Peter Sagan Finally Wins
Long viewed as a potential major title winner, Slovakia's Peter Sagan finally won an international gold, after taking the UCI World Championship in the road race. Sagan earned the title after a break from the pack with 2.5km remaining, and was able to coast across the line. Finishing second and third were Australia's Michael Matthews and Lithuania's Ramunas Navardauskas. On the women's side, Lizzie Armistead of Great Britain won the gold, over Dutchwoman Anna van der Breggen and American Megan Guarnier. Overall, the United States topped the medal table with eight overall, including three golds. Germany finished second with five total.

Kenyans Dominates Another Marathon
At the Berlin Marathon, the mid-point of the World Marathon Majors season, Kenya came through on both the men's and women's events. Veteran Eliud Kipchoge won the men's title despite loose shoes, and after having finished second in 2013 and earning silver at the Olympics in 2008. On the women's side, Gladys Cherono won gold with a personal best of 2:19.25, after a previous best of silver at the 2013 worlds. Kenya also won the men's silver medal, while Ethiopian runners picked up the three other podium placements.

First Italy, then U.S. Book Rio Spots...
...by finishing on top of the FIVB World Cup in Japan. At the conclusion of the Cup, USA stood on top of the standings, after defeating Argentina in their final match. Some would say, however, that the real story, was the Italian victory over Poland, which vaulted Italy to second overall and dropped world champion Poland to third. By finishing in the top two, the U.S. and Italy clinched Rio berths, while the remainder of the Olympic field will be filled through continental qualifiers through 2016. This was the United States' second World Cup title, after 1985.

Ruben Ruzafa Wins Cross Triathlon Again
Spain's Ruzafa won the ITU Cross Triathlon Worlds for the second straight year, after winning the event in Sardegna this week. Finishing second and third were Mexico's Francisco Serranno and New Zealand's Sam Osborne, who came from behind on the run to make the podium. On the women's side, Bermudan Flora Duffy came through for her first title (and Bermuda's first world title?) by dominating from the start. Chile's Barbara Riveros and Hungary's Brigitta Poor made the podium as well. Cross triathlon - not an Olympic discipline - is the cross-country (for biking and running) version of the three-event sport.

Spain Tops EuroBasket
The biggest FIBA continental championship of the summer ended, with Spain winning the gold at the EuroBasket in Lille this weekend, for their third title out of the last four tries. Before beating Lithuania in the final, both teams secured the automatic Olympic berths for Europe with their semi-final wins. In finishing third through seventh, France, Serbia, Greece, Italy, and the Czech Republic all move onto the Olympic Qualifying Tournament next year for a last chance, where they'll compete amongst 13 other teams for only three slots.

A Rising Power in Women's Volleyball?
The Dominican Republic scored an impressive and surprising gold in the FIVB Women's U-20 World Championship this weekend, after defeating perennial power Brazil in the final. In finishing atop the 16-team field, the Dominicans earned their first world title in a sport the senior team has been competitive in for the last handful of years. Congrats!

And Russia Continues Its Men's Volleyball Pipeline
While the Dominican women were somewhat stunning the world, the Russian continued its youth dominance, by winning the FIVB Men's U-21 Worlds for the third straight time. After winning in 2011 and 2013, the Russians sat atop the field in 2015 in Mexico after defeating Argentina in the final match. China defeated Brazil for third place honors.

Five Official Olympic '24 Candidates
The two-year race to host the 2024 Summer Games is officially on, as five candidates submitted their official bids to the IOC this week. Budapest, Hamburg, Los Angeles, Paris, and Rome will make their cases heard before the decision in 2017. My gut? Paris...

Norway wins the First Mixed Curling Championship
Not to be confused with Mixed Doubles Curling, the Mixed Curling World Championship was held for the first time this week, with Norway taking home the inaugural gold over Sweden in the final in Berne. 36 teams took part, with China defeating Russia for third. The mixed curling teams consisted of two men and two women, as opposed to the strict all-female or all-male teams normally seen in competition. Can mixed be at the Olympics soon? Mixed doubles apparently will be already...

