2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Campaign
In the election campaign the parties positions on foreign relations and the war in Donbas could be roughly divided into two groups. The first group consisted of pro-European parties that advocated to end the war in Donbas by use of force and consisted of Fatherland Party, Civic Position, Radical Party and People's Front (this party was ambiguous about use of force). Svoboda also wanted to end the war in Donbas by use of force. The party Petro Poroshenko Bloc was the only pro-European party that wanted to end the war in Donbas by a peaceful solution. The second group was Strong Ukraine and Opposition Bloc who were considered pro-Russian and they advocated to end the war in Donbas by a peaceful solution. The Communist Party of Ukraine (according to political scientist Tadeusz A. Olszański) "effectively supports the separatist rebellion".


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Campaign
According to Olszański Radical Party and the Communists were the only left-wing parties.


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Campaign, Registered parties and candidates, Nationwide party lists
On 26 September 2014 the Central Election Commission of Ukraine finished registering the nationwide party lists. A total of 29 parties participated in the election. Parties appeared on the ballot in the following order:


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Campaign, Registered parties and candidates, Nationwide party lists
On 2 September Vitaliy Kovalchuk (the parliamentary leader) of UDAR stated that since his party and Petro Poroshenko Bloc had agreed to "joint participation in parliamentary elections" on 29 March 2014 the two parties were "in discussion" about "the format" for how to do so in these elections. On 15 September it became clear that 30% of the Petro Poroshenko Bloc election list would be filled by members of UDAR and that UDAR leader Vitali Klitschko is at the top of this list, Klitschko vowed not to resign as incumbent Mayor of Kyiv.


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Campaign, Registered parties and candidates, Nationwide party lists
7 September party congress of Civil Position decided that the party would participate in the election on a partly list with members of Democratic Alliance.


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Campaign, Registered parties and candidates, Nationwide party lists
On 10 September, the Fatherland Party split because party leaders Yatsenyuk and Turchynov became founding members of the new party People's Front.


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Campaign, Registered parties and candidates, Nationwide party lists
The biggest party in the previous 2012 parliamentary elections, Party of Regions, chose not to participate in the election because of a perceived lack of legitimacy (of the election), because not every resident of the Donbas could vote. Individual members of the Party of Regions would take part in the election as candidates of the party Opposition Bloc. According to Yuriy Boyko, who is heading the party's election list, Opposition Bloc does not represent parties, but consists only of individual politicians.


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Results
The counting of votes was significantly delayed: Central Electoral Commission announced that all ballots were counted on 10 November only. The announcement of the final result for 38th electoral district was delayed till mid-November due to the results being challenged in court.


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Results, Voter turnout
In the 2014 election the number of participated voters was much less than in 2012 (16,052,228 down from 20,797,206). The main reason of this decrease was the impossibility to organize voting in some regions. Because of this,  the official turnout was calculated by division by the number of people who live in areas where voting was provided only (according to the CEC, it was 30,921,218). So, the official voter turnout was 51.91%. In any case this percent is smaller than in 2012, when the turnout was 57.43%.


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Results, Voter turnout
The turnout level had obvious geographical differences. The highest turnout (60-70%) was registered in western regions (except Zakarpattia and Chernivtsi Oblast), the level of turnout in central regions was average (54-58%) and in southern and eastern regions it was quite low (40-48%). The turnout in two oblasts of Donbas (or more exactly in the parts of these oblasts where the voting was provided) was 32% - the lowest in the country.


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Results, Voter turnout
Previously, the Donbas region displayed high turnout for every election. The Party of Regions that had plenitude of the power over this region until the 2014 Ukrainian revolution artificially increased voter turnout there by use of management reserves and falsifications. The 2014 election was the end of this artificial increase. One more reason of low turnout in Donbas as well as in other south-eastern regions was a feeling among a significant part of the local population that no party represented their interests.


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Conduct
The elections were monitored by 2,321 accredited foreign observers, 304 of them on behalf of 21 states and 2,017 from 20 international organisations.


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Conduct
The Ukrainian democratic watchdog OPORA stated about the elections that they were legitimate, but that "the [election] campaign cannot be called fully free within the limits of the country" because of the fighting in the Donbas region. The NGO Committee of Voters of Ukraine asked the Central Election Commission of Ukraine to declare invalid the results of constituencies 45 and 102 because there "significant irregularities were numerous".


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Conduct
The OSCE stated about the elections that they were "in line with international commitments, and were characterized by many positive aspects, including an impartial and efficient Central Election Commission, competitive contests that offered voters real choice, and general respect for fundamental freedoms". European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission President José Manuel Barroso called the elections "a victory of the people of Ukraine and of democracy". US President Barack Obama and his Secretary of State John Kerry also congratulated Ukraine "on successful parliamentary elections".


