3 big sporting events to celebrate Indonesia’s 81st Independence Day
By Lee Seng Foo3 days ago
(Srikandi Merdeka Cup/Instagram)
Indonesia is marking its 81st Independence Day with three major sporting events featuring international youth football, professional horse racing and a mass road run.
The Srikandi Merdeka Cup, held in Kudus, Central Java, from August 14 to 23, brought together eight under-16 women’s teams representing seven countries.
The tournament attracted regional attention after Malaysia’s Lim You scored seven times in a 9-0 group-stage victory over Saudi Arabia.
Videos of the 14-year-old forward’s performance, including six long-range goals, spread widely on social media and propelled her to overnight prominence.
In West Sumatra, 15 classes will be contested at the Indonesia Horse Racing Merdeka Cup on August 23.
The meeting at Kubu Gadang Racecourse in Payakumbuh will be the sixth stop on Indonesia’s official 2026 horse-racing calendar, offering total prize money of 450 million rupiah (approximately US$26,000).
The event will also be streamed live on SPOTV NOW, bringing one of Indonesia’s traditional Independence Day sporting celebrations to a wider audience.
The celebrations will then conclude with the Merdeka Run in Jakarta on August 29.
The eight-kilometre road run will start outside the Merdeka Palace and is expected to attract 8,000 participants.
Together, the events extend the celebrations well beyond August 17, with sport providing another platform for Indonesians to mark the country’s 81st year of independence.
MotoGP heads to MotorLand Aragon this weekend for the 2026 Aragon Grand Prix as the championship enters another important stage of the title fight.
Ahead of the action in Spain, live on SPOTV NOW, here are five things to know.
Few circuits have belonged to one rider quite like MotorLand Aragon has to Marc Marquez. The Spaniard has won seven MotoGP races at the circuit, beginning with his maiden Aragon triumph during his rookie season in 2013 before adding victories in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 with Honda.
After missing both MotorLand races in 2020 through injury, Marquez returned to the top step in spectacular fashion with Gresini Ducati in 2024, ending a 1,043-day wait for a Grand Prix victory. He then dominated again as a factory Ducati rider last year to claim his seventh win at the circuit.
Only Casey Stoner and Jorge Lorenzo have also won multiple MotoGP races at MotorLand, with two victories each.
Bagnaia's maiden MotoGP victory
Francesco Bagnaia has since become a two-time MotoGP world champion, but his first premier-class victory came at MotorLand Aragon in 2021.
The Italian started from pole and spent the closing laps defending against Marquez, who launched several overtaking attempts during an intense battle between the pair. Bagnaia resisted every challenge and eventually crossed the line just 0.673 seconds ahead to claim his maiden MotoGP victory, beginning a run that would ultimately lead to his first world championship the following season.
All-Spanish podium lockouts
MotorLand Aragon has produced three MotoGP podium lockouts by riders from the same country, putting it level with Jerez for the most at a single circuit involving Spanish riders.
Spain swept the podium in 2017 through Marc Marquez, Dani Pedrosa and Jorge Lorenzo, before repeating the feat at the 2020 Aragon Grand Prix with Alex Rins, Alex Marquez and Joan Mir. Another all-Spanish podium followed in 2024 when Marc Marquez led Jorge Martin and Pedro Acosta home.
Meanwhile, Motegi, Brno and Silverstone have each produced two all-Spanish podium sweeps.
Honda's happy hunting ground
Marquez's extraordinary record has also helped make MotorLand one of Honda's most successful venues of the MotoGP era. The Japanese manufacturer has claimed seven premier-class victories at the circuit, with five coming through Marquez and the other two courtesy of Pedrosa in 2012 and Casey Stoner a year earlier.
Honda has enjoyed plenty of success in the smaller classes too, particularly in Moto3, where its riders won six of the seven races held at MotorLand between 2016 and 2021, including the additional Teruel Grand Prix staged during the pandemic-affected 2020 season.
That second 2020 weekend also produced a memorable qualifying result for Honda when Takaaki Nakagami became the first Japanese rider to take a MotoGP pole position since Makoto Tamada in 2004.
Zarco set to return after longest absence
Johann Zarco is set to make his MotoGP comeback at Aragon after missing six consecutive rounds with the left knee ligament injury he suffered at the Catalan Grand Prix in May.
The Frenchman opted against surgery and had initially targeted a September return, but his recovery has progressed sufficiently for LCR Honda to bring his comeback forward, subject to him passing the mandatory medical examination at MotorLand.
It represents the longest absence of Zarco's remarkably durable Grand Prix career, which began in 2009. His previous longest spell away came in 2019, when he missed Aragon, Thailand and Japan after his relationship with KTM ended prematurely. He returned for the final three rounds with LCR Honda, the same team he now represents full-time.
