France is the Future of European Soccer
Just a week after the French men's U-19 team won the European Championship, the French ladies U-19 won their own European title. In a heartbreak for Spain - finalist losing team for three straight years now - the French won their fourth-ever championship at this level, in a 2-1 wet final that was delayed for two hours at halftime. Other rising powers for women's football Switzerland and the Netherlands were the semifinal round losers, with Norway, Germany, Austria and host Slovakia rounding out the tournament field.

Portugal Finally Wins
Portugal struggled without a regular-time win through all of its games during the Euro 2016 until the semis, but they scored when they counted - including the title game's lone goal in the 109th minute to upset host and favorite France for the champions' title. This then became Portugal's first Euro title despite leading-team status in many editions, as well as the first victory over the French in a major tournament. And, this was despite losing star Cristiano Ronaldo in the first half to injury. France dominated the game, with 17 shots to Portugal's six, but the one shot that counted was the one goal, by substitute Eder Lopes. Congrats!

Olympic Basketball Field Set
With the conclusion of the three separate Olympic Qualifying Tournaments this week, the men's Olympic basketball tournament is finalized with the last teams earning berths. In Belgrade, host Serbia (FIBA ranked #6) easily overcame Czech Republic in the semis and then Puerto Rico in the final to take one spot. In Milan also on Saturday, Croatia (#12) needed overtime to defeat host Italy by six points to advance to Rio. And finally, in Manila, favorites France (#5) won the last berth by taking out Canada. This was the second time in a row the Canadians fell one game short of the Games.

Dutch Continue BMX Strength
​​Dutchman Niek Kimman was the 2015 world champion and the 2016 world runner-up, but it was compatriot and two-time Olympian Raymon van der Biezen taking the European title in Verona this weekend, continuing a strong showing for the Netherlands in the sport. In second was Switzerland's David Graf (third in 2015 Worlds), with Sylvain Andre of France third. On the women's side, Sarah Sailer of Germany, a former junior-level international medalist, won over Marine Lacoste of France in second and Sandra Aleksejeva of Latvia in third. France topped the overall medal table, with 

Czech Republic Tops Euro Modern Pentathlon
The European Modern Pentathlon Championships ended this week in Sofia, Bulgaria with Czech Republic taking the top spot on the overall medal table. That tally was led by men's individual winner Jan Kuff, who took the title by only one point over Hungary's Robert Kasza. Riccardo de Lucca of Italy finished third. Defending champion Arthur Lanigan-O'Keefe of Ireland only competed in the relay events. On the women's side, Lithuania's Laura Asadauskaite won her third-ever title and cemented her favorite status to retain the Olympic crown. Russian Gulnaz Gubaydullina and Turk Ilke Ozyuksel finished second and third, respectively. The Cezchs also won the women's and mixed relays, and a silver in the men's, to complete their medal total of four.

Euro Athletics Conclude
The European Athletics Championships ended this weekend in Amsterdam, with tension high as the event served as key preparation for Rio. As probably expected, Germany and Great Britain led the medal table sixteen each (and both with five gold), but Poland and Turkey served notice with twelve each. Highlights from the men's competition included Great Britain's Olympic and World champion Greg Rutherford winning the long jump, Dutchman Churandy Martina winning the 100m and then having his win in the 200m disallowed for a lane violation, Norwegian brothers Filip and Henrik Ingebristen finsihing 1-3 in the 1500, and Belgian Thomas van der Plaetsen winning the decathlon. On the women's side, Dafne Schippers of the Netherlands re-confirmed her global power with a win in the 100m, and leading her team to the 4x100 title. Meanwhile, the British 4x400 set a new world lead in their win, Bulgarian veteran Ivet Lalova finished second in both shorts sprints, Turkey's Yasemin Can won both the 5000 and 10,000, and seven championship records or European leading marks were set.

Serena Finally Gets 22
The USA's Serena Williams finally got her 22nd career Grand Slam title, equaling Germany's Steffi Graf for the lead, when she won the women's title at Wimbledon. The victory came at the expense of German Angelique Kerber, the Australian Open champion in her first Wimbledon final. Williams also took home the women's doubles, with sister Venus, for their 6th joint title. On the men's side, Great Britain's Andy Murray won his second Wimbledon title, and third Grand Slam, winning in three sets over Canadian Milos Raonic. Men's doubles went to Pierre-Hugues Hubert and Nicholas Mahut of France, with mixed doubles to Henri Kotinen of France and Heather Watson of Great Britain.