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Conduct
The day after the election Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated "I think we will recognize this election because it is very important for us that Ukraine will finally have authorities that do not fight one another, do not drag Ukraine to the West or to the East, but that will deal with the real problems facing the country". He also hoped that the new Ukrainian government "will be constructive, will not seek to continue escalating confrontational tendencies in society, (in ties) with Russia".


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Conduct
Lavrov's Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin stated "the election is valid in spite of the rather harsh and dirty election campaign". Karasin also "welcomed the success of parties supporting a peaceful resolution of the conflict in eastern Ukraine" and warned that "nationalistic and chauvinistic forces" in parliament could undermine peace efforts and were "extremely dangerous".


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Conduct
Senator Vladimir Dzhabarov, acting chairman of the (Russian) Federation Council's International Affairs Committee, stated that "The contacts earlier established between the State Duma and the Federation Council on the one hand and the Verkhovna Rada on the other will hopefully be re-launched in some format" although he stated he could not imagine how these contacts would be developed since he believed "The new Ukrainian parliament has become more radical-minded". Dzhabarov claimed about the elections that "If such elections had been held in some other country, in Russia for instance, the West would have never recognized them as legitimate.


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Conduct
Nevertheless, the West and Europe have recognized the Ukrainian elections as valid". Observers of the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation were positive about the elections and in particular welcomed that "administrative resources" were not used in the elections. Observers of the International Republican Institute also expressed this opinion and stated that its observers had witnessed only minor non-systemic irregularities that could not have affected the outcome of the election.


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, By-elections, 2015
On 26 July 2015 mid-term election were held in constituency 205 located in Chernihiv. These were necessary after 2014 winner Valeriy Kulich had left parliament because of his appointment as Governor of Chernihiv Oblast. 91 candidates took part in the elections; eight of them for political parties, the others were self-nominated candidates. On election day the ballot paper stretched to about 1 meter. 36 candidates had withdrawn from participation in the elections. During the election campaign top candidates Hennadiy Korban and Serhiy Berezenko were repeatedly accused of bribing voters, the use of black PR and other violations (of the electoral legislation).


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, By-elections, 2015
The election was won by Berezenko of Petro Poroshenko Bloc with 35.90% of the vote. Second most votes were won by Korban of UKROP who received 14.76%. The official voter turnout was set at 35.3%.


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, By-elections, 2016
On 17 July 2016 mid-term election were held in 7 single-member districts (constituency 23, 27, 85, 114, 151, 183 and 206) because their representatives had been elected to executive political positions and the death of Ihor Yeremeyev. Turnout varied from about 50% until less than 20%. The elections were monitored by 57 international official observers.


2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election, By-elections, 2016
Vote counting in constituency 114 (situated in Stanytsia Luhanska) was disrupted after several members of the election commission refused to count votes. In the same constituency 14 criminal cases for violating the election were opened. Constituency 151 was last in announcing its final results when it did so on 21 July 2016.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election
Snap Presidential elections were held in Ukraine on 25 May 2014, resulting in Petro Poroshenko being elected President of Ukraine. Originally scheduled to take place on 29 March 2015, the date was changed following the 2014 Ukrainian revolution. Poroshenko won the elections with 54.7% of the votes, enough to win in a single round. His closest competitor was Yulia Tymoshenko, who emerged with 12.81% of the votes. The Central Election Commission reported voter turnout at over 60% excluding those regions not under government control. Since Poroshenko obtained an absolute majority in the first round, a run-off second ballot (on 15 June 2014) was unnecessary.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election
The elections were not held throughout Ukraine. During the 2014 Crimean crisis, Ukraine lost control over Crimea, which was unilaterally annexed by Russia in March 2014. As a result, elections were not held in Crimea. In the Donbas region of Ukraine, only 20% of the ballot stations were open due to threats and violence by pro-Russia separatists. Of the 2,430 planned ballot stations (in Donbas), only 426 remained open for polling. The self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic and Luhansk People's Republic, controlling large parts of Donbas, had vowed to do everything possible to disrupt the elections on their territory.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election
Petro Poroshenko won the presidency and served a full presidential term until 2019, losing to Volodymyr Zelensky.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Prior to the rescheduling of the election
On 7 December 2012, Fatherland nominated Yulia Tymoshenko as its presidential candidate. On 14 June 2013, the congress of her party approved the decision to nominate her as its candidate for the presidential election. On 11 October 2011, a Ukrainian court found Tymoshenko guilty of abuse of power, sentenced her to seven years in jail and banned her from seeking elected office for her period of imprisonment. Because Tymoshenko was in prison during the 2012 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Arseniy Yatsenyuk headed the election list of Fatherland. Tymoshenko remained in prison until 22 February 2014, after parliament voted for her release and removal of her criminal record, allowing her to compete for elected office once again.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Prior to the rescheduling of the election
In May 2013, Fatherland, UDAR, and Svoboda vowed to coordinate their actions during the presidential campaign, and promised "to support the candidate from among these parties who wins a place in the run-off election". If the election format were to change to a single round, the three parties vowed to agree on a single candidate.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Prior to the rescheduling of the election
On 24 October 2013, the leader of UDAR, Vitali Klitschko, announced he intended to take part in the election. Experts and lawyers argued that it is unclear if Klitschko could take part. Under Ukrainian law a presidential candidate must have had his residence in Ukraine for the past ten years prior to election day. Klitschko has lived for many years in both Ukraine and Germany, where, according to media reports, he has a residence permit. Klitschko confirmed on 28 February 2014 that he will take part in the 2014 Ukrainian presidential election. However, on 29 March, he withdrew from the race for the presidency, simultaneously pledging his support for Petro Poroshenko.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Prior to the rescheduling of the election
Former President Viktor Yanukovych, prior to his dismissal and subsequent flight from the country (see below), was considered likely to run for his second and final term. But, as of 19 December 2013, he had made no final decision on this. On 19 December 2013, Yanukovych alluded to not participating when he stated "If, theoretically speaking, my rating is low and has no prospects, I won't hinder the country's development and movement ahead".


