Mixed Martial Arts (MMA)

♦ Cricket has been retained for Asian Games 2026 while Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) is set to make its debut at the continental meet, the Olympic Council of Asia confirmed on 30 April 2025.

♦ The Asian Games 2026 are scheduled to be held in the Aichi and Nagoya prefectures of Japan from September 19 to October 4.

♦ This will be the fourth time that cricket will be making an appearance in the Asian Games programme. Cricket made its debut as a medal event in the Asian Games at Guangzhou 2010 and returned at Incheon 2014, although the matches were not accorded international status.

♦ However, once the sport returned to the Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou, all matches were granted international status by the International Cricket Council (ICC) – the global governing body for cricket.

Koneru Humpy

♦ Indian Grandmaster Koneru Humpy clinched the FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2024-25 (Pune leg) title on 23 April 2025.

♦ She won the final round with White pieces against Bulgarian International Master Nurgyul Salimova by a score of 7/9 points.

♦ Chinese Grandmaster Zhu Jiner also won her final round game against Russian International Master Polina Shuvalova with the Black pieces, and scored 7/9 points. But she was placed 2nd as per tiebreaks. 

♦ However, The Grand Prix points and prize money will be shared between Humpy and Zhu.

♦ With this win, Humpy’s qualification chances to the next Women’s Candidates Chess tournament has greatly increased. 

♦ Moreover, India’s International Master Divya Deshmukh played a draw against Polish Chess player Alina Kashlinskaya and finished 3rd in the rankings with 5.5/9 points.

Arjun Babuta

♦ India’s Arjun Babuta won the silver medal in the men’s 10m air rifle event at the ISSF World Cup 2025 Lima in Peru on 20 April 2025.

♦ He narrowly missed out on his second ISSF World Cup gold medal after finishing with a score of 252.3 in the final, just 0.1 points behind reigning Olympic champion Sheng Lihao of the People’s Republic of China.

♦ Hungary’s Istvan Marton Peni finished with 229.8 and the bronze medal.

IBSF World Billiards title in the final in Carlow, Ireland on 17 April 2025

♦ Ace Indian cueist Sourav Kothari clinched the 2025 IBSF World Billiards title in the final in Carlow, Ireland on 17 April 2025.

♦ Kothari emerged champion, scoring 725 points to Advani’s 480.

♦ This victory marked a historic first IBSF world title (timed format) for Kothari, 35 years after his father and billiards legend Manoj Kothari won it in 1990 in Bangalore.

♦ Kothari is now only the third Indian to have won both the IBSF and the WBL World Billiards titles.

Indian Weightlifting Federation (IWLF)

♦ Olympic silver medallist Mirabai Chanu and Commonwealth Games gold medallist S. Sathish Kumar have been elected chairperson and vice-chairperson, respectively, of the Athletes’ Commission of the Indian Weightlifting Federation (IWLF).

♦ Their term will last four years. 

♦ Mirabai is one of India’s most decorated weightlifters, holding multiple national records and historic milestones to her name.

♦ Her personal best in the total lift is 205kg — 86kg in snatch and 119kg in clean and jerk — which also stands as the national record.

♦ She holds the national record in snatch as well, with a lift of 88kg. At the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, she became the first Indian weightlifter to win a silver medal.

♦ Sathish had clinched a gold medal in weightlifting at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast.

♦ Competing in the men’s 77kg category, he lifted a total of 317kg — 144kg in snatch and 173kg in clean and jerk.

Sourav Ganguly

♦ Former India captain Sourav Ganguly was re-appointed as the Chairperson of the ICC men’s cricket committee on 13 April 2025.

♦ VVS Laxman, also a former India international, returns as a member of the committee, which now includes Hamid Hassan, Desmond Haynes, Temba Bavuma, and Jonathan Trott.

♦ These appointments were approved following recommendations from the ICC’s Chief Executives Committee.

♦ Ganguly and Laxman have held these positions before, and their return brings continuity at a time when global cricket faces both challenges and opportunity.

♦ Ganguly, who led the Indian team with distinction for five years from 2000 to 2005, was first appointed as the committee’s chair in 2021.

♦ Ganguly has replaced compatriot Anil Kumble, who stepped down after serving a maximum of three, three-year terms.

♦ The ICC has launched a dedicated initiative to support displaced Afghan women cricketers.

♦ This move comes amid growing concern for Afghan women athletes, many of whom have lost access to training, funding, and international platforms due to political and social restrictions in their country.

International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF)

♦ In the first leg of the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup 2025 at Buenos Aires, Argentina, India finished second in the standings behind China.

♦ India won a total of 8 medals, including 4 gold, 2 silver and 2 bronze.

♦ On the last day of the competition (11 April 2025), the Indian pair of Saurabh Chaudhary and Suruchi Singh won the Bronze, beating compatriots Manu Bhaker and Ravinder Singh by 16-8.

♦ Other medal winners for India include Sift Kaur Samra, Rudrankksh Patil, Suruchi Singh, Vijayveer Sidhu, Esha Singh, Chain Singh and the duo of Arya Borse and Rudrankksh Patil. 

Suruchi Singh and Saurabh Chaudhary

♦ Suruchi Singh and Saurabh Chaudhary beat compatriots Manu Bhaker and Ravinder Singh 16-8 to win the mixed air pistol bronze in the ISSF World Cup in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on 10 April 2025.

♦ It was the second medal for Suruchi, who had earlier won the women’s air pistol gold.

♦ Suruchi and Saurabh shot a cumulative 581, while Manu and Ravinder were behind them with 579.

♦ The Chinese pairs topped the qualification with identical scores of 582.

Suruchi Singh

♦ Suruchi Singh won the gold medal in the women’s 10m air pistol shooting event at the ISSF World Cup 2025 Buenos Aires, Argentina on 8 April 2025.

♦ This was her first World Cup medal. She shot 244.6 in the final to clinch India's third gold in the competition.

♦ The People’s Republic of China’s Qian Wei and Jiang Ranxin, finished second and third, respectively.

♦ Qian Wei shot 241.9 while Jiang Ranxin finished with a score of 221.0.

World Boxing Cup at Foz Do Iguacu

♦ Hitesh became the first Indian boxer to clinch a gold medal in the World Boxing Cup at Foz Do Iguacu, Brazil on 6 April 2025.

♦ He was handed a walkover in the final of the men’s 70kg weight category as opponent, Odel Kamara of England, was injured and couldn’t take to the ring. 

♦ Abhinash Jamwal, the other Indian boxer to reach the final in the 65kg category, gave his best against local favourite Yuri Reis but could not do enough to get a favourable verdict and bagged a silver medal.

♦ Four Indian players bagged bronze medals, including Jadumani Singh Mandengbam (50kg), Manish Rathore (55kg), Sachin (60kg), and Vishal (90kg).

♦ India had fielded a 10-member contingent for the World Boxing Cup, bagged six medals.