Ten world championships in both Olympic and Paralympic sports rocked the world in August. We can highlight the IAAF World Championships in Moscow, Russia, and the IPC Swimming World Championships in Montreal, Canada. The world championships in three different sports took place simultaneously in both Olympic and Paralympic versions: Fencing, Canoe Sprint and Rowing. Check out a brief summary of all the world championships in August:

Athletics

Russia, United States and Jamaica shone through the IAAF World Championships that were held on 10-18 August at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, Russia, the stadium that hosted the 1980 Olympic Games. The host team won seven gold, four silver and six bronze medals, with a special highlight for the women’s performance.

Two-time Olympic champion (Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008) and bronze medallist in London 2012; Yelena Isinbayeva became three-time champion in Pole Vault and made the crowd cheer when she said she will take a break in her career to have a child and might compete again in Rio 2016.

Another highlight were the performances of Svetlana Shkolina, who achieved the best mark in her career in High Jump (2.03) and took the gold medal, and Tatyana Lysenko, who won the Hammer Throw event with 78.80 metres, a record in the competition and second best mark ever.

United States won a total of six gold, 13 silver and six bronze medals, with a highlight to the performances of Ashton Eaton, current Olympic champion and now world Decathlon champion, and LaShawn Merritt, gold in the 400m event. Jamaica reached third place in the medal table thanks to its incredible sprinters. Usain Bolt and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce won the 100m and 200m events and also helped their country win gold in both the men’s and women’s 4x100m relay events.

Badminton

The 19^th edition of the BWF World Championships took place in Guangzhou, China, on 5-11 August. The championships strengthened Chinese Lin Dan’s hegemony and had the youngest female world champion ever.  Two-time Olympic champion, Super Dan, as he is known, defeated his arch-rival, Malaysian Lee Chong Wei, in the decision match and became the first player in history with five world titles.

In the women’s final, Thai Ratchanok Inthanon defeated Chinese Li Xuerui, the world’s number 1 and current Olympic champion 2-1 (22-20, 18-21, 21-14). At the age of 18, the young star is already a celebrity in her home country.Three doubles also became champions in the2013 World Championships. Chinese Wang Xiaoli and Yu Yang took the women’s title. In the men’s event, Muhammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan from Indonesia were the champions. And in the mixed doubles, the title went to Tontowi Ahmad and Lilyana Natsir from Indonesia.

Canoe Sprint and Paracanoe

In late August, Duisburg, Germany, hosted the 40^th ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships. Around 1,500 athletes from 79 countries competed for medals in 33 events in total. At the same time, the 3^rd Paracanoe Sprint World Championships were held, gathering 130 athletes from 33 countries. The sport will have its debut in Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. 

Fencing and Wheelchair Fencing

On4-12 August Budapest, Hungary, hosted the Fencing World Championships as well as the IWASWheelchair Fencing World Championships. The competition included individual and team events in épée, foil and sabre. In the Olympic tournament, the highlight was the performance of the Italian team, which included Valentina Vezzali, owner of six Olympic gold medals, Elisa di Francesca and Carolina Erba, whose rivals didn’t stand a chance; she won the gold medal. In Wheelchair Fencing, the Chinese team had a great performance, winning eight gold medals.

Rhythmic Gymnastics

The 32^nd FIG Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships started on Wednesday, the 28^th, and continues until the 1 September at the legendary Sports Palace in Kiev, Ukraine. The event celebrates 50 years since its first edition, held in Budapest in 1963. Several Olympic medallists participate in the world championships, which gather athletes from 55 countries.

Judo

Host city of the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games, this week the Marvellous City is the stage for the World Judo Championships, this year’s main competition in the sport, on 26 August -1 September. The World Championships gather 783 athletes from 124 countries.

Paralympic Swimming

On 12-18 August, Montreal hosted the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Swimming World Championships. The competition gathered 480 athletes from 53 countries (39 made it to the podium), who competed for 172 gold medals. 43 new world records were broken. Ukraine was first in the general medal table, followed by Russia and Great Britain.

In individual events, the greatest highlight was the performance of Daniel Dias, Brazilian Paralympic multi-medallist, who won six gold medals in Montreal. “It was a great start of the Olympic cycle. A significant step forward in order to have a great performance in Rio 2016”, Daniel said.

Another great name at the World Championships, one with a bright future, is Mary Fisher, from New Zealand, who won her first Paralympic gold medal in London 2012 and left Montreal with five golden medals around her neck. “I couldn’t hope for anything better. I hope my performance will be even better in Rio de Janeiro”, Mary said.

Road Para-Cycling

The world’s greatest road para-cyclists will be gathered in Baie-Comeau, Canada, until 1 September. They will compete in road, time trial and handcycling events. Italian Alessandro Zanardi, former Formula One pilot and two-time CART champion, competes with a handbike.

Olympic and Paralympic Rowing

The 2013 World Rowing Championships take place in Chungju, South Korea, until Sunday, the 1 September. The South Korean city hosts both Olympic and Paralympic World Rowing Championships.

Olympic and Paralympic Sailing

The world championships of both Olympic Sailing disciplines take place in late August. Tallinn, Estonia, hosts the Finn Gold Cup until Saturday while Dún Laoghaire, Ireland, will host the year’s main competition in the Laser Radial class on 30 August-6 September.

The Paralympic World Sailing Championships take place in Kinsale, Ireland.  Among the highlights is the participation of British Helena Lucas and Norwegian trio Aleksander Wang-Hansen, Marie Solberg and Per Eugen Kristiansen.