Czechs Lead the Canoe Slalom Worlds
The Czech Republic led the medal table at the World Canoe Slalom Championships in London this week, with six overall. That included golds in all four kayak events, individual and team for men and women. Germany and Great Britain followed close with five medals each, with France next at four.

All-Africa Games End in Brazzaville
The 11th African Games concluded this week after two weeks of multi-sport and Olympic-style competition. In the final event of the Games, Angola defeated Cameroon for the women's team handball title. Egypt sat far atop the overall medal table, with 217 total to Nigeria's 144 in second place. Algeria and South Africa also broke the 100-medal total mark, with 125 and 122 each, respectively.

Italy Tops Shotgun Worlds
Italians like home field advantage? Well, at least they topped the medal table at the 2015 ISSF Shotgun Worlds in Lonato this week. Actually, both the Italians and the U.S. finished with 12 medals each, including 4 gold, but Italy came through with a 6-3 advantage in silvers. Russia finished in third place, with 11. Based on a continental qualification system in medal placements, 10 Olympic national slots were assigned to various shooters, including Kuwait for men's trap and double trap, and Cyprus in women's skeet.

FINA Unhappy, too, with Rio?
While most publicity has been to Guanabara Bay and the sailing venue's problems with cleanliness, that doesn't mean all the other federations don't have their own concerns. This week, swimming's body, FINA, strongly criticized Rio 2016 for not only the water safety of the open water events, but also the configuration of the indoor pool, in both seating capacity and open-air roofing safety. Such large events are always bound to attract extra scrutiny and more so, as the events draw near. Brazil has a ways to go to make everything smooth still...

Ireland Wins Northern European Gymnastics
At this year's edition of the Northern European Gymnastics Championships, host Ireland came out on top of the medal standings with 11 total. Their efforts were led by Olympian Kieran Behan, who finished with four medals overall. That included silver in the men's all-around, behind Norway's Stian Skjerahaug. Ireland also won the men's team, while Wales finished atop the women's, with Welsh Latalia Bevin taking the women's all-around.

An ex-Olympian's Unexpected Life Turn
I knew her as the talented runner that frustratingly and spectacularly faltered - often - in big races, but now the world at large also knows her as an ex-escort as well. With the publication of her autobiography this week, U.S.' Suzy Favor Hamilton addresses her past, from Olympic track star to Las Vegas call girl in 'Fast Girl'. From whichever angle, it continues a frustrating tale of talent misspent and unfulfilled...

Venezuela Shocks FIBA Americas
First they upset Canada 79-78 in the semi-finals, and then they beat Argentina 76-71 in the final of the FIBA Americas Championship to earn their first title of the tournament. As finalists, both teams earned a place in the Olympic tournament, with Venezuela set to make their second-ever appearance at the Games. To say their victory was a surprise is an understatement, as the Argentines were favored to win, with Canada a strong favorite for the second spot. By finishing third through fifth, Canada, Mexico, and Puerto Rico will enter the Olympic Qualifying Tournament for a last chance at Rio.

Fabio Aru wins the Vuelta a Espana
First held in 1935, the Vuelta is the third and last Grand Tour cycling race of the year, and Italian Fabio Aru - who finished second in the Giro d'Italia - took the championship, over Joaquim Rodriguez of Spain. Of the favorites from the Tour de France, Colombian Nairo Quintana finished fourth.

Russia Dominates Rhythmic Gymnastics
Not unexpectedly, team Russia (almost) swept the titles at the World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships in Stuttgart this week. First, Yana Kudryavtseva won four of five individual golds, including the all-around (her third-straight), as well as the team gold. In setting herself up as favorite for Rio, her only missing gold was in the hoop final, which she intentionally skipped. Then, Russia's group came back from missing the podium last year to gold in 2015. Italy won the lone gold not going to Russia, with the title in the group's 5 ribbons final. Overall, Russia won 14 medals - the most possible, with eight gold and six silver (nine gold, five silver is the absolute best mix possible, FYI.)

And China Dominates Asian Weightlifting
China came away the big winner from the Asian Weightlifting Championships in Phuket, with 10 total-lift (big) medals, and 32 overall medals, while winning both the men's and women's team titles. Kazakhstan, North Korea, and Thailand finished with six (big) medals overall each, for second place overall on the table, with the Philippines, South Korea, Vietnam, and Chinese Taipei also winning at least one (big) gold each.

Serbia Continues Water Polo Success
Talk about a great tradition...after winning both the senior World League and the World Championship this year, Serbia now adds the junior world trophy to its hardware collection, after beating Italy 13-12 in the final of the FINA Junior Water Polo World Championship. Hungary defeated Greece for the bronze.

Russian Boxing Future Wins Worlds
The AIBA Junior World Boxing Championships ended in St Petersburg, and the host Russians led the way with five out of thirteen golds. Uzbekistan finished with two golds, and Cuba, the USA, Romania, Turkey, Kazakhstan, and Azerbaijan splitting the rest with one each.

And Russia Tops World Wrestling
On the conclusion of the World Wrestling Championships in Las Vegas, Russia was tops with fourteen total medals, as well as the men's freestyle and greco-roman team titles. Japan won the women's freestyle team ranking. Ukraine (nine medals) and Azerbaijan (eight) came next, followed by the U.S. and Iran with seven each. That seven-medal total by the U.S., led by Jordan Burroughs' third world title in 74kg freestyle, represents the best showing since 2007, with their four golds the most since 1995's five.

Australia Tops Commonwealth Youth Games
A relatively new competition first held in 2000, the fifth Commonwealth Youth Games ended in Appia, Samoa this week, with Australia topping the medal table with 62 to second-place England's 44 across nine sports. South Africa finished third with 35, while hosts Samoa ended with 12.

IAAF Diamond League Ends

The IAAF's Diamond League came to a conclusion this weekend with the Memorial Van Damme meet in Brussels, with champions crowned in 32 events after point accumulation across 14 different meets through the summer. Notably, USA's Justlin Gatlin won the 100m crown, as did Britain's Greg Rutherford in the long jump, USA's Christian Taylor and Colombia's Catherine Ibarguen in the triple jump, USA's Francena McCorory in the 400m, and Serbian Sandra Perkovic in the discus.

Women Surprise, Men Don't at the U.S. Open
So the news is surprisingly not about Serena Williams, and her successful and much-anticpipated attempt at the true Grand Slam this year. Roberta Vinci's huge and career-making three-set upset of Williams not only gave her her first grand slam final, but set up the first all-Italian final, against Flavia Pennetta, who in turn had upset Simona Help[ of Romania. The veteran Pennetta would go on to the championship trophy over Vinci in her own first Grand Slam final, and then promptly announce her retirement from the sport. Meanwhile, while both top seeds on the women's side fell in the semi-finals, the men's two top seeds marched right along to the final. Serb Novak Djokovic defeated Swiss Roger Federer for his tenth Grand Slam and second U.S. Open title. While on paper the result may not stir much drama, he overcame a pro-Federer crowd, not to mention a Federer that was seemingly on a strong roll to his fifth event title. It's a startling rivalry, with the career record evenly split now, at 21-21 between the two, and the feeling that Djokovic may be in his prime while Federer aims to hold on. And in another meanwhile note...another Swiss, Martina Hingis keeps her low-profile resurgence going, with two doubles titles - and both with Indian partners; Sania Mirza in women's doubles and Leander Paes in mixed. Go Martina!

Los Angeles an Olympic Bid City Again
After Boston dropped itself as the U.S. bid for the 2024 Olympics, and with the USOC's odd insistence to have a candidate this cycle, Los Angeles has stepped up to be the official U.S. option for the Games. Will L.A.'s success record from 1932 & 1984 and its pitch that it would be the most cost-efficient Games be enough to lure votes away from Hamburg, Paris, Rome, or Budapest? I doubt it, but should would enjoy a Games nearby.

