Mirai Nagasu Takes Title at U.S. Figure Skating Championships

Mirai Nagasu has won the ladies' title at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships. She stunned the world with her performance in the short program, and now she stuns the world again by taking the title as the second youngest woman to do so.

At age 14, though she has won the national championship, she is not eligible for the world championships.

Novak Djokovic Wins the Australian Open

Novak Djokovic takes the Australian Open Men's Singles title by beating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (7-2).

It's a historic occasion as this is the first Grand Slam win by a Serb.

The third seeded Djokovic seemed off-track by losing the opening set, but recovered his form thereafter, while Tsonga started faltering. It was a fight to the finish in the fourth set. The more experienced Djokovic just would not let go.

A great challenger Tsonga was, and the French can look forward to future successes with him.

Maria Sharapova Wins Australian Open Women's Singles Title

Maria Sharapova beat Serbia's Anna Ivanovic in two sets 7-5, 6-3.

She has proved herself to be truly a force to be reckoned with in this tournament and we all look forward to greater things to come.

Congratulations Maria!

14-year old Mirai Nagasu creates sensation in U.S. Figure Skating Championships

On Thursday night at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships 14 year-old Mirai Nagasu put on a dazzling performance in the short program which won her an almost flawless score of 70.23.

This was way ahead of the score achieved by the former world champion Kimmie Meissner who only got 57.58 and came in seventh. It was also the second highest score ever in such an event.

This was the first time that Nagasu, who is from California, has attended the Championships as a senior. Yet even if she won, she would still be too young for the world championships.

Champion Federer Toppled by Djokovic in Semi-Final| Australian Open

Djokovic was in dazzling form in the semi-final against Federer.

He knocked out Federer in three sets: 7-5, 6-3, 7-6.

Though Federer managed to get to a lead in the third set, Djokovic slowly but steadily equalised and the set went to a tie-break, with Djokovic coming out on top.

Nadal Is Out of the Tournament Beaten By Unseeded Tsonga | Australian Open

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga from France surprised the world and himself by defeating the world's No.2 Nadal in three sets 6-2-,6-3,6-2.

He said it was “unbelievable”.

We shall see if he can perform another miracle when he faces Federer in the final.

Maria Sharapova Thrashes Justine Henin | Australian Open Quarter-Finals

The match has just ended, and Maria Sharapova 's great triumph over Justine Henin at the Australian Open quarter-finals is still a shock to the system.

Henin' has had winning streak over her last 30 odd matches but that has now come to a sudden stultifying end.

Maria played brilliantly, some would even say magnificently. She won 6-4 in the first set, then proceeded to crush Henin in the second set by 6-0.

If she keeps up her pace, there will be no stopping her all the way to the championship.

Africa Cup of Nations

The Africa Cup of Nations is underway. This is a big soccer event in Africa and gets all the African nations who participate well and truly excited. And indeed there is a lot of excitement in the matches.

It is still early days. So far the results are as follows:

* Ghana 2-1 Guinea
* Nigeria 0-1 Ivory Coast
* Namibia 1-5 Morocco
* Mali 1-0 Benin

Australian Open

The Australian Open is coming up soon into the semi- finals.

In the men's section Federer scared all his fans in his match against Tipsarevic. The end wasn't at all clear until the very end. After a gruelling match, he defeated Tipsarevic at the end of four sets. His next match was easier. He defeated Berdych 6-4, 7-6, 6-3 in the 4th round. He will have to knock out J.Blake in the upcoming match.

In the meantime, Rafael Nadal has reached the semi-finals by beating Nieminen.

It looks like, barring any major upsets, that this will be a Federer-Nadal final.

For the women, third-seeded Jelena Jankovic pulled off a major upset by defeating defending champion Serena Williams.

In the quarter-finals, the match is now in progress between Justine Henin and Maria Sharapova. Both players have their share of admiring fans. The Sony Ericsson crowd will obviously root for the lovely Sharapova, their “global brand ambassador”.

Lindsay Davenport Goes to the Top for Earnings

By beating Sara Errani of Italy in the first round at the Australian Open, Lindsay Davenport has reached the top spot for earnings for women's sport.

Her earnings total US$21.8 million, beating Steffi Graf's 10-year record which is about US$2,000 less.

US Basketball Player Brian Dux's Benefit Match

As posted earlier a benefit match for American basketball player Brian Dux was to be held on December 28. Dux had been in a coma since suffering severe brain injuries in a road accident. He has been back in the US since the end of November.

His condition has improved. He is able to speak more clearly and there is movement in his left hand fingers. He was even able to make a call to his team-mate just before Christmas. His family are hoping for a full recovery but realise that this will be a long process.

The fund-raising match was played between Dux's team Guildford Heat and an All Stars team from the British Basketball League, with the home team winning 108-92.

The beneifit match raised about 12,000 pounds.