Spain wins Basketball World Cup 2019

Spain has captured its second FIBA World Cup championship, defeating Argentina 95-75, giving Marc Gasol a rare double-title year. Tournament MVP Ricky Rubio scored 20 points and Sergio Llull added 15 for Spain (8-0), the ninth team to make it through a World Cup or world championship unbeaten. Gasol scored 14 for the winners. For Gasol, it was historic.

The Toronto Raptors center becomes the second player to win an NBA title and a FIBA world gold medal in the same year. He joins Lamar Odom, who did it for the Lakers and USA Basketball in 2010. Gasol is also the 19th player to win either an NBA or WNBA crown along with a gold medal, either of the Olympic or World Cup variety, in the same year. And he’s the first to accomplish that feat while representing a nation other than the U.S.

When Spain won its first title in 2006, it was Pau Gasol — Marc’s older brother — leading the way. This time, it was the not-so-little brother who led his nation to gold, hoisting the World Cup trophy three months after getting his hands on the NBA’s Larry O’Brien Trophy for the first time. Gabriel Deck scored 24 points for Argentina (8-1), which got off to a slow start and played uphill the rest of the way. Luis Scola was held to eight points, shooting 1 for 10 from the floor.

Spain led 43-31 at the half, riding the strength of two big runs. Spain ran out to a quick 14-2 lead, only to have Argentina answer with an 11-0 spurt. But when that ended, Spain came back with a 17-1 run and took what was then its biggest lead at 31-14. Scola, even at 39 years old still Argentina’s best player throughout the tournament, didn’t get on the scoresheet until he made a pair of free throws with 2:57 left in the third. But they cut the Spain lead only to 19, and by then the Argentine fans — who stood in the stands a few rows from their team’s bench, singing and chanting for much of the game — were relatively quiet.

There was one last gasp from Argentina, an 11-4 run to open the fourth quarter and cut Spain’s lead to 12 with 6:30 left. But Llull’s three-point play on the next Spain possession pushed the lead back to 15. Gasol, Scola, France’s Evan Fournier and Serbia’s Bogdan Bogdanovic joined Rubio on the all-tournament team.

Copa America 2019: Brazil beat Peru 3-1 to lift title

Brazil have defeated Peru 3-1 to win their first Copa America title since 2007. Everton led the team to victory, scoring a goal and setting up another to give Brazil their ninth Copa América trophy, and fifth at home. Gabriel Jesus and Richarlison also scored a goal each for Brazil, who have won the title every time they hosted the tournament.

Everton was named player of the final and also finished as one of the tournament's top scorers with three goals. Brazil's veteran right-back Dani Alves was player of the tournament. Brazil won despite playing with 10 men from the 70th minute because Jesus was sent off with a second yellow card.

Peru scored through Paolo Guerrero but could not pull off one last upset after eliminating Uruguay in the quarterfinals and two-time defending champion Chile in the semifinals. Peru, who have been routed 5-0 by Brazil in the group stage and barely escaped early elimination, were trying to win their first Copa América trophy in 44 years. They had not made it to the final since they won their second South American title in 1975.

Brazil had not made it past the quarterfinals of the Copa América since beating Argentina 3-0 in the 2007 final in Venezuela. They did not even get past the group stage in 2016. The last time they won the Copa América at home was in 1989 when Romário scored the winner against Uruguay at the Maracanã. Brazil's only other title since 2007 came in the 2013 Confederations Cup, also at home.

Copa America 2016: Chile Retain title in Final

Chile upset favorites Argentina with a penalty shootout victory in the Copa America Final at MetLife stadium to retain title in the world’s oldest continental soccer competition. Chile earned themselves bragging rights as South America’s dominant team as they beat heavyweights Argentina 4-2 on penalties for a second straight year.

Lionel Messi missed from the spot in the shootout, cutting a dejected figure after the result was sealed and Argentina trophy drought had been extended to 23 years. The two sides were deadlocked 0-0 after 90 minutes and also after another half an hour of extra time in a match where both teams were reduced to 10 men in the first half.

Chilean substitute Francisco Silva placed his penalty low and to the right of Sergio Ramos to score the decider after Messi and Lucas Biglia missed for Argentina and Artura Vidal missed for Chile. The win was the second Copa America in a row for Chile, who won their first Copa title at home last year in exactly the same fashion, beating Argentina on penalties after the team had drawn 0-0 after extra time.

The Centenary Copa America was played in the United States for the first time this year to commemorate the 100^th anniversary of the inaugural Copa America in 1916. The tournament was expanded to 16 teams, 10 from South America and six from the CONCACAF region of North and central America and the Caribbean.

