TOPIC

Sporting year in review 2020

UFC: Zhang to fight Namajunas ‘this year and in Asia,’ says White

China’s strawweight champion has not fought since beating Joanna Jedrzejczyk in Fight of the Year last March.

12 Jan 2021 - 4:37PMvideocam

Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games

Opinion | Will 2021 be best year yet for Hong Kong sport?

2 Jan 2021 - 8:21PMvideocam

Hong Kong Premier League

A (provisional) Hong Kong sports calendar for 2021

31 Dec 2020 - 3:22PM

Hong Kong politics

Opinion | To improve relations with US, China should rethink its Hong Kong strategy

Hong Kong has become one of the sticking points between China and the US. In the post-Deng era, Beijing has pivoted away from promises made to Hong Kong and failed to honour international norms.

31 Dec 2020 - 10:08AMvideocam

Pro-Beijing supporters wave the flags of Hong Kong and China outside the Legislative Council on November 12, after China passed a resolution allowing the disqualification of Hong Kong lawmakers deemed insufficiently patriotic. Photo: Bloomberg

Coronavirus Hong Kong

Opinion | Hong Kong sport endured its very own annus horribilis in 2020

It was a desperately difficult year for a swathe of the city’s sporting bodies. The main hope is that the damage 2020 inflicted on the local scene isn’t fatal.

31 Dec 2020 - 8:56AM

Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games

Olympics-qualified Hong Kong athletes share Covid-19 coping mechanisms

Tokyo-bound Jessica Lee Hoi-yan, Michael Cheng Chun-leung, Grace Lau Mo-sheung, Thomas Heffernan Ho and Vivian Kong Man-wai reflect on athlete life in pandemic.

30 Dec 2020 - 3:00PM

Year in Review

Lin, Sun or Djokovic? What were top SCMP Sport stories of year?

Our annual top 10 list of SCMP Sport stories is released.

30 Dec 2020 - 1:27PM

What was the No 1 story on SCMP Sport in 2020? Photo: SCMP pictures

Ultimate Fighting Championship

UFC: Zhang Weili’s ‘pivotal moment’ caps breakout year for China

UFC strawweight champion Zhang Weili’s heroics in Fight of the Year front runner against Joanna Jedrzejczyk leads a strong surge from Chinese fighters in 2020.

29 Dec 2020 - 8:39PMvideocam

Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games

20 for 2020: the sports stars who shone in a difficult year

In a tough year for sport, these athletes and officials pushed past Covid-19 to soar on and off the court.

18 Jan 2021 - 12:42PMvideocam

MMA

The top MMA-boxing crossover ‘superfights’ for 2021

Clout-chasing and trash-talking aside, will we really see Roy Jones Jnr vs Anderson Silva, Conor McGregor vs Manny Pacquiao, or an ‘ultrafight’ with four Olympic golds on the line?

28 Dec 2020 - 3:00PMvideocam

Retired boxing legend Floyd Mayweather Jnr and former UFC double champion Conor McGregor face off after the official weigh-ins for their superfight in Las Vegas in 2017. Photo: AFP

MMA

Rizin brings curtain down on tumultuous 12 months for Asian MMA

ONE Championship and Rizin find ways to stage fights in Asia despite global pandemic, but UFC’s plans for Dana White’s Contender Series Asia on hold amid cloud of uncertainty.

28 Dec 2020 - 10:26PM

Kai Asakura celebrates winning the vacant bantamweight title. Photo: Rizin FF

Martial arts

Best of 2020: top viral sports videos of the year

In a sports calendar ravaged by the pandemic, tai chi masters still get knocked out, while there are trick golf shots, bicycle kicks and lots of smashed glass.

27 Dec 2020 - 3:00PMvideocam

Ultimate Fighting Championship

UFC: Yan, Murata, Loma lead new wave of Asian female fighters

China’s Yan Xiaonan, Japan’s Kanako Murata and Thailand’s Loma Lookboonmee waiting in the wings to follow – and challenge – UFC strawweight queen Zhang Weili.

27 Dec 2020 - 9:08AM

Netflix

The best sports documentaries of 2020 – and where to watch them

Michael Jordan, Stephon Marbury, Andy Murray, Bruce Lee and Jose Mourinho among those who featured in the year’s best films and series on sport.

26 Dec 2020 - 3:00PMvideocam

Michael Jordan in action for the Chicago Bulls in 1992, just one of the seasons captured in the ESPN-Netflix documentary The Last Dance. Photo: AP

ONE Championship

ONE Championship: five storylines to watch in 2021

Garry Tonon and Demetrious Johnson go for gold, as Aung La N Sang chases redemption – here’s what to look forward to in ONE Championship in 2021.

26 Dec 2020 - 9:00AM

Garry Tonon catches a kick from Koyomi Matsushima. Photo: ONE Championship

What are the top outdoor, extreme and trail stories from 2020?

