Defeat of Nepomniachtchi, Strickland with the UFC title and relegation of Leicester. The main sensations in the world of sport in 2023

The past year hasn’t held many surprises for sports fans, but there have been some. We have identified, in our opinion, the main ones. In addition, in our selection there was also a place for Russian athletes, despite the absence of most of them at international competitions.

World records of Russians during the suspension and fall of the legendary achievements of Phelps and Hackett

Russian swimming, like many other sports, is now isolated, but this has not stopped Kliment Kolesnikov And Evgenia Chikunova set world records, which were recorded by World Aquatics on a general basis. Kolesnikov, a medalist at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, clocked 23.55 seconds in the 50-meter backstroke semi-final at the Russian Cup final in Kazan and surpassed the feat of American Hunter Armstrong (23.71). And at the national championship, 19-year-old Chikunova from St. Petersburg broke the record of Tatiana Schoonmaker from South Africa (2:18.95) in the 200-meter breaststroke, with a time of 2 minutes 17.55 seconds . Thus, the Russians proved that they remain among the best in the world, even despite the suspension.

It is impossible not to note two more historical episodes of this sport. Daniel Whiffen swam the 800m freestyle in 7 minutes 20.46 seconds at the European Championships. The Irishman surpassed the result of New Zealander Grant Hackett (7:23.42), which had lasted 15 years! And at the World Aquatics Championships, Frenchman Léon Marchand caused a sensation in the 400-meter medley (4:02.50), beating the legendary Michael Phelps’ last personal best, which he set at the 2008 Games (4:03 .84). It is noteworthy that the American himself presented the gold medal to the Frenchman after swimming.

Triumph of former skier Shevchenko in biathlon

In May 2022 Natalia Shevchenko went from skiing to biathlon. It seems that the story is not so rare. However, no one could have imagined that in less than a year at the Russian Championships in Khanty-Mansiysk the young athlete would be able to win as many as three gold medals! Natalia became a champion in sprint, pursuit and relay, showing excellent running and shooting.

Not bad for a man who’s only held a gun for a year. Some will say that the success is too local: she did not win the World Cup. But Shevchenko beat the same Slivko, Gerbulova, Burtasova, Kazakevich and Yurlova-Perkht, who not only had experience of performing at international competitions, but also won medals at the World, European and Olympic Championships.

Ian Nepomniachtchi’s collapse in the match for the chess crown

The Russian entered the world title meeting as a favorite, having won the Candidates Tournament for the second time in a row. Moreover, in Madrid he did it in magnificent fashion, securing a second campaign for the crown ahead of schedule.

His opponent Ding Liren, in turn, seemed to have found himself in the championship match due to a series of accidents. Initially, the Chinese was not even supposed to participate in the candidates tournament, but after the disqualification of Sergei Karyakin, he was selected due to the highest rating in May 2022. In the Spanish capital, the Asian grandmaster is became second after Nepomniachtchi, which did not guarantee him a battle for the championship, but Magnus Carlsen refused to defend his title.

As a result, Ding Liren and Nepomniachtchi competed for the chess crown in Astana. It seemed that, thanks to the experience of last year’s match, the Russian would finally win what he had worked for so long. And Yang started as confidently as possible – after a draw in the first match, he won the second with black, while the Chinese openly “floated”, constantly going to the toilet. However, already in the fourth game, the Middle Kingdom chess player took revenge and equalized the score of the match. Thus began a real shootout with many important decisions and mistakes. All this was accompanied by reviews of the quality of the game from experts and fans’ enthusiasm for the entertainment. After 14 games, the score was tied (7:7) – each chess player won three games and eight others ended in a draw. Everything was decided in a tie-break, where Ding Liren won with a score of 2½:1½. Yang found himself without a title once again.

UFC title won by Strickland and lost by Shevchenko

Defeats Israel Adesanya And Valentina Shevchenko – certainly the main upsets of the year in the world of mixed martial arts. The Kyrgyz-Peruvian athlete defended her UFC flyweight title seven times before her fight with Alexa Grassa. No one could therefore have expected her defeat against the Mexican in March, and even earlier than expected after a strangulation. Then they arranged a rematch, but Valentina also failed to win – the fight ended in a draw, and Grassa retained the belt.

As for Adesanya, the New Zealander has been a truly dominant champion in the middleweight division. Yes, he already lost the title to Alex Pereira, but gained powerful revenge earlier this year with a second-round knockout. Therefore, his fight with a seemingly ordinary middle peasant Sean Strickland was intended as a fairly easy defense. Moreover, the American was not the main contender for the belt – initially Dricus du Plessis was supposed to fight, but he refused the fight due to health problems. As a result, Strickland was able to not only force the fight, but also win the title and fought a near-perfect fight with Adesanya, forcing the champion to retreat. The fight lasted all five rounds, the judges gave preference to the challenger.

The failure of the Americans and the triumph of the Germans at the World Basketball Championship

American national basketball team is always the big favorite for the world championship, regardless of the composition she plays. At the last World Cup, the Americans were about the third strongest team. They confidently reached the semi-finals, but there they suddenly lost to the Germans – 111:113, which was practically the tournament of their lives. Yes, most often at the World Championships the Americans simply test young people, but here they also lost in the match for third place and were left without medals for the second time in a row.

The Germans not only reached the final, but also won World Cup gold for the first time in history, beating Serbia. Certainly no one expected such a thing from the Bundestim.

Leicester relegation, leading positions of Aston Villa and Girona

Departure in May “Leicester” of the English Premier League has become one of the major events in the top 5 European championships. Considering the Foxes had become domestic champions seven years earlier, then reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League and won the FA Cup two years ago. But absolutely everything went wrong last season – frequent injuries, lack of transfers, departure of the goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel and the weak play of his replacements… We must not forget the rather late resignation of head coach Brendan Rodgers. The combination of all these factors led to 18th place in the Premier League and relegation to the Championship. However, Leicester are now leading there with confidence and we will likely see them back in the Premier League next season.

If we talk about the current Premier League season, then, without a doubt, the performance was a revelation. Aston Villa. Former Spartak coach Unai Emery transformed the team during the last championship. Thanks to his arrival, Birmingham took seventh place, and in the new season, after a powerful transfer campaign, they became even stronger. After completing half of the championship, Villa are in second place, just three points behind leaders Liverpool. Of course, it’s hard to believe Emery’s team gold. However, given the victories against Chelsea, Tottenham and Manchester City in the first round, it is quite possible that the Lions will be ready to fight to reach the Champions League if no crisis arises.

However, there is a team in Europe that surprised us even more. Spanish “Girona” without exaggeration, the main sensation of the first half of the season. The modest Catalan team has so far only lost once in La Liga, against Real Madrid in the eighth round. At the same time, Angel Michel’s players won 14 times and drew three times. After 18 laps, Girona is in second place and has been in the lead for a long time. In addition, the Catalans do not sit idly by on the defensive, but demonstrate bright and offensive football, as evidenced by the goals scored by the team – 42 goals. More than anyone else in Example! So far, the Girona team’s ‘journey’ this season looks like a real fairy tale, and I really wouldn’t want it to end.