(Current Affairs For SSC Exams) Sports | October 2014

October -SPORTS

YogeshwarDutt wins gold in Asian games

YogeshwarDutt ended India’s 28-year-old wait for a wrestling gold medal in the Asian Games by emerging champion in the men’s freestyle 65kg category at the Dowon Gymnasium in Incheon.
The Indian, an Olympic bronze medallist, put on a stupendous show in winning 3-0 against ZalimkhanYusupov of Tajikistan in the title clash.
Mary Kom gets gold
M.C. Mary Kom, popularly known as "Magnificent Mary" won the first ever boxing gold for India at the 17th Asian Games in Incheon on October 1, 2014. The five-time World Champion has punched her way to earn 13 yellow metals so far in her illustrious career.
Boxer Sarita has offered ‘unconditional apology’ for her ’emotional outburst’: AIBA
Facing the prospect of a ban, Indian boxer L. Sarita Devi offered an “unconditional apology” for refusing to accept her bronze medal during the Asian Games presentation ceremony, the International Boxing Association (AIBA) has said.
“The Head of the Indian Mission at the Incheon Asian Games 2014 MrAdille J Sumariwalla has forwarded to the President of the International Boxing Association DrChing-Kuo Wu, a letter of apology of Woman boxer SaritaLaishram Devi (57-60kg) who had refused to receive the bronze medal at the Award Ceremony for the 17th Asian Games,” the AIBA said in a statement.
“Mrs Devi expressed ‘an unconditional apology’ for her ’emotional outburst’ at the ceremony, writing that ’I regret and apologise. Such an incident will never reoccur in the future’,” it added.
A disconsolate Sarita had refused to accept her bronze medal during the medal ceremony to protest her controversial semifinal loss to South Korean Jina Park. Sarita (60kg) had lost the bout despite dominating the proceedings.

Men's hockey team regain gold, India jump to ninth place

The Indian men's hockey team regained the gold medal after a gap of 16 years while the women's 4x400m relay team also picked up gold as India added four medals to jump to the ninth position in the overall standings in the 17th Asian Games in Incheon.
The men's hockey players hogged the spotlight with the thrilling victory over arch-rivals Pakistan to ensure a berth in the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Indian men, women retain kabaddi gold medals at Asiad
For a change, the Indian men’s kabaddi team encountered things they hadn’t in 14 years at the Asian Games. They had won gold in the last six editions since the sport made its debut in Beijing in 1990. But in the men’s final, Iran had little respect for the sport’s kings.
The Indian men had to sweat and slog for a 27-25 victory for the gold a little after its women defeated Iran 31-21 to finish with a happy double which took it to the eighth spot in the medals table.
Suddenly, Jasvir Singh, one of India’s top raiders, looked mediocre. The fitter and stronger Iranians exposed him, trapping him twice. And, with Ajay Thakur also caught, India appeared set to lose its hold over the event.

India finishes on 8th position in Asiad

India ended its 17th Asian Games campaign at the eighth spot on the medals tally, a drop of two positions from the previous edition of the mega-event which drew to a close here.
India signed off with 57 medals -- 11 gold, 10 silver and 36 bronze. The tally dipped considerably compared to the 2010 edition in Guangzhou, China.
In 2010, the country had ended sixth with 65 medals -- 14 gold, 17 silver and 34 bronze.
As expected China ended their campaign on top claiming 342 medals. The Chinese contingent walked away with 151 gold, 108 silver and 83 bronze medals.
Hosts South Korea finished a distant second with 234 medals -- 79 gold, 71 silver and 77 bronze. They were followed by the Japanese, who notched up 200 medals, including 47 gold, 76 silver and 77 bronze.

Sharapova wins China Open

Maria Sharapova outlasted Petra Kvitova 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 to win the China Open and return to No. 2 in the rankings.
The fourth-seeded Sharapova won her fourth title of the year and first since capturing her fifth Grand Slam title at the French Open in June.
With the win, she’ll jump over SimonaHalep and Kvitova to the No. 2 spot in the rankings, behind Serena Williams. Just five months ago, the Russian was one defeat away from dropping out of the top 10 for the first time since 2011.
Kvitova, the reigning Wimbledon champion, fell short of earning her second title in as many weeks. She beat Eugenie Bouchard to win the Wuhan Open.

Djokovic wins China Open again

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic crushed Tomas Berdych 6-0, 6-2 Sunday to win the China Open and maintain a remarkable 100 per cent record in the Beijing tournament.
Meanwhile, French Open champion Maria Sharapova was forced to battle hard to overcome Petra Kvitova 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 in the women’s final — a victory which moves her into second place in the rankings.
Serb Djokovic was 5-0 ahead in the second set, one game from serving up an incredible “double bagel” as he tore through his Czech opponent with a brilliant serving display.

Michael Phelps banned for 6 months

USA Swimming has suspended Michael Phelps for six months, forced him to withdraw from next year’s world championships and taken away his funding from the sport’s national governing body as a result of the Olympic champion’s second driving under the influence arrest.
The sanctions announced won’t keep Phelps from training with his North Baltimore club, but he won’t be allowed to participate in USA Swimming-sanctioned meets through March 6, 2015. Phelps and USA Swimming also agreed that he won’t compete in the world swimming championships in Russia next July. His monthly funding stipends will be stopped during the suspension.
Phelps announced he was entering a six-week, in-patient program last weekend, a week after he was arrested and charged with drunken driving in his hometown of Baltimore.

Crime controls 25% of world sport: David Howman

The man tasked with eliminating drug cheats says criminal gangs now control a quarter of all world professional sport.
David Howman, director-general of the World Anti-Doping Agency, called for everyone involved in the fight against sports corruption to band together to ensure the “bad guys” don’t win.
“The biggest threat to sport is organised crime,” Mr. Howman told delegates in London for a conference on securing sport.
Mr. Howman said those who were distributing drugs, steroids, Human Growth Hormones, erythropoietin and so on, are the same people who corrupt athletes and pay money to fix games.
They’re the same bad guys,” he told delegates.
“Now, the good guys have to prevail. Who are the good guys? Let’s get them together and make sure they can work out a plan.

Hamilton wins F1 Japanese Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton won a rain-shortened Japanese Grand Prix, claiming his third straight Formula One victory and widening his lead over teammate NicoRosberg in the race for the drivers' championship.
With Hamilton leading Rosberg, a red flag came out on the 44th of 53 laps due to a crash involving Marussia driver Jules Bianchi. Race officials elected not to re-start the race and Hamilton was declared the winner. Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel finished third.
The race celebrations were subdued as Bianchi was taken to a hospital by ambulance. "Once I was able to get past Nico I was just able to enjoy the ride," Hamilton said. "It was a great result for the team but obviously I am very concerned about Bianchi right now."

ICC suspends S. Ajmal for illegal action

The International Cricket Council (ICC) suspended Pakistan off-spinner SaeedAjmal, who is currently perched at the top of its ODI rankings, after his bowling action was found to be illegal following an independent analysis.
“The International Cricket Council confirmed that an independent analysis has found the bowling action of Pakistan’s off-spinner SaeedAjmal to be illegal and, as such, the player has been suspended from bowling in international cricket with immediate effect,” the ICC said in a statement.
The analysis of the 36-year-old’s action revealed that all his deliveries exceeded the 15 degrees level of tolerance permitted under the regulations.
“Saeed, who was reported after the first Test match against Sri Lanka in Galle last month, can apply a re-assessment after he has modified his bowling action in accordance with clause 2.4 of the Regulations for the Review of Bowlers Reported with Suspected Illegal Bowling Actions,” the ICC statement read.
The analysis was performed on August 25 by the ICC’s accredited team of Human Movement Specialists at the National Cricket Centre in Brisbane.

BCCI instructs its umpires

Strengthened by the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) tough stand to crack down on bowlers with suspect action, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has instructed its umpires to be more active and take firm steps to deal with the issue at the junior level.
As a result, nine bowlers were reported for suspect action in the first round of the under-19 tournament for the VinooMankad Trophy, it is learnt. The list includes a team captain, not a regular bowler, but eager to showcase his off-break skills.
For long, India spin great Bishan Singh Bedi has been advocating stern measures to deal with this menace. The recent incidents at the international level with bowlers being reported to have stirred the umpires into taking some bold decisions.