Switzerland Dominates World Mountain Bike Champs
The Cross Country Mountain Bike Worlds concluded this week in Nove Mesto Na Morave, Czech Republic with a dominant performance by Team Switzerland across all senior and junior events. The Swiss finished with nine medals overall, highlighted by Nino Schurter's win in the men's elite division, for his fifth title. Czech Jaroslav Kurlavy finished second, with another five-time winner Julien Absalon of France in third. Denmark's Annika Langvad won the women's elite race, with Lea Davison of the U.S. and Emily Batty of Canada in second and third, respectively. Next up for the competitors: the Rio Games in less than 30 days.

Armenia and Malta Win FIBA's Small Country Titles
FIBA held its European Championships for Small Countries for both men and women. Armenia overcame Andorra for the title on the men's side in Ciorescu, Moldova with a 79-71 win. San Marino finished third, after their 60-53 victory over Ireland, with Moldova, Malta, Wales and Gibraltar rounding out the field. Malta had better luck on the women's side, winning the title 67-59 over Ireland. Moldova finished third in this tournament, with Andorra, host Gibraltar, and Wales rounding out the six-team field.

While the U.S. and Australia Take the U-17 Championships
FIBA also held its U-17 Worlds ending this week in Zaragoza, Spain, with familiar and new faces gracing the gold medal stands. The U.S. won the men's gold, with a 96-56 victory over Turkey for their fourth straight title. Lithuania won the bronze medal with an 81-63 win over Spain in the 16-team tournament. Finishing a day ahead of the men, Australia took a surprise gold on the women's side  by first beating the U.S. in the semifinals, for the first loss at this level for the Americans, and then defeating Italy 62-38 for the title. The U.S. did regroup for the bronze medal by defeating China 65-50.

And Venezuela Takes the South American Crown
FIBA also held the South American Championship in Caracas this week, with host Venezuela defeating Brazil 64-58 for their second title in a row and third overall. Uruguay took the bronze medal, defeating rival Argentina 87-83 in the third place match. Venezuela, Brazil, and Argentina will all meet again - at full strength - at the Olympics.

Chile Defends Copa America
The final of the expanded, special Copa America Centenario tournament in the U.S. finished this weekend, with a familiar feel. As in 2015, Chile met Argentina in the final, and won in an upset in penalty kicks. Superstar Lionel Messi couldn't convert his shot in penalties, as compatriot Lucas Biglia couldn't and Chile finished with a 4-2 advantage for the victory. Chile became the nation to win at least two consecutive titles, and Argentina lost their third straight major final in a row (after 2014 World Cup, 2015 Copa). Colombia won third place over the U.S., 1-0.
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Spain Makes It Twice in Olympic Rugby
A week after the Spanish men took the last available spot in the men's Olympic rugby sevens tournament, their female counterparts took the last spot in their tournament. Finishing on top of a sixteen-team field by going unbeaten in group play and then through China and Kazakhstan, Spain then defeated Russia 19-12 for their Rio ticket. Hosts Ireland finished third.

But Host Russia One-Upped in Canoe Sprint
Host Russia couldn't take the overall medal lead at the European Canoe Sprint Championships this week in Moscow, finishing with 12 to Hungary's 14. Multiple golds for individuals went to Portugal's Fernando Pimenta in the men's K-1 1000 and K-1 5000, and Hungary's Danuta Kozak in the women's 500 for K-1, K-2, and K-4 (compatriot Gabriella Szabo teamed with her in the K-2 and K-4).

Argentina Take Seventh Champions Trophy in Hockey
The week-long, six-team Champions Trophy for women's hockey finished this weekend, with Argentina securing their record seventh title ever in the event after a 2-1 win over the Netherlands. The win sets them up for Rio well to step up from the silver medal position at London 2012, with the victory coming at the expense of the reigning world and Olympic champions and after already winning the 2015-15 Hockey World League. Rounding out the field were the United States in third place, followed by Australia, Great Britain and New Zealand.

Russia and France Dominate European Fencing
The annual European Fencing Championships took place in Torun, Poland this week, with Russia and France leading the overall medal table, with 10 and nine medals respectively. Russia, though, landed six golds to France's two, including all four team titles in foil and sabre for men and women. A total of eleven nations won at least one medal, including Estonia with one (gold, women's team epee), and Italy with six overall (including all three men's team silvers).

