(Reuters) – ON THIS DAY – JUNE 5
June 5, 1993
SUMO WRESTLING – Hawaii-born Japanese-Samoan sumo wrestler, Konishiki Yasokichi, weighing 550 pounds, competes against a small child in a mock competition during opening ceremonies for the Sumo Basho exhibition in San Jose.
Nicknamed ‘Meat Bomb’, Konishiki was the first wrestler born outside Japan to reach sumo’s second highest rank, ozeki.
Weighing 628 pounds in 1996, Konishiki was the heaviest ever sumo wrestler before being surpassed by Orora in 2017. He retired in 1997 after battling chronic knee problems and gout.
June 5, 2003
ICE HOCKEY – New Jersey Devils centre John Madden sports a stitched up cut caused by a skate blade during the fifth game of the Stanley Cup Finals against the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
In an uncharacteristically high-scoring game, the Devils defeated Anaheim 6-3 to take a 3-2 lead in the series and improve to 11-1 in home playoff games, equalling Edmonton’s 1988 record for most home playoff wins in a single year.
A three-time Stanley Cup winner, Madden was considered one of the best defensive forwards during his 13-year stint in the NHL, winning the Frank J. Selke Trophy in 2001. He retired in 2012 and has since transitioned into coaching.
June 5, 2004
MOTOGP – Yamaha rider Valentino Rossi takes a break during a qualifying session for the Italian Grand Prix at the Mugello Circuit in Tuscany.
Home favourite Rossi won the rain-hit race the following day, finishing 0.3 seconds ahead of second-placed championship leader Sete Gibernau. Italian Max Biaggi completed the podium.
Rossi went on to win the drivers’ championship that season, beating Honda rider Gibernau to the crown.
June 5, 2010
HORSE RACING – Workforce, ridden by jockey Ryan Moore, wins the Epsom Derby in record time at the Epsom Racecourse in southern England.
The 100-1 outsider At First Sight, ridden by jockey Seamie Heffernan, got off to a flying start but faded down the stretch, allowing Workforce to pick up a seven-length victory.
Workforce galloped to the finish line in two minutes 31.33 seconds, which was nearly a second faster than the previous record set by Lammtarra in 1995.
June 5, 2014
TENNIS – Eugenie Bouchard returns to Maria Sharapova during her 6-4 5-7 2-6 defeat in the French Open semi-final at Roland Garros.
Defeat meant Bouchard had failed in her bid to become the first Canadian woman to reach a Grand Slam singles final but she went on to achieve the feat at Wimbledon a month later.
Bouchard, who also reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open in 2014, has yet to win a major title.
June 5, 2014
ATHLETICS – Ethiopia’s Genzebe Dibaba celebrates after winning the women’s 5,000m event during the Golden Gala IAAF Diamond League at the Olympic stadium in Rome.
Dibaba, who had broken three world records in three different events earlier in the year, put in a flawless performance, finishing over three seconds ahead of second-placed Almaz Ayana while Viola Jelagat Kibiwott completed the podium.
Five-time world indoor champion Dibaba, who holds seven track world records, won the silver medal in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
June 5, 2015
TENNIS – Novak Djokovic celebrates after his 6-3 6-3 5-7 5-7 6-1 victory over Andy Murray in the French Open semi-final.
Djokovic was up two sets to one when play was interrupted by rain. Murray fought back when action resumed the following day to drag the contest into a decider where Djokovic prevailed.
The Serb went on to lose to Switzerland’s Stan Wawrinka in the title clash but redeemed himself by winning the tournament the following year, beating Murray for the crown.
June 5, 2016
BADMINTON – Malaysia’s Lee Chong Wei celebrates winning the Indonesia Super Series Premier after beating Jan O Jorgensen 17-21 21-19 21-17 in the final at Istora Stadium in Jakarta.
Victory meant he became the first non-Indonesian player to win six titles in the tournament.
He clinched the silver medal at the Rio Olympics in August after shaking off a muscle injury and added a sixth Japan Open title in September.
June 5, 2019
SOCCER – Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates the first of his three goals in Portugal’s 3-1 win over Switzerland in the UEFA Nations League semi-final at Estadio do Dragao in Porto.
Ronaldo’s hat-trick, which included two late goals, sent Portugal to the final where they beat the Netherlands to become the first team to win the tournament.
Ronaldo, who also won the Euros in 2016, has netted 99 goals in 164 appearances for Portugal.
June 5, 2019
CRICKET – India pacer Jasprit Bumrah drops a catch during his side’s six-wicket victory against South Africa in a World Cup game at the Rose Bowl, Southampton.
The drop did not prove costly as two wickets from Bumrah and four from Yuzvendra Chahal helped India restrict South Africa to 227 before opener Rohit Sharma scored an unbeaten century to get their World Cup campaign off to a winning start.
Bumrah was India’s highest wicket-taker in the competition with 18 wickets, but could not prevent Virat Kohli’s side from crashing out in the semi-finals after a defeat by New Zealand.
(Compiled by Manasi Pathak and Arvind Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Christian Radnedge)