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Early 2014 elections, Scheduling
On 21 November 2013, the Ukrainian Second Azarov Government suspended preparations for signing an association agreement with the European Union. The decision to postpone the signing of the association agreement led to massive protests across Ukraine. These led to the removal of President Viktor Yanukovych and his government by the parliament in February, as part of the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, during which Yanukovych fled the country to Russia. On 22 February 2014, the Verkhovna Rada voted 328–0 to dismiss Yanukovych as president. Oleksandr Turchynov, deputy chairman of Fatherland, who had been appointed as Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada earlier that day, was named acting Prime Minister, and, due to Yanukovych's deposition, acting president, until new elections could be held.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Early 2014 elections, Scheduling
In a press conference in the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don on 28 February, Yanukovych stated that he would not take part in the elections, stating that "I believe they are unlawful, and I will not take part in them". It was later speculated that Serhiy Tihipko would be the presidential candidate of the Party of Regions, Yanukovych's former party. The party's nomination went to Mykhailo Dobkin, however, and Tihipko entered the elections as an independent candidate. Dobkin was amongst the persons wanted by the (then new) Yatsenyuk Government to be sent for trial at the International Criminal Court.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Early 2014 elections, Scheduling
During the 2014 Crimean crisis and Russian military intervention, Ukraine lost control over the Crimea, which was unilaterally annexed by Russia in March 2014. As a result, elections were not held in the Crimea, but Ukrainians who had kept their Ukrainian citizenship were allowed to vote elsewhere in Ukraine.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Early 2014 elections, Escalation of pro-Russian unrest
In the Donbas region of the Eastern Ukraine, pro-Russian protests escalated into an armed separatist insurgency early in April 2014, when masked gunmen took control of several of the region's government buildings and towns.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Early 2014 elections, Escalation of pro-Russian unrest
On 15 April 2014, Ukrainian media reported that the General Prosecutor of Ukraine had launched criminal proceedings against then-candidate Oleh Tsarov for allegedly aiding separatists and thus violating Ukraine's territorial integrity. Tsarov withdrew his candidacy on 29 April.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Early 2014 elections, Escalation of pro-Russian unrest
Serhiy Taruta, governor of Donetsk, has suggested a referendum, to be held on 15 June, at the same time as the potential second round of the election. The referendum would address the decentralization of political power, potentially giving regions a greater say in their own affairs, such as greater control over the taxes they levy and the power to make Russian a second official language.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Early 2014 elections, Escalation of pro-Russian unrest
On 16 May 2014, the Constitutional Court of Ukraine ruled that the candidate elected as a result of the presidential election would serve a full five-year term of office.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Early 2014 elections, Escalation of pro-Russian unrest
On 17 May 2014, the Central Election Commission of Ukraine (CEC) stated that, due to "illegal actions of unknown people", it could not arrange for the "preparation and conduct of elections" in six constituencies in the Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts. According to the CEC, members of district election commissions there had received threats to their own personal safety and to that of their families. The CEC warned that two million people in the two oblasts (provinces), about 5.6% of Ukraine's approximately 36 million eligible voters, could be deprived of their right to vote if the situation there did not improve.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Early 2014 elections, Escalation of pro-Russian unrest
On 22 May, the work of eighteen of the thirty-four election commissions in Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts had been stopped fully or partially by representatives of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic and Luhansk People's Republic. By 23 May, this number had increased to twenty of the thirty-four. The Committee of Voters of Ukraine predicted on 23 May that, due to  "ongoing acts of terrorism and armed insurgency", 10% of the Ukrainian population would be unable to vote. On the same day, the leader of the Luhansk People's Republic advised citizens not to go to the polls to vote, warning of possible provocative "explosions" set by Ukrainian military.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Simultaneous mayoral elections
On 25 May 2014, 27 mayoral elections were also held, including those in Odessa and 2014 Kyiv local election.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Russian reaction
Initially Russia opposed rescheduling the election because the Russian government considered the removal of then President Viktor Yanukovych illegal and his temporary successors an "illegitimate junta". But on 7 May 2014 Russian President Vladimir Putin stated the election would be a step "in the right direction" but that the vote would decide nothing unless the rights of "all citizens" were protected. At the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on 23 May 2014, Putin appeared to further move away from Russia's initial position by announcing that Russia would respect the outcome of the elections in Ukraine and was ready to work with whoever won the presidency.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Background, Russian reaction
