June is the month from which we will require two television sets. At least two! Competitions start “dou- bling up” from dawn to dusk, and we will need to be fit to make it to the finish. We should record the date of 11 th June in red letters, as that’s when will see the green light signalling the start of the European Football Cham- pionship, which runs for exactly one month, until 11 th July. The competition schedule hasn’t changed and for now the Euros are still due to be played in 12 cities and 12 countries. No possible combination includes Serbia, with the team having failed to return to the ranks of the best national teams on the Old Continent after a break of more than two decades following defeat in its quali- fication play-off match against Scotland. The world’s most famous bicycle race, the Tour de France, runs from 26 th June to 18 th July, and all the rid- ers will be wanting to turn their pedals as quickly as pos- sible in order to beat Slovenian Tadej Pogačar, who cel- ebrated victory in 2020. Two days later, on 28 th June, Novak Đoković will begin his latest quest to be crowned at Wimbledon again, while an extremely important tour- nament for all of us will take place from 29 th June to 4 th July. Namely, that’s when Serbia’s top basketball play- ers will take to the court at the Belgrade Arena in an attempt to reach the Olympics. A total of six national teams will be participating, but only one of them will earn a visa for Tokyo. The world’s most important sporting event will finally take place from 23 rd July to 8 th August. Lots of “push and pull” was required between the organisers and the World Health Organization, while the delay led to the host coun- try losing several billion dollars. It has now been decided that the Games will be held, whatever the cost. Fear of the novel Coronavirus remains strong among athletes, so a major question mark remains over whether all of the top competitors will agree to travel to the Japanese capital. It is predicted that Serbia will win ten medals – three golds, four silvers and three bronzes. Đoković rep- resents the greatest hope that we will hear a rendition of God of Justice, the Serbian national anthem, while plen- ty of success is also expected of Serbia’s volleyball, water polo and basketball teams, then the country’s marksmen, wrestlers and the taekwondo national team. We will bid farewell to the summer at the U.S. Open in New York, where the world’s best tennis players will do battle from 30 th August to 12 th September. The title will be defended by Austrian Dominic Thiem, who took advantage of Đoković’s disqualification to secure his first ever Grand Slam win. In September, on the ninth day of the ninth month, NFL players will take to the fields, while that’s also the pe- riod when play gets underway in Europe’s biggest football leagues. Autumn also marks the start of the series of in- door tennis tournaments, while popular marathons also take place during this season – London on 3 rd October, Tokyo on 17 th October and New York on 7 th November. All in all, this will be a wonderful year for all sports fans!
2022 World Cup. As Serbia’s “Eagles” won’t be competing in the continental championships, we will have to utilise all of our footballing prowess to make it to Qatar. And the road to the Middle East will be tougher than ever. Serbia is first set to play the Republic of Ireland (24 th March), then three days later welcomes the incredible Portugal, led by the even more incredible Cristiano Ronaldo, only for this mini-series to end in Azerbaijan on 30 th March. If we survive the first part intact, then we’ll have some- thing to hope for in the remaining five matches, sched- uled for September, October and November. A long way from Belgrade, but close to Qatar, we are awaited by the start of the new Formula 1 season on 28 th March. The tradition of raising the curtain in Australia is no more, however, unlike 2020, Melbourne has saved its race, which will take place on 21 st November. Interesting- ly, the plan is to hold 23 Grand Prix Races, while the pos- sibility has remained to include another couple of races, provided conditions permit. Lewis Hamilton has won his seventh title and the chances are high that he will cele- brate victory again this year. However, we hope to enjoy in uncertainty until the season ends in Abu Dhabi on 12 th December . Among the debutants on the tracks will also be Mick Schumacher, the son of seven-time champion Michael, who we’re all hopeful will recover. The excitement of tennis returns on 23 rd May, with the start of the French Open, while the final of foot- balls’ UEFA Champions League is scheduled to take place in Istanbul on 29 th May. This match of all match- es to conclude the competition of elite football clubs will be played at Atatürk Stadium. And the Coronavi- rus will dictate whether or not there will be specta- tors in attendance. Defending the title is Bayern Mu- nich, which won the cup in 2020 in a completely new system that saw the entire tournament played in Lis- bon. We owe you information on how long the French Open runs - until 6 th June.
Sports » Sport | 107
Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator