Sports - General Knowledge Questions

Correct Answer :   Aryan Nehra

Young Indian swimmers Aryan Nehra and Lineysha AK emerged as the top performers ahead of Tokyo Olympians Sajan Prakash and Maana Patel at the Senior National Aquatic Championship 2023, which concluded in Hyderabad on Wednesday (5th July 2023).

* The 76th edition of India’s national swimming championship was held at Hyderabad’s GMC Balayogi Sports Complex in Telangana.

* Apart from being a qualifying event for the Paris 2024 Olympics, the four-day meet was the final chance for Indian swimmers looking to make the cut for the Asian Games, to be held in China later this year.

* The qualifying mark for the Asian Games in individual events was the time obtained by the sixth-place finisher in the last edition of the Asian Games at Jakarta 2018.

* Aryan Nehra, who had already qualified for the continental showpiece in men’s 800m freestyle, won four gold medals at the National Aquatic Championship 2023 - the most by any swimmer in the edition.

* Aryan Nehra also reset several swimming national records at the meet. The 19-year-old won the men’s 400m freestyle in 3:52.55, overtaking the previous record of 3:52.75 held by Kushagra Rawat. The likes of Sajan Prakash, Kushagra Rawat and Advait Page were also part of the race.

* Sajan Prakash made a comeback to win gold medals in his pet 100m and 200m butterfly events.

* Aryan Nehra’s other three gold medals came in 800m freestyle, 1500m freestyle and 400m medley, in which he also logged a national mark. He was adjudged as the best swimmer in the men’s category.

* Lineysha AK won two gold medals and a silver to be crowned the best swimmer in the women’s category. Her gold medals came in the 100m and 200m breaststroke events with national record timings. However, Lineysha AK settled for silver in the 50m breaststroke, losing to Manavi Varma.

* Maana Patel rewrote her national record in the 100m backstroke to win the gold medal but had to settle for silver as Suvana Baskar won the 50m backstroke. Siva Sridhar, who won three gold medals at the last edition, bagged a solitary gold in the 200m medley.

* Among other notable performances, Nina Venkatesh broke national records in the women’s 50m and 100m butterfly events. Karnataka's 13-year-old Dhinidhi Desinghu set a national record in the 200m freestyle with a timing of 2:04.24..

Source : Olympics

Correct Answer :   India

Indian archers Priyansh and Avneet Kaur won gold in the junior mixed team compound event, defeating Israel in the final of the World Archery Youth Championships in Limerick, Ireland.

It was a nail-biting contest wherein the Indian players beat Israel with a close score of 146-144 on 5th July 2023.
 
India's Manav Jadhav and Aishwarya Sharma also won a bronze medal defeating Mexico in the cadet mixed compound event.

The World Archery Youth Championships event is taking place at the University of Limerick in the west of Ireland from July 3 to 9..

Source : AIR

Correct Answer :   India

In Football, India have lifted the SAFF Championships trophy 2023 for the ninth time, beating Kuwait 5-4 in the penalty shoot-out in the final after a 1-1 stalemate at the end of regulation time at Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru 4th July 2023.

* A thrilling penalty shootout saw the game go down the wire after Udanta Singh missed his kick. Goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh again turned out as the hero for the Indian side, saving the final kick from the Kuwaiti captain.
 
* The Indian team made it to the final after beating Lebanon in a semi-final while Kuwait defeated Bangladesh 1-0 in the other last-four clash.

* This was the second meeting of India and Kuwait in this tournament with the earlier Group stage meeting ending in a 1-1 draw..

Source : AIR

Correct Answer :   Manna Patel

It was a record-breaking day two of the National Swimming Championships being held in Hyderabad as Olympian Maana Patel was among the swimmers who established new records on Sunday (2nd July 2023).

Maana Patel made a new national record in women's 100 m backstroke event. Lineysha AK also set a new record in the women's 200m breaststroke event.

"It's a Record Breaking Sunday at the National Swimming Championships Ace swimmer @MaanaPatel

creates a New NR of 1:03.48 in the Women's 100m Backstroke Event. Meanwhile, Lineysha A.K. also sets a new NR of 2:37.35 in Women's 200m Breaststroke Event! Well done GIRLS!," tweeted Sports Authority of India (SAI) Media.

It's a Record Breaking Sunday at the National Swimming Championships🏊

Ace swimmer @MaanaPatel creates a New NR of 1:03.48 in Women's 100m Backstroke Event🥳

Meanwhile, Lineysha A.K. also sets a new NR of 2:37.35 in Women's 200m Breaststroke Event!