The US and European Union vowed early May 2014 that they would impose further sanctions against Russia (sanctions have been in place against Russia since the 2014 Crimean crisis) if it disrupted the election. However, unlike previous sanctions which were limited to individuals and companies, the third stage is set to target entire sectors of the Russian economy. Earlier the US and the EU had accused Russia of destabilising Ukraine by stoking the 2014 pro-Russian rebellion in Eastern Ukraine, a charge Russia has denied.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Electoral system
The term of office for the Ukrainian president is five years. If no candidate had obtained an absolute majority in the first round, then the two highest polling candidates would have contested a run-off second ballot on 15 June 2014.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Electoral system, Information technology framework for electoral monitoring – Elections 2014
Arsen Avakov underlined the importance of Elections 2014 a new IT elections monitoring system ("Ukrainian: Вибори 2014") that allowed voters to track the progress of the elections in real time, potentially increasing transparency, and avoiding the post-election disturbances seen in prior Ukrainian elections. On 22 May 2014, three days before the election, hacker group CyberBerkut announced that it had compromised the primary servers of the Central Election Commission and stolen passwords from the servers. As well, the Security Service of Ukraine investigated the servers and discovered a that would have destroyed election results. On election day, authorities arrested a group of hackers with specialized equipment in Kyiv. They had been attempting to rig the election.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Candidates
21 candidates took part in the elections; seven of them had been nominated by political parties, 15 were self-nominees. A total of 18 candidates ran for president in 2010. Before 7 April 2014, four Party of Regions members were running for election, but on 7 April 2014 the political council of the party expelled the presidential candidates Serhiy Tihipko, Oleh Tsarov and Yuriy Boiko from the party. On 29 March a Party of Regions convention supported Mykhailo Dobkin's nomination as a presidential candidate.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Candidates
Candidates were able to nominate themselves at the Central Election Commission of Ukraine from 25 February 2014 until 30 March 2014. The last date for registering candidates was 4 April 2014. Candidates needed to submit a full package of documents and a 2.5 million hryvnia deposit.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Candidates, Withdrawn candidates, After deadline
The Central Election Commission was unable to remove from the ballot the names of candidates who withdrew from the race after the deadline of 1 May 2014.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Candidates, Rejected candidates
The Central Election Commission rejected some applications for candidate registration early in the process. It refused to register O. Burnashova, V. Marynych, A. Makhlai, A. Kucheryavenko, V. Chopei, L. Rozhnova, L. Maksymenko, D. Myroshnychenko, P. Rekal, T. Onopriyuk, and Z. Abbasov. On 3 April 2014 the CEC rejected a further three candidates: a man named Darth Vader, Evhen Terekhov, and Yuriy Ivanitsky.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Candidates, Rejected candidates
On 29 March 2014, Vitali Klitschko (UDAR) endorsed Petro Poroshenko, and announced he would run for Mayor of Kyiv in the local election taking place alongside the presidential election.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, International observers
The Central Election Commission of Ukraine (CEC) had registered 543 international official observers on 2 May 2014. On 23 May (two days before the election) this number had risen to 3,607 (CEC had completed the registration of observers on 19 May but on 23 May had allowed 823 members of the observer organization European Platform for Democratic Elections). Among others OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, OSCE's Parliamentary Assembly, the Ukrainian World Congress and the United States sent observers. OSCE deployed 100 long-term observers and 900 short-term observers.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, International observers
On 9 May 2014 U.S. Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs Victoria Nuland stated her country would support 255 long-term and more than 3,300 short-term observers. Russia did not send observers. Other Commonwealth of Independent States members also did not send observers; because Ukraine had not sent an invitation to the CIS Election Monitoring Organisation.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Results
Petro Poroshenko won the elections with 54.7% of the votes, when excluding the Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts that have 6.6 million residents. His closest competitor was Yulia Tymoshenko, who emerged with 12.81% of the votes. The Central Election Commission reported voter turnout at over 60% excluding those regions not under government control. In the Donbas region of Ukraine only 20% of the ballot stations were open due to threats and violence by pro-Russia separatists. Of the 2,430 planned ballot stations (in Donbas) only 426 remained open for polling.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Results
Exit polls had also predicted that Poroshenko won the election outright with over 55.9% of the votes,


