Topic 1 After 19 Years, Japan Has a Sumo Grand Champion
The sport of sumo wrestling started in Japan over 1,000 years ago. But the Japanese have not had a native sumo “grand champion,” known as a Yokozuna, since 1998. Sumo wrestlers known as Yokozuna compete at the sport’s highest level.
Topic 2 FIFA Plans to Expand World Cup Field in 2026
FIFA, the international governing body of football, unanimously voted to expand the World Cup tournament in 2026. FIFA’s voting members agreed to add 16 more teams to the men’s competition.
Topic 3 Major League Soccer Improves and Grows
Major League Soccer is the top professional soccer league in the United States. In many other countries, the sport is called football.
Topic 4 French Man Sets Cycling Record at Age 105
Robert Marchand was born in 1911 in northern France. He enjoys riding a bicycle, and started cycling seriously when he was in his 60s.
Topic 5 Federer, Williams Sisters Set Up Old Folks Finals in Australia
Serena Williams earned a spot in the Australian Open finals. She will face her older sister, Venus, who won her semifinal match a day earlier.
Topic 6 NFL Season Opens Without Quarterbacks Brady, Manning.
The sports league includes 32 professional teams from around the U.S. They will play against each other for the next four months. All are seeking the chance to play in the championship, known as the Super Bowl, in February.
Topic 7 Skateboarder Group Exchanges Tricks and Support
Jamone McKenzie is one of the group's members. His skating friends call him by "Psycho." The name comes from the term meaning someone with mental or emotional problems.
Topic 8 Fiji Celebrates First Olympic Medal, and It Is Gold
Fiji’s rugby team was the pre-Olympic favorite. The team won the last two world rugby sevens competitions. Fiji finished ahead of larger countries like South Africa, Australia and Argentina.
Topic 9 Ivory Coast Taekwondo Champions Head to Rio
African countries may be best-known for their track and field success at the Olympics. But interest in Asian martial arts has grown on the continent.
Topic 10 All-Girls Baseball Team in Seattle Makes History
One of the best teams was the Rockford Peaches from Rockford, Illinois. “A League of Their Own” told about the Peaches. Madonna, Rosie O’Donnell, and Geena Davis played three of the women who were on the Peaches team.
Topic 11 Gymnast from India Makes History
Dipa Karmakar won rights to compete in the 2016 Summer Olympic Games during a Test Event last weekend. The test event was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Topic 12 Kobe Bryant’s Final NBA Game
This season was a largely ceremonial one for Bryant as he said goodbye to NBA fans from coast to coast. Every game he played away from Los Angeles had a large crowd. Many people wanted to see him play one last time.
Topic 13 Football Player Criticized for Dancing While Black
So it may not seem out of place when football players express their enthusiasm after scoring points, called a touchdown. But lots of pre-game talk has been focused on a player named Cam Newton and how he celebrates his big plays.
Topic 14 Study Explains Why Some Soccer Referees are Better than Others
A new study says most referees can see just fine. Belgian and British researchers found that the best referees, however, are able to pay attention to the parts of a play where a foul is most likely to happen.
Topic 15 Remembering Golf Star Arnold Palmer
The head of his company, Arnold Palmer Enterprises, confirmed that Palmer died from issues related to heart problems. He was admitted to a hospital Thursday, but his health reportedly worsened over the past few days.
Topic 16 Pyeongchang Olympics Hopes to Avoid Rio Mistakes
South Korean organizers say they hope to avoid the delays and other problems organizers faced in Rio de Janiero. In 1988, South Korea hosted the Summer Olympic Games in Seoul.
Topic 17 Sports Illustrated Magazine Reveals 'Golden' Cover
The cover photo of the August 22 edition of the magazine features U.S. Olympic gold medal swimmers Katie Ledecky and Michael Phelps, and gold-medal gymnast Simone Biles. The cover reads: “The Greatests.”
Topic 18 Lionel Messi Receives 21-Month Prison Sentence
Investigators in Spain said they found evidence that Messi and his father, Jorge, hid money that should have been taxed by the Spanish government. The younger Messi earned the money from 2007 to 2009.
Topic 19 Young Women Train to Wrestle in Conservative Indian State
Until recently, few girls and women trained for wrestling in the northern state of Haryana. The area has a strongly patriarchal culture. Men there appear to be in control of the government and much of society.
Topic 20 Running in Cold Weather Improves Performance
A new study shows that the drop in temperature is a good reason to run. In fact, researchers say, running in cold weather helps improve one’s performance.
