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The year 2019 was rich in events and surprises in the world of sport, with the worldwide consecration of the Springboks of South Africa, the end of American domination in basketball, the supremacy of Simone Biles ... 2019 was also marked by the tragic death of Emiliano Sala. A look back at the ten major sporting events of the year.
• Football - Emiliano Sala, the tragedy
" He's an Argentinian, who never lets go ..." La Beaujoire always sings the glory of the attacker who disappeared suddenly at the start of the year. Emiliano Sala died on January 21, two days after his transfer from FC Nantes to Cardiff City. The striker was not very inclined to join the Welsh club, but the transaction was made despite everything. However, he will never play for the Bluebirds. After saying goodbye to the Canaries, Emiliano Sala took a seat on a passenger plane heading to Cardiff. The aircraft will disappear over the Channel. In a final audio message, the player mentioned his fears about the state of the plane. The wreckage will be located on February 3, with the body of the Argentine striker inside. Emiliano Sala was 28 years old. The remains of the pilot, David Ibbotson, have not been found.
• Rugby - South Africa rules the world
After 1995 and 2007, the Springboks won their third title of world rugby champions on November 2 by beating England in the final in Japan (32-12). Drifting just two years ago, the South African selection regained its splendor with John "Rassie" Erasmus at the controls and players as talented as Pieter-Steph du Toit , voted best player in the World Cup, and Cheslin Kolbe . In a country plagued by racial tensions, the coronation of the Springboks has a particular resonance. Siya Kolisi , the first black captain of South Africa, is the symbol. " I hope what we have done will show South Africans that together we can achieve great things. We love you, South Africa, and we can do anything if we work together, ”said Kolisi after the consecration of the Boks.
• Basketball - The Toronto Raptors, Canada's first NBA champion franchise
In 73 seasons (including 3 of BAA), the NBA has never had a champion from a country other than the United States. It is now ancient history. On June 13, the Toronto Raptors became NBA champions by defeating the Golden State Warriors in the sixth game of the finals (4-2). Led by their coach Nick Nurse, the Congolo-Spaniard Serge Ibaka, the captain Kyle Lowry, the Cameroonian winger Pascla Siakam, the experienced Marc Gasol and of course the star Kawhi Leonard (who will finish MVP in the finals), the franchise of the '' Ontario got the better of Stephen Curry, who had stayed on three coronations (2015, 2017 and 2018) over the past four seasons. “ From the first day I arrived in Toronto, I was focused on writing history. And that's what we did , ”said Leonard, who has been at the Los Angeles Clippers since.
• Football - Liverpool win their 6th Champions League
A year after failing against Real Madrid, FC Liverpool won the Champions League for the 6th time in its history, on June 1. If the Reds failed in the Premier League title race against Manchester City, the Cup with big ears did not escape them. The Mané-Firmino-Salah trio still did wonders. Before beating Tottenham in the final (2-0, goals from Mohamed Salah and Divock Origi), Liverpool managed to overthrow FC Barcelona in the semi-finals. After a 0-3 defeat at Camp Nou, Jürgen Klopp's protégés performed a miracle by winning 4-0 at Anfield in the second leg (double from Divock Origi and Georginio Wijnaldum). The Mersey club is the third most successful in the history of C1 behind Real Madrid (13 titles) and AC Milan (7 titles).
