+ A
A -
The post-Olympic year 2019 is dominated by several world championships and summer sports athletes will already have one eye on the 2020 Games. Here’s a peek into what’s to follow.
AFC Asian Cup
(January 5-February 1)
The United Arab Emirates hosts the first big football tournament of the year, with Australia the defending champions.
The tournament has been expanded from 16 to 24 teams and is the first of several confederations championships, the others being the CAF Africa Cup of Nations from June 15-July 13 (in Egypt or South Africa after original hosts Cameroon are stripped of it) and the Gold Cup from June 15-July 7 (US, Costa Rica, one Caribbean country) and Copa America June 14-July 7 (Brazil).
In addition, the first European Nations League winner is crowned in Portugal on June 9, and the women’s World Cup runs June 7-July 7 in France.
Handball world championships (January 10-27)
Germany and Denmark host the championship in five cities, with the decider played at the Danish venue of Herning.
North and South Korea will send a unified team for the first time, and France are the defending champions.
Australian Open
(January 14-27)
The Melbourne major is the first of year’s four Grand Slams, with Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki and Swiss Roger Federer the title holders. The other majors are French Open in Paris (May 27-June 9), Wimbledon (July 1-14) and US Open in New York (August 26-September 8). The tennis year ends with a new-look week-long Davis Cup final November 18-24 in Madrid, with 18 teams to play.
Winter Sport: World Championships
(February and March)
There are several world championships in winter sports, including alpine skiing (February 5-17 in Are, Sweden), Nordic skiing (February 19-March 3 in Seefeld, Austria) and biathlon (March 7-17 in Ostersund, Sweden. The Are worlds will be the last for iconic American star Lindsey Vonn who plans to retire from the sport in December 2019.
Formula One season (March 17-December 1)
Lewis Hamilton will be aiming for a third straight and sixth overall title in his Mercedes as he chases Michael Schumacher’s all-time record of seven.
Ferrari rival Sebastian Vettel finally wants to win his first title for the Scuderia as he enters his fifth year year there. Schumacher also took five years to win his first with the Italian outfit. The season opens in Melbourne and ends in Abu Dhabi, with 21 races as in 2018.
The Masters (April 11-14)
The Masters in Augusta traditionally start the year’s golf majors, with Patrick Reed the defending champion.
The PGA Championships are next in a move from the August slot to May 16-19, the US Open June 13-16 and the Open July 18-21.
Aquatics world championships (July 12-28)
The swimming elite gathers in Gwangju, South Korea, for their biannual championships, with American Katie Ledecky, Hungary’s Katinka Hosszu and Briton Adam Peaty among the expected top attractions.
Rugby World Cup
(Sept 20-November 2)
The Rugby World Cup goes
to Asia for the first time for
the tournament in 12 Japanese cities.
New Zealand’s All Blacks are defending champions and the hosts hope to advance from their group after only narrowly missing out in 2015 following their huge upset win over South Africa.
Doha 2019 Athletics
World Championships
(Sept 28-October 6)
The athletics world gathers in Doha for the first worlds without retired Jamaican superstar Usain Bolt. American sprinter Christian Coleman, South Africa’s Wayde van Niekerk and Belgian heptathlete Nafissatou Thiam are among top athletes at the championships where due the hot weather the walks and marathons are to start at around midnight local time.
(DPA)
AFC Asian Cup
(January 5-February 1)
The United Arab Emirates hosts the first big football tournament of the year, with Australia the defending champions.
The tournament has been expanded from 16 to 24 teams and is the first of several confederations championships, the others being the CAF Africa Cup of Nations from June 15-July 13 (in Egypt or South Africa after original hosts Cameroon are stripped of it) and the Gold Cup from June 15-July 7 (US, Costa Rica, one Caribbean country) and Copa America June 14-July 7 (Brazil).
In addition, the first European Nations League winner is crowned in Portugal on June 9, and the women’s World Cup runs June 7-July 7 in France.
Handball world championships (January 10-27)
Germany and Denmark host the championship in five cities, with the decider played at the Danish venue of Herning.
North and South Korea will send a unified team for the first time, and France are the defending champions.
Australian Open
(January 14-27)
The Melbourne major is the first of year’s four Grand Slams, with Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki and Swiss Roger Federer the title holders. The other majors are French Open in Paris (May 27-June 9), Wimbledon (July 1-14) and US Open in New York (August 26-September 8). The tennis year ends with a new-look week-long Davis Cup final November 18-24 in Madrid, with 18 teams to play.
Winter Sport: World Championships
(February and March)
There are several world championships in winter sports, including alpine skiing (February 5-17 in Are, Sweden), Nordic skiing (February 19-March 3 in Seefeld, Austria) and biathlon (March 7-17 in Ostersund, Sweden. The Are worlds will be the last for iconic American star Lindsey Vonn who plans to retire from the sport in December 2019.
Formula One season (March 17-December 1)
Lewis Hamilton will be aiming for a third straight and sixth overall title in his Mercedes as he chases Michael Schumacher’s all-time record of seven.
Ferrari rival Sebastian Vettel finally wants to win his first title for the Scuderia as he enters his fifth year year there. Schumacher also took five years to win his first with the Italian outfit. The season opens in Melbourne and ends in Abu Dhabi, with 21 races as in 2018.
The Masters (April 11-14)
The Masters in Augusta traditionally start the year’s golf majors, with Patrick Reed the defending champion.
The PGA Championships are next in a move from the August slot to May 16-19, the US Open June 13-16 and the Open July 18-21.
Aquatics world championships (July 12-28)
The swimming elite gathers in Gwangju, South Korea, for their biannual championships, with American Katie Ledecky, Hungary’s Katinka Hosszu and Briton Adam Peaty among the expected top attractions.
Rugby World Cup
(Sept 20-November 2)
The Rugby World Cup goes
to Asia for the first time for
the tournament in 12 Japanese cities.
New Zealand’s All Blacks are defending champions and the hosts hope to advance from their group after only narrowly missing out in 2015 following their huge upset win over South Africa.
Doha 2019 Athletics
World Championships
(Sept 28-October 6)
The athletics world gathers in Doha for the first worlds without retired Jamaican superstar Usain Bolt. American sprinter Christian Coleman, South Africa’s Wayde van Niekerk and Belgian heptathlete Nafissatou Thiam are among top athletes at the championships where due the hot weather the walks and marathons are to start at around midnight local time.
(DPA)