Even in a year when few events have taken place, there have been highs and lows for the outdoor sports community in 2020.

25 Dec 2020 - 3:00PM

Jeremy Lin

Covid-19, Donald Trump and an NBA dream – Jeremy Lin’s 2020

NBA champion found himself while playing for the Beijing Ducks before heading back to the US to chase his dream.

25 Dec 2020 - 10:08AMvideocam

CrossFit Games

The top CrossFit stories of 2020, with a scandal leading the way

What are the CrossFit stories that garnered the most attention in a tumultuous year, with CEO scandals and Covid-19.

24 Dec 2020 - 3:00PM

Former CrossFit CEO Greg Glassman dominates the top stories of 2020. Photo: CrossFit

2020 Sports Quiz – how well do you remember the year?

It might not feel like it but there was still plenty of sporting action in the past 12 months – with the triumph and tragedies to match.

24 Dec 2020 - 9:00AM

K-pop idols

Sporting year in review 2020

UFC: Zhang to fight Namajunas ‘this year and in Asia,’ says White

China’s strawweight champion has not fought since beating Joanna Jedrzejczyk in Fight of the Year last March.

Opinion | Will 2021 be best year yet for Hong Kong sport?

A (provisional) Hong Kong sports calendar for 2021

Opinion | To improve relations with US, China should rethink its Hong Kong strategy

Hong Kong has become one of the sticking points between China and the US. In the post-Deng era, Beijing has pivoted away from promises made to Hong Kong and failed to honour international norms.

Opinion | Hong Kong sport endured its very own annus horribilis in 2020

It was a desperately difficult year for a swathe of the city’s sporting bodies. The main hope is that the damage 2020 inflicted on the local scene isn’t fatal.

Olympics-qualified Hong Kong athletes share Covid-19 coping mechanisms

Tokyo-bound Jessica Lee Hoi-yan, Michael Cheng Chun-leung, Grace Lau Mo-sheung, Thomas Heffernan Ho and Vivian Kong Man-wai reflect on athlete life in pandemic.

Lin, Sun or Djokovic? What were top SCMP Sport stories of year?

Our annual top 10 list of SCMP Sport stories is released.

UFC: Zhang Weili’s ‘pivotal moment’ caps breakout year for China

UFC strawweight champion Zhang Weili’s heroics in Fight of the Year front runner against Joanna Jedrzejczyk leads a strong surge from Chinese fighters in 2020.

20 for 2020: the sports stars who shone in a difficult year

In a tough year for sport, these athletes and officials pushed past Covid-19 to soar on and off the court.

The top MMA-boxing crossover ‘superfights’ for 2021

Clout-chasing and trash-talking aside, will we really see Roy Jones Jnr vs Anderson Silva, Conor McGregor vs Manny Pacquiao, or an ‘ultrafight’ with four Olympic golds on the line?

Rizin brings curtain down on tumultuous 12 months for Asian MMA

ONE Championship and Rizin find ways to stage fights in Asia despite global pandemic, but UFC’s plans for Dana White’s Contender Series Asia on hold amid cloud of uncertainty.

Best of 2020: top viral sports videos of the year

In a sports calendar ravaged by the pandemic, tai chi masters still get knocked out, while there are trick golf shots, bicycle kicks and lots of smashed glass.

UFC: Yan, Murata, Loma lead new wave of Asian female fighters

China’s Yan Xiaonan, Japan’s Kanako Murata and Thailand’s Loma Lookboonmee waiting in the wings to follow – and challenge – UFC strawweight queen Zhang Weili.

The best sports documentaries of 2020 – and where to watch them

Michael Jordan, Stephon Marbury, Andy Murray, Bruce Lee and Jose Mourinho among those who featured in the year’s best films and series on sport.

ONE Championship: five storylines to watch in 2021

Garry Tonon and Demetrious Johnson go for gold, as Aung La N Sang chases redemption – here’s what to look forward to in ONE Championship in 2021.

What are the top outdoor, extreme and trail stories from 2020?

Even in a year when few events have taken place, there have been highs and lows for the outdoor sports community in 2020.

Covid-19, Donald Trump and an NBA dream – Jeremy Lin’s 2020

NBA champion found himself while playing for the Beijing Ducks before heading back to the US to chase his dream.

The top CrossFit stories of 2020, with a scandal leading the way

What are the CrossFit stories that garnered the most attention in a tumultuous year, with CEO scandals and Covid-19.

2020 Sports Quiz – how well do you remember the year?

It might not feel like it but there was still plenty of sporting action in the past 12 months – with the triumph and tragedies to match.

Top 10 stories that defined K-pop in 2020: from BTS’ Grammy nod to Mr Trot

Covid-19 may have put live K-pop performances on hold, but that didn’t stop BTS from smashing records in the US, Blackpink causing a stir with their outfits or Mr Trot sparking a trot revival in 2020