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Reactions
Despite Russia's earlier protest at rescheduling the election and the general tense relation between the countries at the time because of the annexation of Crimea and the Russian military intervention in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin recognised the vote.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Reactions
The leaders of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic and Luhansk People's Republic, controlling large parts of the Donbas region of Eastern Ukraine, declared that the regions had made their choice shown in the results of the status referendum of 11 May.


2014 Ukrainian presidential election, Reactions
US President Barack Obama congratulated Petro Poroshenko with his victory by telephone 2 days after the election. This was also done by President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso and European Parliament President Martin Schulz and other EU leaders such as German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President François Hollande.


2014 Ulster Senior Football Championship
The 2014 Ulster Senior Football Championship was the 126th installment of the annual Ulster Senior Football Championship held under the auspices of Ulster GAA. It was one of the four provincial competitions of the 2014 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship. Monaghan entered the competition as defending Ulster champions. They were dethroned by Donegal in the final.


2014 Ulster Senior Football Championship
The draw was made on 3 October 2013. Under new GAA rules, to allow counties to more easily predict the dates of their qualifier matches, the two sides of the draw were named as either A or B. Antrim, Derry, Donegal and Fermanagh were named on the A side of the draw, while Armagh, Cavan, Down, Monaghan and Tyrone's draw was named as the B side.


2014 Ulster Senior Football Championship
The opening game of the Ulster Championship was played on 18 May 2014, with Tyrone playing Down at Healy Park. The game ended level and the teams faced each other again the following week, with Tyrone advancing to the quarter-finals. In the first of the quarter-finals on 25 May 2014, Derry were beaten by Donegal, the Oak Leaf county losing by a goal in their home ground of Celtic Park. In the second quarter-final, which took place on 1 June 2014, Antrim narrowly beat Fermanagh, seeing the Saffrons through to their first Ulster semi-final since 2009.


2014 Ulster Senior Football Championship
A mass player brawl before kick-off marred the quarter-final meeting of Armagh and Cavan at the Athletic Grounds on 8 June 2014, with Cavan's star player Martin Dunne unable to play and his team losing by a goal and three points. Dunne sustained a broken hand and was seen watching the game with his arm in a sling. Reigning Ulster champions Monaghan overcame Tyrone by a single point on 15 June 2014, to earn the chance to face Armagh.


2014 Ulster Senior Football Championship
In the first semi-final on 22 June 2014, Antrim were beaten comfortably by Donegal with the total difference between the teams at full-time being 13 points. The second semi-final was much closer, the match between Armagh and Monaghan on 28 June 2014 ending level. In the replay on 6 July 2014, Monaghan were five-point victors, setting up a final against Donegal, a replay of the previous year's final.


2014 Ulster Senior Football Championship
The final took place on 20 July 2014. Having led 0-06 to 0-04 at half-time, Donegal won the match by three point on 0-15 to 1-09 scoreline, avenging the previous year's defeat to Monaghan in the final.


2014 Ulster Senior Football Championship, Teams
The Ulster championship is contested by the nine old counties in the Irish province of Ulster. Ulster comprises the six counties of Northern Ireland as well as Cavan, Donegal and Monaghan in the Republic of Ireland.


2014 Ulster Senior Hurling Championship
The 2014 Ulster Senior Hurling Championship was the 64th staging of the Ulster hurling championship since its establishment by the Ulster Council in 1901.


2014 Ulster Senior Hurling Championship, Format
Five teams entered. Antrim as holders received a bye to the final, while the other four teams played off for the other final place.