Women's Olympic Basketball Field Set
After a final qualifying tournament in Nantes, France, the Olympic field for women's basketball is set. Perhaps no major surprises occurred in the event, with France (defending Olympic silver-medalists), Spain, China, Turkey and Belarus took the five available spots on offer in the 12-team tournament. The last two games featured Belarus - quarterfinal losers to China - fighting back to fifth place with two relatively easy wins, dispatching Argentina and then South Korea to secure the final Rio ticket.
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Spain Upsets to Take Rio Rugby Spot
There was one last spot available in the inaugural Olympic rugby sevens tournament, and Spain stood tallest at the end of a long two days of action in Fontvieille, Monaco. Sixteen teams entered the final qualification event, and after initially finishing second in their group pool play behind Hong Kong, they overcame Ireland in the quarterfinals, Russia in the semifinals and then Samoa in the final. That last victory was a 22-19 win, with a try in the waning moments of the match. Spain now joins the 12-team field for Rio.

Australia Wins Hockey Champions
Six teams entered the biennial Champions Trophy competition concluded in London this past week, and Australia emerged victorious after a tight, shootout final in the gold-medal match. The victory over India in the final marked a strong statement for the Aussie's Rio preparations, but also signified a strength by India, perhaps finding resurgence in the sport after a long wane. Germany defeated Great Britain for third, with Belgoum and South Korea rounding out the field. All teams (minus the Koreans) will compete at the Olympics as well.

Russians Dominate Rhythmic Gymnastics Still
World Champion Yana Kudryatseva of Russia successfully defended her all-around title at the European Rhythmic Championships this week, held in Holon Israel. Reiterating an all-Russian battle for gold - and previewing Rio - she overcame a strong performance by compatriot Margarita Mamun, winning with less than .5 of a point margin. Ukrainian veteran Ganna Rizatdinova finished third. In the group competition, Russia took gold with Belarus second and host Israel third.

Rio Volleyball Field Filled
The five final teams for the men's Olympic volleyball tournament were filled, with the FIVB Olympic Qualifiers ending this weekend. In Tokyo, Poland went 6-1 to lead the eight-team field and secure the first qualification ticket. In second, Iran took the Asian continental qualifying spot, leaving France and Canada to take the final two tickets available at this tournament. The unfortunate fifth-place finisher was Australia, which had needed to defeat Poland in the final match to take over Canada and fourth-place for their place in Rio. In the Olympic qualifier in Mexico City, host Mexico took the lone Rio spot available over Chile, Tunisia and Algeria in that four-team tournament.
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European Gymnastics Champs Conclude
After the men had their turn last week, the women of European gymnastics had their championship in Bern this week, with Russia taking the overall medal win, with five. That total included the team gold, and four medals in individual apparatus finals. Aliya Mustafina was the high performer for the Russians, winning a gold (beam) and bronze (Uneven bars). Switzerland's Giulia Steingruber won two individual golds (vault and floor) to be the top individual performer overall, while Great Britain's Elissa Downie also won two medals (silvers in vault and floor).

French Open Has New Singles Champions
​The French Open concluded this weekend, with the crowning of two new champions in singles play. First, Spain's rising star Garbine Muguruza upset USA's Serena Williams for her first grand slam title (and final), in a tight two-set victory. The loss for Williams also continued her delay in tying Steffi Graf's record of 22-wins in Grand Slam finals. On the men's side, the final featured two superstars in Novak Djokovic of Serbia and Andy Murray of Great Britain who were both looking for their first French Open title. In another tight match, Djokovic won, completing his career Grand Slam and became the first man since 1969 to hold all four Slam titles at the same time. In men's doubles, Spain's Feliciano Lopez and Marc Lopez took the title over the USA's Bryan brothers, while Carolina Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic of France won the women's doubles over the Russians Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vessina. Martina Hingis (Switzerland) teamed with Leander Paes (India) to defeat Sania Mirza (India) and Ivan Dodig (Croatia) for the mixed doubles championship.

Russia Leads European Men's Gymnastics
At the conclusion of the first week of the European Gymnastics Championships, team Russia looked strong with six overall medals from the men's competition. That included the title in team event, as well as golds in the floor and parallel bars events. David Belyavskiy was the top overall individual, with a gold (the parallel bars), silver (pommel horse), and bronze (high bar), in addition to that team win. Both Great Britain and Armenia (!) finished with three medals, while host Switzerland picked up the bronze in the team and pommel horse. Ukrainian star Olge Verniaiev picked up one gold (vault) and one silver (parallel) for the lone bright spot for the team.

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And Russia Leads World Modern Pentathlon Champs
Despite both finishing with four medals each, Russia nipped France on the medal table by virtue of a stringer silver-medal finish (3 to 1 against France) at the World Modern Pentathlon Championships in Moscow this week. Russia's efforts were led by Aleksander Lesun, with his silver in the men's individual and team and a gold with Donata Rimsaite in the mixed relay. France, meanwhile, was led by Valentin Belaud's win in the men's inidvidual and Elodie Clouvel's second-place in the women's. Hungary was the only double-gold medalist with Sarolta Kovacs' victory in the women's individual and in women's team.