World number one Jannik Sinner has withdrawn from the 2026 US Open after failing to recover from a right knee injury, dealing a major blow to the men's singles field just days before the final Grand Slam of the season.
The Italian confirmed his decision on Friday after returning to training in Monte Carlo, where he and his medical team determined that his knee required more time to recover.
“Even though I have been working hard with my team and my medical staff, we have now had to make the difficult decision that I will not be able to compete at the US Open this year,” he wrote on his social media pages.
“We have been back on court in Monte Carlo over the last couple of days and have realised that I still need more time to recover from my right knee issue.
“I’m obviously very sad and disappointed, as New York has a special place in my heart. I was very much looking forward to coming back and playing in the electric atmosphere in front of the great fans there.”
Sinner has not competed since winning his fifth Grand Slam singles title at Wimbledon, with the knee problem subsequently forcing him to miss the Canadian and Cincinnati Opens.
His absence also means there will be no repeat of last year's US Open final against Carlos Alcaraz, who confirmed just a day earlier that he will return to defend his title after spending four months on the sidelines with a right wrist injury.
Alcaraz has not played competitively since April and missed both the French Open and Wimbledon, as well as the North American hard-court events in Canada and Cincinnati, but has resumed full training ahead of his return in New York.
The Spaniard's comeback takes on even greater significance following Sinner's withdrawal, with the defending champion now among the leading contenders in a men's draw that also features Alexander Zverev, Novak Djokovic and Felix Auger-Aliassime.
Djokovic will continue his pursuit of a record-extending 25th Grand Slam singles title, although questions remain over the 39-year-old's physical condition following a difficult North American hard-court swing.
Sinner's withdrawal nevertheless removes one of the biggest obstacles facing the rest of the field, with the Italian having won the US Open in 2024 before finishing runner-up to Alcaraz last year.
The 2026 US Open main draw begins on August 30 at Flushing Meadows, with the tournament to be shown live on SPOTV NOW.
Marc Marquez reportedly played a role in convincing Isack Hadjar not to rush his return from a hand injury.
The Red Bull driver sustained the minor injury during a boxing training session over the summer break.
The Frenchman had hoped to compete at this weekend's Dutch Grand Prix but ultimately withdrew from the Formula One event at Zandvoort and was replaced by Liam Lawson.
Meanwhile, Yuki Tsunoda returned to the grid with Racing Bulls to fill the vacancy left by Lawson.
French sports journalist Julien Febreau reported that Hadjar sought advice from Marquez before making his decision.
"Hadjar wanted to be here this weekend and then he called Marquez who advised him against coming back too soon," Febreau said on-air during the first practice session.
Marquez's advice carries particular significance given his own injury history, most notably the serious right arm injury that disrupted several years of his MotoGP career.
The Spaniard fractured his right humerus at the 2020 Spanish Grand Prix and attempted to return immediately after undergoing surgery, only to withdraw from the following race weekend.
Complications subsequently required further operations and kept Marquez out for the remainder of the 2020 season and the opening rounds of 2021, while another major operation on the same arm followed in 2022.
He eventually rebuilt his career and returned to the top of MotoGP, but his experience remains one of the clearest examples of the potential consequences of rushing back from a serious injury.
Hadjar instead opted to give his hand more time to recover, with his attention now turning towards a possible return at the Italian Grand Prix.
Australian international Nishan Velupillay has taken the next step in his career after completing a move from Melbourne Victory to German club FC Ingolstadt 04 following his appearance at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The 25-year-old winger joins the German third division side for an undisclosed fee, bringing an end to a seven-year association with Victory and marking his first move outside Australian football.
Velupillay progressed through the Melbourne Victory academy before making his senior debut in 2021, going on to score 25 goals in 141 appearances across all competitions for the A-League club.
He established himself as a first-team regular and enjoyed his breakthrough campaign in 2024/25, finishing as Victory's leading scorer across all competitions before helping the club qualify for this season's AFC Champions League Two.
His performances in the A-League also opened the door to international football, with Velupillay making his Australia debut during a World Cup qualifier against China in October 2024 and scoring just seven minutes after coming off the bench.
The Melbourne-born forward subsequently earned a place in Australia's squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, where he made his tournament debut as a substitute in the 2-0 group-stage victory over Turkiye before starting against co-hosts the United States.
His World Cup appearance also carried significance for Malaysian football fans because of his family background.
Velupillay was born in Australia to a Malaysian father of Sri Lankan Tamil heritage and an Anglo-Indian mother, making him the first player of Malaysian descent to feature at the FIFA World Cup.
The Melbourne club have yet to announce a direct replacement for Velupillay, but new head coach Giovanni Savarese has also overseen several changes so far, including the arrivals of forward Harry Sawyer and winger Harry Shillington.
Victory will now continue their preparations without one of their longest-serving academy graduates before the 2026/27 A-League Men season kicks off in October, with matches to be shown live on SPOTV NOW.