2014 Under 18 Men's Australian Championships
The 2014 Men's Under 18 Australian Championships was a field hockey tournament held in Australia's capital city, Canberra from 4–12 April.


2014 Under 18 Men's Australian Championships
QLD won the gold medal, defeating NSW State 8–2 in the final. WA won the bronze medal by defeating VIC Blue 5–1 in the third place playoff.


2014 Under 18 Women's Australian Hockey Championships
The 2014 Women's Under 18 Australian Championships was a field hockey tournament held in the Victorian city of Melbourne.


2014 Under 18 Women's Australian Hockey Championships
Queensland won the gold medal by defeating the New South Wales 5–2 in the final. Victoria Blue won the bronze medal by defeating Australian Capital Territory 3–2 in the third and fourth place playoff.


2014 Under 18 Women's Australian Hockey Championships, Competition Format
The tournament is divided into two pools, Pool A and Pool B, each consisting of five teams in a round robin format. Throughout the pool stage however, teams from each pool competed in crossover matches with the teams in the other pool, with each team playing one crossover match.


2014 Under 18 Women's Australian Hockey Championships, Competition Format
At the conclusion of the pool stage, the top two teams of Pools A and B progressed through to the semi-finals, where the top placed teams of each pool competed against the second placed team of each pool, with the winners progressing to the final.


2014 Under 18 Women's Australian Hockey Championships, Competition Format
The bottom three teams then play in crossover matches with teams from the other pool, the results of these matches determine the playoff games, with best results playing for fifth and worst results playing for 9th.


2014 Under 18 Women's Australian Hockey Championships, Teams
Unlike other National Australian Championships, teams from New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria are eligible to enter two teams.


2014 Under 21 Men's Australian Hockey Championships
The 2014 Under 21 Men's Australian Championships was a men's Field Hockey tournament held in the New South Wales city of Sydney.


2014 Under 21 Men's Australian Hockey Championships
New South Wales won the gold medal after defeating Victoria 7–2 in the final. Western Australia won the bronze medal by defeating Queensland 3–0 in the third and fourth playoff.


2014 Under 21 Men's Australian Hockey Championships, Competition Format
The tournament is played in a round robin format, with each team facing each other once. Final placings after the pool matches determine playoffs.


2014 Under 21 Men's Australian Hockey Championships, Competition Format
The bottom four teams play in the classification round. Two crossover matches are played, with the fifth placed team playing the eighth place team and the fifth placed team facing the sixth placed team. The winners of the crossover matches progress to the fifth and sixth place playoff, while the losers contest the seventh and eighth place playoff.


2014 Under 21 Men's Australian Hockey Championships, Competition Format
The top four teams contest the medal round. Two semi-finals are played, with the first placed team taking on the fourth placed team and the second placed team taking on the third placed team. The winners progress to the final, while the losers contest the third and fourth place playoff.


2014 Under 21 Women's Australian Championships
The 2014 Under 21 Women's Australian Championships was a women's Field Hockey tournament held in the Western Australia city of Perth.


2014 Under 21 Women's Australian Championships
New South Wales won the gold medal after defeating Queensland 3–1 in the final. Australian Capital Territory won the bronze medal by defeating South Australia 1–0 in the third and fourth playoff.


2014 Under 21 Women's Australian Championships, Competition Format
The tournament is played in a round robin format, with each team facing each other once. Final placings after the pool matches determine playoffs.


2014 Under 21 Women's Australian Championships, Competition Format
The bottom two teams play in a classification match, with the winner progressing to play the fifth placed team in the fifth and sixth place playoff, while the loser finishes in seventh place.


2014 Under 21 Women's Australian Championships, Competition Format
The top four teams contest the medal round. Two semi-finals are played, with the first placed team taking on the fourth placed team and the second placed team taking on the third placed team. The winners progress to the final, while the losers contest the third and fourth place playoff.


2014 Under-19 Cricket World Cup
The 2014 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup was a one-day cricket competition for sixteen international U-19 cricketing teams which was played in the United Arab Emirates. This was the tenth edition of the tournament. Sixteen nations competed: the ten Test-playing teams, the United Arab Emirates as hosts, and five additional associate and affiliate qualifiers (Afghanistan, Canada, Namibia, Papua New Guinea, and Scotland). India entered the tournament as defending champions, having won the title in 2012 in Australia under the captaincy of Unmukt Chand. In the final, South Africa beat Pakistan by six wickets to win the tournament. South Africa captain Aiden Markram was awarded Man of the Series.