Javier Gomez Dominates European Triathlon
At the European Triathlon Championships, Spain's Javier Gomez easily won his fourth European Championship title and sent a strong message for his Rio hopes of upgrading London silver to Rio gold. Finishing in second was Russia's Dmitri Polyanskiy, and Switzerland's Andrea Savlisburg third, with key competitors Alistair and Jonathan Brownlee of Great Britain sitting this event out. Britain did win a gold in the women's event, with India Lee claiming that title over Yulia Yelistratova of Ukraine and Zsofia Kovas of Hungary.

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​Changing of the Guard in Women's Boxing
At the Women's World Boxing Championships in Astana this week, some familiar faces suffered defeats in a crucial qualification event for Rio. Both of India's superstars Mary Kom and Savita Devi lost in the preliminaries, while defending champion Katie Taylor of Ireland lost in the semis of the lightweight division. Taylor still qualified for Rio by finishing in the top four. London gold-medalist Clarissa Shields of the U.S. in middleweight, and Nicola Adams of Great Britain in flyweight - who was the first-ever gold medalist in women's Olympic boxing - were two stars who did live up to reputation by winning their worlds. All four medalists in flyweight, lightweight, and middleweight are qualified for the Olympics to round-out the qualification.

European Championship and Rio Spots Awarded in Archery
At the conclusion of the European Archery Championships in Nottingham this week, two new champions were crowned and the continental qualification spots were awarded for the Olympics. Jean Charles Valladont of France secured his first world championship after having finished third in 2013. Finishing second was surprise 16 year-old Mete Gazoz of Turkey, with Patrick Huston of Great Britain taking bronze after securing an individual Rio spot for the team. On the women's side, Veronika Marchenko of Ukraine won the title, over Tuiana Dashidorzhieva of Russia and Lisa Unruh of Germany. Turkey, Slovakia, and Azerbaijan were the women's individual qualifiers for the Olympics. Teams that did not qualify here nor through last year's worlds - including France - can still earn a Rio ticket through the final World Cup event in Turkey later this spring.

BMX Worlds End in Colombia
Defending men's elite champion Niek Kimman of the Netherlands finished with a gold again at the World BMX Championships this week, except in time trial and not the elite division, where he finished second to new champion Joris Daudet of France. Daudet's gold was the fourth medal for the French, tying Australia for second-place on the overall medal stand behind the Dutch's six. In the women's elite, Colombian star and 2012 Olympic gold-medalist and two-time elite world titleist Mariana Pajon won gold ahead of Caroline Buchanan of Australia and Alise Post of the U.S.
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European Aquatics Champs End
The European Swimming Championships ended in London this weekend, with the host British showing a strong effort to lead the medal table with 33 medals, including 10 golds. That total also included the lead in swimming with 22 medals - in which they won all three medley relays (men's, women's, mixed). And that followed their medal-win for diving at the start of the Championships, marking them an overall threat for Rio. Coming in a close second was Italy with 32 overall, and then Hungary and Ukraine with 20 each. A total of 25 nations won at least one medal, including Israel (2), Portugal (1) and Iceland (3!, all by Hrafnhildur Lúthersdóttir in women's breaststroke events). In addition, a total of 21 championship records were set, with one also a European mark, by Italian Gregorgio Paltrinieri in the men's 1500m free.

Canada Wins Ice Hockey Worlds
The World Ice Hockey Championship ended in Moscow with a familiar winner - Canada, with its 26th overall title in the 80 years of the championship event. The defending champions lost to Finland in group play for their only loss, before avenging against the Finns in the gold medal final for a 2-0 win. Russia defeated the United States in the bronze medal game, 7-2. Hungary and Kazakhstan, after joining this elite level this year, are relegated again to Division I after finishing in the bottom two of the 16 teams. Next year, Slovenia and Italy will move up in their place.

UEFA U-17 wins for Germany and Portugal
European soccer crowned its newest champions in U-17 competition for both men and women this week. First up, Germany won the women's tournament in Belarus for the fifth time (out of nine tournaments). Runners-up were Spain in penalties, with England taking third over Norway. The top three will compete as European representatives in the 2017 U-17 World Cup. On the men's side in Azerbaijan, Portugal also won another title, its 6th in this tournament out of 15. Spain, again, were the runners-up, with Germany and the Netherlands the other semifinalists.

