.

After 51 minutes of deadlock, India eventually broke through in the fourth quarter, when defender Jugraj Singh scored a key field goal, assisted by Harmanpreet, to give India a 1-0 lead. Harmanpreet changed places during a long corner, avoiding three defenders and setting up Jugraj for the winning goal.

China made a last-ditch effort to equalise by removing their goalkeeper in favour of an additional player, but they were unsuccessful. India’s defence stood firm, securing the victory.

Meanwhile, Hockey India has given financial awards of ₹3 lakh per player and ₹1.5 lakh for support staff.