Roger Federer claims another Masters title

Roger Federer claimed one of the few titles to have previously eluded him after he overcame a sluggish start to beat injured Frenchman Gilles Simon in the final of the Shanghai Rolex Masters.
The Swiss 17-times Grand Slam singles champion triumphed 7-6(6), 7-6(2) to register his 23rd Masters Series title and first in China, where strong winds saw the roof on the Stadium Court closed for the hard court final.
The 33-year-old let off a huge roar and threw both fists into the air after a battling Simon could only net a return to hand the Swiss a fourth title of the year and 81st of an unparalleled career.
It had all begun so well for the unseeded Frenchman, who broke a sloppy, error strewn Federer in the opening game and comfortably held firm until he felt the pressure of serving for the set at 5-4 and began to creak.
With his first serve and accurate groundstrokes deserting him, Federer had two break points but wasted the first with an alarmingly high 14th unforced error only for Simon to hand him the game on the next point after netting a backhand.
Hamilton wins the inaugural Russian Formula One Grand Prix
Lewis Hamilton won the inaugural Russian Formula One Grand Prix and extended his championship lead to 17 points in a Mercedes one-two that clinched the team’s first constructors’ title.
The Briton, who started on pole position, chalked up his fourth win in a row and ninth of the season after German team-mate Nico Rosberg locked up at the first corner and damaged his tyres in a costly error.
With 100 points still to be won from the final three races, thanks to double points in Abu Dhabi, Hamilton has 291 points to Rosberg’s 274 with everything still to play for.
Hamilton, the 2008 champion, also became only the fourth driver in F1 history to win nine races in a single season and equalled Nigel Mansell’s British record of 31 career victories.
On a warm and sunny afternoon in the Black Sea resort, Rosberg kept himself firmly in contention with a fine recovery drive from 20th place after his second lap pitstop.

Ajay Jayaram wins Dutch Open

Ajay Jayaram registered the biggest triumph of his career, winning the $50,000 Yonex Dutch Open Grand Prix badminton tournament.
The 27-year-old defeated Indonesia’s Ihsan Maulana Mustofa 10-11, 11-6, 11-7, 1-11, 11-9 in the final, which lasted 46 minutes, to bag his maiden GP title.
“Jayaram has had injuries in recent times, but has come back strongly to win a Grand Prix,” said coach Vimal Kumar.

Bob and Mike Bryan achieve ‘Masters Slam’

American twins Bob and Mike Bryan added another accolade to their lengthy resume after taking the Shanghai Masters men’s doubles title to become the first pair to win all nine ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments.
The 35-year-old siblings defeated French Open champions Julien Benneteau and Edouard Roger-Vasselin 6-2, 7-6(3) to take an unprecedented 101st career title in their 152nd final.
The Masters 1000 events are the top ranking tournaments on the ATP Tour outside of the Grand Slams with the Bryans now boasting 31 of them after multiple wins in Indian Wells, Paris, Rome, Monte Carlo, Miami, Toronto, Madrid and Cincinnati. They also won the now defunct Hamburg Masters in 2007.
“It’s another great milestone,” Bob Bryan said. “This week was full of them for us. To come and get in the title match, have a shot at winning the tournament that’s eluded us, complete the Golden Masters, and is amazing.
“It was really the last thing left for us to do. We can definitely shut it down today and be happy guys.”

National Hobie 16 championships from 15th october

The Hussain Sagar presents a placid picture on the eve of the inland National Hobie 16 championships, which it will host. Such a portrait would be deceptive though and would mean the going will be tough for sailors of the twin hull, double sail catamaran, an ideal craft for medium to high wind conditions.
Defending champion Kaushal Kumar Yadav foresees no difficulties though.
“For the past fortnight or more that I have been practising here, wind speeds have averaged four to five knots. Under the influence of cyclonic conditions in the Bay of Bengal, they had picked up on and off but have now come back to median levels,” he told.
When asked whether lightly-built sailors like him would have the dice loaded against them in such a scenario, he replied,
“This sport is contested 60 per cent in the mind and 40 per cent physically. I am ready for low or high winds or for that matter any situation.”