Denmark Makes History in Badminton
The Thomas & Uber Cup for badminton was held in Kunshan, China and a slight surprise as second-seed Denmark won the men's team title (Thomas Cup). Although long a top badminton power, Denmark hadn't won the title before despite a finalist for eight previous editions since 1949 - nor had any other European team for that matter. The Danes won 3-2 over Indonesia on the strength of their singles players, including 2015 world bronze medalist Jan O Jorgensen. On the women's side, defending champion, top seed, and host China won the Uber Cup as expected, with a 3-1 victory over third-seed South Korea in the final. This was China's 14th title.

Women's Volleyball Rio Field Set
FIVB finished its final Olympic Qualifying Tournaments this week, with five teams earning trips to Rio. In the first tournament, Italy, the Netherlands, and South Korea secured the top three spots of qualifying in the eight-team tournament. Japan, actually finishing just ahead of the Koreans in third place, are the official Asian representatives for the Games, as the tournament doubled as their continental qualifier. In the second qualifier, Puerto Rico topped the four-team field to secure their first-ever trip to an Olympics. The 15th-ranked nation will join the 12-team field in Rio after going 3-0 against Colombia, Kenya and Algeria.

Slovakia Leads European Canoe Slalom
Host Slovakia topped the medal table at the European Canoe Slalom Championships this week, with seven overall medals, including a sweep of all four canoe-class events and a 1-2 in the men's C-1 by Alexsander Slafkovsky 
and Michal Martikan (Spain's Ander Elosegi finished third to secure an Olympic berth for himself). In the women's competition, both Great Britain and Germany secured three medals, highlighted by Kimberly Woods' gold in both the C-1 and K-1 team events for the British. Overall, eight nations won at least one medal, with gold medalists also coming from Spain and the Czech Republic.

African Weightlifting Champs End
The 2016 African Weightlifting ended in Yaounde, Cameroon this weekend with Olympic qualification on the line for nations' lifters not yet qualified through the worlds or commonwealth champs, or other IWF events. In the end, Tunisia topped the men's competition, with six overall/big medals out of eight events. They, along with Algeria, Morocco, Cameroon and Ghana, earned the right to send one athlete to Rio. On the women's side, Nigeria secured seven overall/big medals in seven events to lead Tunisia, Cameroon, and Algeria to Olympic qualification for one athlete each.

 - European Aquatics Champs Begin
The 2016 LEN European Aquatics Championships began in London this week, with Great Britain (in diving) and Italy (in synchronized swimming) leading the way early. In diving, the British ended with 11 medals in 13 events to outpace Russia's nine medals. Tom Daley led the way for Team Britain, with three medals - gold in the men's 10m platform and another gold and a silver in synchro events. Tania Cagnotto swept all three springboard events for the women to power Italy's six total. In synchronized swimming, Italy continued to find success, as the only nation (not Russia!) to medal in each event, finishing with nine. Russia was second again - albeit largely due to not competing in the team free event - with eight total, followed by Ukraine (7) and Spain (3) to complete the table. Russia's tally included gold by Alexandr Maltsev and Michaela Kalancha in the mixed duet, the first time to be held at these championships. Only four other nations - Italy, Spain and Ukraine - took part in the inaugural event. You have to start somewhere!

Diversity Reigns at Euro Rowing
On the tail end of the European Rowing Championships this week, the largest spread ever of medalist nations enjoyed success in Brandenburg, as 23 of 34 nations entered won at least one medal. That's the most diverse range of medalists since the Championships' inception in 1893. Across the 17 boat classes, Germany topped the medal table with ten overall (three gold), followed by Great Britain with seven (four) and then the Netherlands with four (one). Other nations' success included an Irish gold in the men's lightweight double sculls by the O'Donovan brothers, and for Austria by Magdalena Lobnig in the women's single scull. A total of eleven nations won at least one gold, including Hungary, Estonia, Switzerland, and Croatia.

China Dominates Race Walking
At the IAAF's Race Walking Team Championships, China had perhaps an expected easy time topping the medal table with the absence of Russia. China finished with ten medals overall, including seven gold across the ten events held. Those golds included three of the five team events. Non-Chinese winners included veteran Alex Schwazer of Italy in the men's 50km (over another veteran, Aussie Jared Tallent), and Mexico in the junior men's 10km event. Schwazer's perfomance also led Italy to the gold in the that 50km team rankings. China swept all the women's titles. Other medalists of note included Ukraine with a silver behind Italy in the 50km men's team, and Canada and Ecuador finishing 2-3 behind China in the 20km men's team. Australia and Colombia finished 2-3 behind China in the 20km women's team event.