• Tennis - Rafael Nadal back on top
In 2018, Rafael Nadal had certainly triumphed at Roland-Garros, but his body had displayed worrying signs of wear and tear, with several withdrawals and the loss of the status of world number one in favor of the revenant Novak Djokovic. 2019 is the year of the return to grace. If he could not face the Serb in the final of the Australian Open, the Spaniard caught up by gleaning his 12th Roland-Garros against Dominic Thiem in June. In early September, the "Manacor Bull" came to the end of Daniil Medvedev after five hours of an anthology fight in the final of the US Open. And at the end of November, he won the first edition of the new Davis Cup with Spain. The 33-year-old Mallorcan finishes the world number one year with 19 Grand Slam victories in his bag, one less than Roger Federer,
• Boxing - Ruiz Demolishes Joshua Before Revenge
It had to be a formality. Holder of the IBF heavyweight belt since April 2016, then of the IBO and WBA belts since April 2017 and his victory against Wladimir Klitschko, Anthony Joshua was supposed to make a short bite of Andy Ruiz Jr on June 1 in New York, for his first fight outside the UK. His American-Mexican adversary, 1m88 for 122 kilos, however caused an earthquake by dethroning the British. Absent, unable to respond to Ruiz's blows, Joshua collapsed and lost by technical knockout in the 7th round, for a surprise as striking as the defeat of Mike Tyson against James "Buster" Douglas in 1990. Six months later, the contracted revenge took place in Saudi Arabia on December 7, and Anthony Joshua, more sharp and concentrated, took over the points with an Andy Ruiz Jr out of shape (almost 129 kilos on the scales).
• Basketball - Team USA collapsed
Before the start of the World Cup in China (August 31 to September 15), the United States team was most worried . The NBA stars declined the invitation, preferring their franchise to the star jersey. Others, injured, were unavailable. Some, finally, simply feared the defeat of a much less flashy team than at the Olympic Games. Coach Gregg Popovitch therefore had at his disposal a group very far from the usual Team USA standards. And the worst happened. Before even competing, the Americans suffered their first defeat since 2006, in a friendly match against Australia. And in the quarterfinals of the tournament, Team USA, already close to the correctional earlier, was scalped by France (89-79). A first since a World Cup semi-final lost to Greece 13 years earlier. Also beaten by Serbia in the classification match, the United States finished in 7th place, the worst result in their history.
• Gymnastics - Simone Biles alone in the world
Queen Simone Biles is not really from the same world as us. At 22, the American entered the history of sport a little closer to Stuttgart, Germany, where the World Gymnastics Championships were held (from October 4 to 13). On German soil, the gymnast shone like never before. The individual all-around competition, the team all-around competition, the beam, the horse jump, the floor: nothing, it left absolutely nothing to the competition amazed at its performance. For the first time, Simone Biles has won all possible gold medals. And the quadruple Olympic champion of Rio took the opportunity to erase the Belarusian Vitali Scherbo from the shelves by becoming the most successful gymnast (men and women) in the history of the Worlds with now 26 medals, including 19 in gold. And to say that according to her coach Laurent Landi, the champion " does not care about records " because " she is still young " ...
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feeling GOLDEN this morning 5X WORLD ALL AROUND CHAMPION everytime feels just like the first
A publication shared by Simone Biles (@simonebiles) on Oct 11, 2019 at 4:52 am PDT
• Formula 1 - Lewis Hamilton surpasses Juan Manuel Fangio and follows Michael Schumacher
The superiority of Lewis Hamilton, the Mercedes driver, was overwhelming again this year at the Formula 1 World Championship. Titled for the first time in 2008, the Briton has since added five more crowns in six years from 2014 to 2019, only letting the crown escape in 2016 at Nico Rosberg. This year again, the 34-year-old driver won 11 Grand Prix out of 21. Six-time world champion , he is ahead of the Argentinian Juan Manuel Fangio and his five titles. Lewis Hamilton now has a challenge: to match Michael Schumacher. The man nicknamed the "Red Baron" is still the master with his seven world champion titles (two with Benetton, five with Ferrari) and his 91 victories (84 for Hamilton). The place of absolute leader of "Schumi" will be in great danger next season against the insatiable appetite of Lewis Hamilton.
• Football - The Americans at the top
They had arrived in France with the status of favorites. They did not falter. If the Americans fail to rise to the level of the best South American and European nations, the Americans are unrivaled in "soccer". Reigning world champions, the Stars and Stripes retained their title by beating France, the host country, in the quarterfinals (2-1), the English in the semi-finals (2-1) and finally the Netherlands, reigning European champions, in the final (2-0). Superstar Alex Morgan left the spotlight on Megan Rapinoe , a staple on the field (Best player and top goalscorer of the tournament, winner of the Best FIFA Player of the Year award in the 2019 Women's Ballon d'Or) and voice of the fight against discrimination and for women's rights.