MotoGP 2016: Argentina Grand Prix

Argentina delivered a bizarre race befitting an equally bemusing lead up, Marc Marquez taking his first MotoGP win of 2016 simply by staying out of trouble. The Honda rider seized the lead early and held off a feisty Valentino Rossi ahead of compulsory pit stops at the halfway point of the shortened 20 lap race, both measures due to tyre issues suffered by Michelin during practice.

Marquez was peerless after the stops, Rossi unable to match his early pace and allowing his chief rival to race to a comfortable 7.6 second victory. There should have been a pair of Ducatis between them but, in a total disaster for the Italian team, Andrea Lannone took out teammate Andrea Dovizioso at the final corner as he tried to nab second place. The pair went tumbling into the gravel, allowing Rossi through to second and a surprised Dani Pedrosa into third.

Jorge Lorenzo, the Yamaha Man got the holeshot off the start but immediately began to slip down the order as he struggled with Michelin emergency spec rear tyre. His day ended early with a crash on the sixth lap. A promising race for Jack Miller also ended with his machine tumbling through the gravel. The Australian made a lighting start to pass the fading Lorenzo for sixth on the third lap, only to endure his fourth crash of the weekend on the next tour.

The upshot of it all is that Marquez now leads the championship on a machine that locked in all sorts of trouble in pre-season testing, with Rossi eight points in arrears, Pedrosa 14 points back and Jorge Lorenzo 16 behind. The next race is the Grand Prix of the Americas in Austin in one week’s time.

MotoGP 2016: Qatar Grand Prix

All the changes in MotoGP off season, tyres, electronics, couldn’t stop the man who won the last race of 2015 from claiming victory in the opening race of 2016. Yamaha reigning world champion fought past a pair of fast starting Ducatis to comfortably head home Andrea Dovizioso, who won a last lap tussle with Marc Marquez and Valentino Rossi to finish second.

Honda Dani Pedrosa came home fifth from Suzuki Maverick Vinales with Australia Jack Miller coming home inside the world championship points in 14^th. Lorenzo kissed his rear tyre after he rolled into parc ferme at the end of the race, admitting his choice of Michelin soft rear tyre had been a gamble. Lorenzo surged into the lead from pole position as his fellow front raw starters Marquez and Vinales were swallowed up by a pair of fast starting Ducatis.

The two red machines used their formidable horsepower to blast into the lead at the end of the first lap, lannone and Dovizioso surging past Lorenzo as they charged down the front straight. The leading group of five pulled away from Pedrosa and Vinales, holding their order until Dovizioso began to challenge lannone for the lead. The two red bikes swapped places several times until lannone suddenly crashed out on Lap 5.

Australian Jack Miller made his traditional roaring gateway from 18^th on the grid to be 14^th by the end of opening lap. While Lorenzo leaves Qatar with 25 points and a clear psychological edge over his rivals, he was not the biggest winner at Losail. That honor goes to MotoGP new tyre manufacturer Michelin, whose tyres were strong enough to allow the Spaniard to set the fastest lap of the race on the third to last tour. The next round of the MotoGP world Championship is at the Termas do Rio Hondo circuit in Argentina on April 3.

Chile Won Maiden Copa America Title

The Copa America 2015 was the 44^th edition of the Copa America, the main international football tournament for national teams in South America, and took place in Chile between the dates of 11 June to 4 July 2015. The competition was organized by CONMEBOL, South America football governing body.

Chile emerged as the champions defeating Argentina in Final, winning their first title in history. They have automatically qualified for the 2017 FIFA Confederation Cup in Russia. Twelve teams competed in the tournament, ten members of CONMEBOL and two guests from CONCACAF. Uruguay was the defending champions, but was eliminated by Chile in quarter-finals. Peru took the third place for the second consecutive tournament, winning a play-off against Paraguay.

In the final, Chile beat Argentina with a penalty 4-1 shoot-out following a 0-0 draw after extra time. Gonzalo Higuain failed to convert a goal after 90 minutes and then failed to convert a penalty too. Argentina suffered another heart break for a second successive year, having lost to Germany in the 2014 World Cup final. Both sides had struggled to create clear-cut opportunities during normal extra time.

Palo Guerrero from Peru and Eduardo Vargas from Chile won the award of Top Goal scorer. Jeison Murillo from Colombia won the award of Best Young player. Claudio Bravo won the award of Best Goal Keeper and Fair Play Trophy award is given to Peru Team. In all matches Chile played, attendance in stadium was 94%. This shows the support and love given by Chile fans.