19th to 25th October
For all of us who have been through the last seven months of some form of lockdown or restrictions on the usual social interactions as a result of the virus, it is particularly disappointing when general figures appear to be increasing. This is especially if you are in the United Kingdom and many parts of Europe. Even so, for several other nations within Europe and around the world, it has largely been life as usual. Every industry has at some or other level been affected, and sport is no exception. For most sporting codes, there is a dependence on crowds attending and support for their teams or individual stars. It has to said that many international governing bodies have been magnificent in arranging events and in the process salvaging a calendar for what remains of 2020.
UCI, cycling's governing body, has been one of those working hard behind the scenes to ensure some of the biggest road races have been going ahead. Currently the Giro d'Italia is in the final week, while La Vuelta in Spain starts on Tuesday. The condensed calendar has meant teams had to choose between these two events. In rugby union the first round of four matches of the Bledisloe Cup ended in a 16-all draw in Wellington, New Zealand. The two teams are in Auckland over the weekend, before the third leg in Sydney in two weeks. South Africa, the title holders of the Rugby Championship, announced yesterday they will pull out of the competition for this year. It will be played in Australia with the fourth Bledisloe Cup match also acting as the first round of the Rugby Championship. Six Nations will also complete the season starting next weekend. Going back to cycling, we have the Mountain Bike Marathon World Championships in Sakarya, Turkey. Superbike fans will finally get to see their champion crowned either today or tomorrow. Jonathan Rea is favourite to take the title that has mainly been dominated by Brits in the current season. Chess news is that the Candidates Tournament, which had to be abandoned in Russia in March, will now conclude in 2021. Finally, Rafael Nadal equaled the 20 Grand Slam titles of Roger Federer with his win at the French Open last Sunday, while Lewis Hamilton equaled Michael Schumacher's win record in Formula One with his win at the Eifel Grand Prix.
As we hope for an improvement of conditions over the coming months, we can look forward to what is being lined up over the next seven days. Until next time, have a great sporting week!
Bodybuilding
Friday to Saturday - IFBB World Junior Bodybuilding & Fitness Championships - Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Chess
3rd October to Sunday - ISF World Schools Online Chess Championship
Thursday to 26th October - FIDE European Women's Rapid & Blitz Chess Championship 2020 - Kyiv, Lviv, Ukraine
Crossminton
Saturday to Sunday - ICO World Series - Crossminton Hungarian Open 2020 - Albertirsa, Hungary
Cycling
3rd October to Sunday - UCI WorldTour - Giro d'Italia - Italy
Tuesday - UCI Women's WorldTour - Driedaagse Brugge - De Panne - Belgium
Tuesday to 8th November - UCI WorldTour - La Vuelta Ciclista a España - Spain
Wednesday - UCI WorldTour - Driedaagse Brugge - De Panne - Belgium
Saturday to Sunday - 2020 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships - Sakarya, Turkey
Sunday - UCI WorldTour and Women's WorldTour - Paris-Roubaix - France
Sunday - 2020 UCI Mountain Bike Eliminator World Championships - Leuven, Belgium
Equestrian
Saturday to 1st November - Longines Equita Lyon-Concours Hippique International - Lyon, France
Golf
Thursday to Sunday - Italian Open - San Vigilio di Pozzolengo, Brescia, Italy; LPGA Drive On Championship - Greensboro, GA, USA; Zozo Championship of Sherwood - Thousand Oaks, CA, USA
Judo
Friday to Sunday - IJF World Tour - Grand Slam Hungary 2020 - Budapest, Hungary
Motorcycling
Wednesday - MXGP of Limburg - Lommel, Belgium
Sunday - MXGP of Lommel - Lommel, Belgium
Motor Racing
Friday to Sunday - MotoGP Gran Premio Liqui Moly de Teruel - Motorland Aragón, Alcañis, Spain
Friday to Sunday - Formula One Grande Prémio de Portugal 2020 - Autodromo Internacional do Algarve, Portugal
Mountain Running
Saturday - WMRA Balkan Mountain Running Championships - Poiana Braşov, Romania; WMRA Reventon Trail Marathon El Paso - El Paso (La Palma), Tenerife
Sunday - WMRA Trofeo Vanoni - Morbegno, Italy
Rugby Union
11th October to 7th November - The Bledisloe Cup - New Zealand/Australia
Saturday to 31st October - Six Nations - Various
Skating
Thursday to Sunday - ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating - Skate America - Las Vegas, NV, USA
Tennis
Monday to Sunday - J&T Banka Ostrava Open 2020 (WTA) - Ostrava, Czech Republic; bett1Hulks Championships (ATP) - Cologne, Germany; European Open (ATP) - Antwerp, Belgium
Triathlon
Sunday - 2020 Barcelona ETU Sprint Triathlon European Cup - Barcelona, Spain