2014 Under-19 Cricket World Cup, Qualification
Sixteen teams participated in the competition: the 10 nations with ICC Full Membership automatically qualified for the tournament, the UAE qualified as the hosts, and five additional teams qualified through the different regional tournaments. Unlike the previous tournament, there was no global qualifier for this world cup: rather, the winner of each of five regional tournaments directly qualified for the World Cup.


2014 Under-19 Cricket World Cup, Groups
The following groups were chosen for the World Cup 2012 by the International Cricket Council. The tournament began with a league stage consisting of four groups of four. Each team played each of the other teams in its group once.


2014 Under-19 Cricket World Cup, Fixtures
The tournament groups and fixtures were released on 14 December 2013.


2014 Under-19 Cricket World Cup, Final standings
Teams in green qualify for the next world cup as full members of ICC.


2014 Under-19 Cricket World Cup squads
This is a list of the squads picked for the 2014 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup.


2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship
The 2014 ABSA Under-19 Provincial Championship was a rugby union competition held between the Under-19 players from the fourteen provincial rugby unions in South Africa, plus the  Limpopo Blue Bulls sub-union. It was contested from 11 July to 25 October 2014.


2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship, Group A, Competition
There were seven participating teams in the 2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship Group A. These teams played each other twice over the course of the season, once at home and once away.


2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship, Group A, Competition
Teams received four points for a win and two points for a draw. Bonus points were awarded to teams that scored 4 or more tries in a game, as well as to teams that lost a match by 7 points or less. Teams were ranked by points, then points difference (points scored less points conceded).


2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship, Group A, Competition
The top 4 teams qualified for the title play-offs. In the semi-finals, the team that finished first had home advantage against the team that finished fourth, while the team that finished second had home advantage against the team that finished third. The winners of these semi-finals played each other in the final, at the same venue as the 2014 Currie Cup Premier Division Final.


2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship, Group A, Competition
The bottom team in Group A played a play-off game at home against the winner of the Group B final for a place in the 2015 Under-19 Provincial Championship Group A.


2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship, Group A, Teams, Team Listing
The following teams took part in the 2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship Group A competition:


2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship, Group A, Log
The current log of the round-robin stage of the 2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship Group A is:


2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship, Group B, Competition
There were eight participating teams in the 2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship Group B. These teams played each other once over the course of the season, either at home or away.


2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship, Group B, Competition
Teams received four points for a win and two points for a draw. Bonus points were awarded to teams that scored 4 or more tries in a game, as well as to teams that lost a match by 7 points or less. Teams were ranked by points, then points difference (points scored less points conceded).


2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship, Group B, Competition
The top 4 teams qualified for the title play-offs. In the semi-finals, the team that finished first had home advantage against the team that finished fourth, while the team that finished second had home advantage against the team that finished third. The winners of these semi-finals played each other in the final, at the same venue as the 2014 Currie Cup First Division Final.


2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship, Group B, Competition
The winner of the final played a play-off game away from home against the bottom team in Group A for a place in the 2015 Under-19 Provincial Championship Group A.


2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship, Group B, Teams, Team Listing
The following teams took part in the 2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship Group B competition:


2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship, Group B, Log
The top four teams qualified to the semi-finals, the play-off winner qualified to the promotion/relegation play-offs. Points breakdown:* 4 points for a win* 2 points for a draw* 1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less* 1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match


2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship
The 2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship was a rugby union competition held between the Under-21 players from the fourteen provincial rugby unions in South Africa, plus the  Limpopo Blue Bulls sub-union. It was contested from 11 July to 25 October 2014.


2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship, Group A, Competition
There were seven participating teams in the 2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship Group A. These teams played each other twice over the course of the season, once at home and once away.


2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship, Group A, Competition
Teams received four points for a win and two points for a draw. Bonus points were awarded to teams that scored 4 or more tries in a game, as well as to teams that lost a match by 7 points or less. Teams were ranked by points, then points difference (points scored less points conceded).


2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship, Group A, Competition
The top 4 teams qualified for the title play-offs. In the semi-finals, the team that finished first had home advantage against the team that finished fourth, while the team that finished second had home advantage against the team that finished third. The winners of these semi-finals played each other in the final, at the same venue as the 2014 Currie Cup Premier Division Final.


2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship, Group A, Competition
The bottom team in Group A played a play-off game at home against the winner of the Group B final for a place in the 2015 Under-21 Provincial Championship Group A.


2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship, Group A, Teams, Team Listing
The following teams took part in the 2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship Group A competition:


2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship, Group A, Log
The final log of the round-robin stage of the 2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship Group A is:


2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship, Group A, Log
The top four teams qualified to the semi-finals, the bottom team qualified to the promotion/relegation play-offs. Points breakdown:* 4 points for a win* 2 points for a draw* 1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less* 1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match


2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship, Group B, Competition
There were eight participating teams in the 2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship Group B. These teams played each other once over the course of the season, either at home or away.