Well done GIRLS! pic.twitter.com/2HxaXO81Ex

— SAI Media (@Media_SAI) July 2, 2023

Swimmer Nina Venkatesh also bettered her national record twice a day in the women's 50m butterfly event.

"New National Record at National Swimming Championships 2023, being held in Hyderabad Nina Venkatesh clocks a time of 28.01 in Women's 50m Butterfly Event heats, thereby creating a new NR," tweeted SAI Media..

source : ANI

Correct Answer :   Uma Chetry

20-year-old Uma Chetry of Assam’s Golaghat district has scripted history by becoming the first cricketer from this northeastern state to be named in the country’s national squad.

Uma will be a part of the Indian women’s cricket team that will tour Bangladesh this month (July 2023).

Congratulating her on the achievement, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma wrote on Twitter on Monday (2nd July 2023): “Cricketing in Assam enters a glorious new chapter as we proudly witness our first-ever representation in the Indian Women’s National Cricket Team. Congratulations to Uma Chetry for her remarkable achievement, becoming the trailblazer from our state to don the Blue jersey! “We support Uma and the team in their upcoming tour to Bangladesh, wishing them resounding success on the field.” Speaking to PTI over phone from her residence at Kandulimari village of Bokakhat, Uma’s brother Bijoy Chetri said, “We got the news late last night. We could speak to her this morning once. We all are extremely happy and proud of her.” The only girl among her five siblings and the youngest of them, Uma’s love for cricket started from the days when she first lifted a plastic bat..

Source : The Print

Correct Answer :   Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen completed a clean sweep of pole positions and race wins at the Austrian Grand Prix 2023 with another dominant display in Sunday’s (July 2nd, 2023) main event, leading home Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc and Red Bull team mate Sergio Perez.

Max Verstappen, the reigning Formula One champion, continued his impressive performance by securing a commanding victory at the Austrian Grand Prix 2023.

This win further solidified his pursuit of a third consecutive world title. Starting from the pole position for the fourth consecutive race, Verstappen demonstrated his dominance by achieving his fifth consecutive win and seventh win out of nine races in the current season.

With this remarkable performance, Verstappen extended his lead in the championship standings to 81 points over his teammate Sergio Perez, who also drives for the Red Bull team.

Charles Leclerc, the previous year’s winner at this circuit, finished in second place, crossing the finish line 5.2 seconds after Verstappen. Meanwhile, Sergio Perez secured the third position, finishing 17.2 seconds behind the leader.

Source : Formula1

Correct Answer :   Neeraj Chopra

Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra continued his tremendous form as he came back from a one-month injury lay-off to clinch the top spot in the Lausanne leg of the Diamond League 2023, his second straight win of the season in the prestigious one-day meeting series on Friday (30th June 2023).

The 25-year-old Chopra had skipped three top events due to a muscle strain he sustained while training last month but came back with a bang as he won the Diamond League title here with his fifth-round throw of 87.66m.

He began with a foul and then had 83.52m and 85.04m throws. He had another foul in the fourth round before coming up with his winning throw of 87.66m next. His sixth and last throw was 84.15m.

In the men’s long jump, India’s Murali Sreeshankar finished fifth with a below-par jump of 7.88m which he achieved in the third round.

The 24-year-old Sreeshankar, who had clinched the third spot in the Paris leg on 9 June 2023 for his maiden Diamond League podium finished had produced a career-best 8.41m during the National Inter-State Championships in Bhubaneswar earlier this month.

Lausanne Diamond League 2023 men’s javelin throw results :

Correct Answer :   Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu beat Haryana 2-1 in the final to clinch the senior women’s National football championship at the Guru Nanak stadium in Amritsar on Wednesday (28th June 2023).

Tamil Nadu had last won the title in 2018.

After Renu Rani, with the help of a deflection off a TN defender, put Haryana ahead in the 50th minute, Priyadharshini equalised with a header off a corner kick from Malavika in the 56th minute. Indumathi struck the winning goal off a penalty in the 83rd minute.

Kudos to the Tamil Nadu Women's Team for their outstanding triumph at the 27th Senior Women's National Football Championship! This achievement holds immense significance as you have progressed to the finals unscathed, with an unbeaten record. Your dedication, skill and teamwork… https://t.co/Bwn15jFtL3

— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) June 28, 2023

🏆 TAMIL NADU ARE THE CHAMPIONS 🏆

A supreme comeback sees them clinch their 2️⃣nd title in the Hero Sr Women's NFC 👏👏👏

TN 2️⃣-1️⃣ HRY#TNHRY ⚔️ #HeroSrWNFC 🏆 #IndianFootball ⚽ pic.twitter.com/vfwq6earTg

— Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) June 28, 2023

Tamil Nadu neither lost nor drew any of the seven matches (including the final) in its title-winning campaign.