Tokyo 2020 Logo Dumped
After initially deflecting plagiarism complaints for the new Tokyo 2020 Olympic logo, organizers this week decided to scrap the logo and open a new competition for design. This is another pr setback moment for the organizing committee, after also re-opening the main stadium bid. As the Games are such a large movement, even a 'safe' host choice like Tokyo can't escape scrutiny...

More Promises of Clean Water in Rio
With concern, and actual illness, still in the air, the Rio Olympic Organizing Committee has again argued for its ability to provide a clean competition arena in Guanabara Bay, and has vowed this week to install new viral testing and sewage treatment. I think we've heard that before.

Mountain Bike World Champs End
The annual Mountain Bike Worlds ended in Vallnord, Andorra this weekend, with France topping the overall medal table with eleven. That total included placements in both Olympic categories, individual cross-country - earning silver in men's with Julien Absalon and Pauline Ferrand-Prevot taking the gold in the women's.
On an interesting side note, Rwanda made its maiden appearance at the event, with Nathan Byukusenge taking 92nd place (not last!) in the men's cross-country elite.

World Rowing Champs End
The world championships for rowing in Lake Aiguebelette, France ended as well, with Great Britain dominating the table, with 15 overall podium finishes. Their highlight probably was the men's eights in the event's traditional highlight race, defeating Germany by .20, and earning their third straight title. New Zealand and Germany tied for second on the medal table, with nine apiece. The event also served as the primary Olympic qualification - and Great Britain scored an impressive 12 of 14 berths for the Rio Games. The U.S. qualified ten crews, followed by Germany (9), New Zealand (9), Australia (7), Canada (6), Poland (6), Netherlands (6) and France (6). A total of 33 countries secured at least one crew qualification, with further opportunities coming in the fall and spring with specific regional Olympic qualifying regattas.

China Wins FIVB World Cup
China and Serbia finished at the top of the standings of the women's FIVB World Cup in Japan, and both earned an Olympic berth for Rio. They are the first teams, aside from host Brazil, to qualify for the tournament. This is the fourth World Cup title for China, and will be their eighth appearance at the Games (they've won five medals). For Serbia, this will be their third Olympics, and their second place finish at the World Cup represents their highest major international finish, after the gold at the 2011 European Championship.

While Japan Wins FIBA Asia Women's Basketball
At the conclusion of the FIBA Asia Women's Championship in Wuhan, Japan stood on top, dominating China 85-50 in the final and earning a booking to the Rio 2016 tournament. This will be the team's fourth appearance in the Games, though the first since 2004. In finishing second and third, China and South Korea (winners over Chinese Taipei in the bronze medal match) will move onto FIBA's Olympic Qualification Tournament next year for another shot at the Olympics.

Will Serena Win Her Grand Slam?
The annual US Open opened this week, highlighted by American Serena Williams' attempt to win the calendar-year Grand Slam. While she has twice held all four major titles at once, they have been crossovers across two seasons  (2002-3 & 2014-15). Should she win the Open this year, she will become the first woman since Steffi Graf in 1988 to hold all four titles - Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open - in one calendar year.  As she is the defending US champion, she is well-poised to do so, and, along with her 2012 Olympic title, will be the current defending champion in the five major events. Her tournament started on track, despite a second-round scare and she sees herself into the next week - and facing her sister Venus in the quarterfinals.

Kazakhstan Dominates Asian Boxing
In Bangkok, the Asian Confederation Boxing Championships ended, with Kazakhstan topping the tournament with 42 overall points - and with nine boxers qualifying for the World Championships this fall in Doha. All semifinalists at the Championships qualified for the Worlds, as did the losing quarterfinalists whose opponents made it to the final. Thus, Uzbekistan will send 8 boxers to Doha, and India 6.