Ten things to know from what happened in the world of sport. June 1-7, 2021. Eriksen, Roland Garros, IndyCar, UFC, Golf, Handball...
- Eriksen. Danish Football team Captain Christian Eriksen collapsed during the Euro 2020 match between his team and Finland, suffering a sudden cardiac arrest on the pitch. He revived and was then stabilized and awake at the hospital.
- Djokovic wins Roland Garros. Novak Đoković (SRB) became the first player to beat Rafael Nadal (ESP) twice at Roland Garros, after a breathtaking semi-final. He then went on to beat Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRC) after having lost the first two sets. This is Djokovic’s 19th Grand Slam singles title, moving him just one behind Nadal and Roger Federer (SUI). Also impressive were the Singles and Doubles winners of the week: Barbora Krejčíková (CZE) -Women’s-, Alfie Hewett (ENG) -Wheelchair Men’s- and Diede de Groot (NED) – Women’s Wheelchair.
- Mexican drivers. A week after Sergio Pérez (MEX) won the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Patricio O’Ward finished third and first in the IndyCar races at Belle Isle Park, Detroit. His second win was spectacular, coming from 16th and passing each driver one by one to take the lead in the very last laps. He now leads the Championship. Roberto González (MEX) won the FIA World Endurance Championship LMP2 race in Portugal alongside local António Félix da Costa (POR) and Anthony Davidson (ENG). Toyota took the 1-2 in the overall classification. Also in motorsports, Kyle Larson (USA) won the NASCAR Cup All-Star race, his third win in a row. In NHRA, John Force (USA) took his 153rd win.
- Mexican fighter. Brandon Moreno (MEX) became the first fighter born in México to win a UFC World Championship. He beat Deiveson Figueiredo (BRA) in a rematch from their draw a few months ago, via a third round submission. Meanwhile, Marvin Vettori (ITA) was not able to become the first Italian UFC Champion, as he was defeated by Israel Adesanya (NZL/NGR) via unanimous decision.
- Fantastic Higo. Garrick Higo (ZAF) keeps on having a fantastic breakthrough year. He added to his two European Tour wins with his first PGA Tour win by taking the Palmetto Championship in just his second PGA outing.
- Perfect Barcelona. Barça Handball (ESP) consolidated a historic EHF Champions League Championship run by taking their 20th straight win out of 20 matches, beating Aalborg Håndbold (DNK) 36-23 in the Final. Barça was runner-up last year.
- Japan takes the Judo World Championship. Japan was the only country to win more than one gold at the 2021 Judo World Championships. They won six, including the team competition, where they beat France. France was second in the medal table thanks to Clarisse Agbegnenou (FRA), who reached the impressive mark of five consecutive World Judo Championships won -including the last four- in the Women’s –63 kg category.
- Para-cycling cross-overs. Sarah Storey (ENG) won two gold medals at the UCI Para-Cycling Road World Championships: the C5 Time Trial and Road Races. These are her 39th and 40th World titles between Para-Cycling and Para-Swimming. Other impressive “cross-overs” in the weekend included Jetze Plat (NED), who last week won at the Triathlon World Series and this week won two gold medals at the Para-Cycling Road World Championships, and Ricardo Ten Argiles, who won a gold medal. He has also been a swimming and Para-Cycling Track World Champion. Also impressive was Shelley Gautier (CAN), who won two golds and is now 18-time World Champion.
- Veteran wins. The Modern Pentathlon World Championships crowned 35 year-old Ádám Marosi (HUN) and 36 year-old Anastasiya Prokopenko (BLR) in the individual Men’s and Women’s competitions. These are their third and second World Titles, respectively.
- 10,000 World Record, again. Two days after Sifan Hassan (NED) broke the Women’s 10,000 meters World Record, Letesenbet Gidey (ETH) broke the mark at the same track, in Hengelo (NED), winning the Ethiopian Olympic Trials.