The 2018 title-winning team didn’t receive any government reward or incentive. They didn’t land government jobs either.

“We have faith in the incumbent State government. We are confident that the players will receive a high cash incentive and a government job. That was a big motivation for the girls to win the title! I told them that they can confidently ask for the incentive and job if they win,” said the coach.

Seeni Mohaideen, chairman, Women’s Committee — Tamil Nadu Football Association (TFA) also hoped that the government would justly reward the players and officials.

Correct Answer :   India

India beat Iran 42-32 in the final of the Asian Kabaddi Championship 2023 at the Dong-Eui Institute of Technology Seokdang Cultural Center in Busan, Republic of Korea, on Friday (30th June 2023). This was India’s eighth title in the last nine editions.

Indian captain Pawan Sehrawat led from the front with a super 10.

The Indian men’s kabaddi team trailed Iran in the first five minutes of the game. However, a couple of tackle points by the defenders and successful raids from Pawan Sehrawat and Aslam Inamdar handed Iran their first all-out of the match in the 10th minute.

With momentum on their side, the Indian kabaddi side quickly built on their lead riding on a splendid all-round display. India, the defending champions, allowed Iran a few easy bonus points but inflicted a second all-out on Iran in the 19th minute.

India went into the second half leading 23-11. However, Iranian captain Mohammadreza Shadloui Chiyaneh, with a two-point raid followed by a super raid, helped inflict the first all-out on India in the 29th minute.

Iran reduced the deficit to 38-31 with two minutes to go, making for a nervy end but India held on to eke out a 42-32 win.

Earlier in the day, India had beaten Hong Kong 64-20 to end the league stage of the tournament undefeated.

Six teams - India, Iran, Japan, Korea, Chinese Taipei and Hong Kong - participated in the Asian Kabaddi Championships. India won all five matches in the league stage and topped the points table. Iran came second, only losing to India in the league stage, and made the final.

While India’s biggest win in the league stage, a 76-13 victory, came against Korea on the opening day of the tournament, their narrowest victory of 33-28 came against Iran on Thursday.

The next big challenge for the Indian kabaddi teams will be the upcoming Asian Games in Hangzhou, China from September 23 to October 8. Iran, who beat India in the semi-finals in Jakarta in 2018, will be the defending champions at the continental multi-sport showpiece..

Source : Olympics

Correct Answer :   100th

The Indian men’s football team are ranked number 100th latest FIFA World Rankings, which was realesed on 29th June 2023, climbing one spot from the last update back in April 2023.

India can climb further up by one spot if they manage to beat Lebanon in the SAFF Championship semi-final on Saturday come July 2023. India have already beaten Lebanon on their way to the Intercontinental Cup triumph.

Argentina continue to lead the FIFA World Ranking, nearly three months on from regaining top spot. La Albiceleste remain out front thanks to friendly wins over Australia and Indonesia. The top three is also unchanged, with the reigning world champions staying ahead of France and Brazil.

There has been movement behind them. England and and Belgium, who swaped places, as do Croatia (6th, plus 1) and Netherlands (7th, minus 1). Newly crowned CONCACAF Nations League champions USA (11th, plus 2) close in on the Top 10, where Spain (10th) manage to remain thanks to their UEFA Nations League triumph.

There have been some major moves further down the Ranking. While Wales (35th, minus 9) and Côte d’Ivoire (51st, minus 6) dropped places, Ukraine (24th, plus 6), Scotland (30th, plus 6) and Armenia (90th, plus 7) all move in the opposite direction. Slovakia (46th, plus 5), Greece (49th, plus 3) and Mali (50th, plus 3) are back in the Top 50, while Mauritania (99th, plus 6) and India (100th, plus 1) both return to the Top 100.

The biggest climb of all has come outside the Top 100, courtesy of Kazakhstan (104th, plus 8). Other notable climbers are Togo (122nd, plus 7), Tanzania (123rd, plus 7) and Moldova (164th, plus 7), who have picked up 22.7 points, thanks in no small part to their shock 3-2 defeat of Poland in the UEFA EURO 2024 qualifiers, a match in which 148 places separated the two sides at kick-off..

--News18