2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship, Group B, Competition
Teams received four points for a win and two points for a draw. Bonus points were awarded to teams that scored 4 or more tries in a game, as well as to teams that lost a match by 7 points or less. Teams were ranked by points, then points difference (points scored less points conceded).


2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship, Group B, Competition
The top 4 teams qualified for the title play-offs. In the semi-finals, the team that finished first had home advantage against the team that finished fourth, while the team that finished second had home advantage against the team that finished third. The winners of these semi-finals played each other in the final, at the same venue as the 2014 Currie Cup First Division Final.


2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship, Group B, Competition
The winner of the final played a play-off game away from home against the bottom team in Group A for a place in the 2015 Under-21 Provincial Championship Group A.


2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship, Group B, Teams, Team Listing
The following teams took part in the 2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship Group B competition:


2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship, Group B, Log
The final log of the round-robin stage of the 2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship Group B is:


2014 Under-21 Provincial Championship, Group B, Log
The top four teams will qualify to the semi-finals, the play-off winner will qualify to the promotion/relegation play-offs. Points breakdown:* 4 points for a win* 2 points for a draw* 1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less* 1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match


2014 UniCredit Czech Open
The 2014 UniCredit Czech Open was a professional tennis tournament played on clay courts. It was the 21st edition of the tournament which was part of the 2014 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Prostějov, Czech Republic between 2 and 7 June 2014.


2014 UniCredit Czech Open, Singles main draw entrants, Other Entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2014 UniCredit Czech Open, Singles main draw entrants, Other Entrants
The following players received entry as alternates into the singles main draw:


2014 UniCredit Czech Open, Doubles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following pairs received wildcards into the doubles main draw:


2014 UniCredit Czech Open – Doubles
Nicholas Monroe and Simon Stadler were the defending champions but decided not to participate.


2014 UniCredit Czech Open – Doubles
Andre Begemann and Lukáš Rosol won the title, defeating Peter Polansky and Adil Shamasdin in the final, 6–1, 6–2.


2014 UniCredit Czech Open – Singles
Radek Štěpánek was the defending champion, but lost in the semifinals to Jiří Veselý.


2014 UniCredit Czech Open – Singles
Jiří Veselý won the title, defeating Norbert Gombos in the final, 6–2, 6–2.


2014 Union budget of India
The Union Budget of India for 2014–2015 was presented by Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley on 10 July 2014,11 am. This was the first budget of Narendra Modi led NDA government.


2014 United Bowl
The 2014 United Bowl was the sixth title game of the Indoor Football League (IFL). It was played on June 28, 2014, at the Sioux Falls Arena in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The top seed in the United Conference, the Sioux Falls Storm, defeated the second seed in the Intense Conference, the Nebraska Danger 63–46.


2014 United Football League
The 2014 United Football League was the fifth season of the UFL since its establishment as a semi-professional league in 2009. The UFL League kicked off on Saturday, January 11 with 9 teams in Division I and 12 teams in Division II.


2014 United Football League
Stallion are the defending champions, having won the Division 1 of the 2013 United Football League season.


2014 United Football League
Global outclassed Pachanga Diliman 7-2 on 12 June 2014 to clinch the 2014 United Football League title with three games to spare.


2014 United Football League, Teams
The relegated Philippine Air Force from 2013 UFL Division 1  will be replaced by Team Socceroo as the champions of 2013 UFL Division 2. The Manila Nomads voluntarily stepped down from Division I and will play in Division II for this season citing its inability to comply with Division I's Foreigner Cap rule, which dictates that there should be a minimum of six Filipino players on the pitch at all times. Manila Jeepney and Ceres will make its debut at the league's Division II. In this season, the Division I will play a triple round-robin system, increasing games from 18 to 24.


2014 United Football League, Season awards, Team awards
The following teams are awarded by the United Football League in the ceremony.


2014 United Football League, Season awards, Individual awards
The following players are awarded by the United Football League Committee in the ceremony.


2014 United Kingdom budget
The 2014 United Kingdom budget was delivered by George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the House of Commons on Wednesday, 19 March 2014.


2014 United Kingdom budget
It was the fifth budget of the Conservative–Liberal Democrat coalition government formed after the 2010 general election, and also the fifth to be delivered by Osborne.


2014 United Kingdom local elections
The 2014 United Kingdom local elections were held on 22 May 2014. Usually these elections are held on the first Thursday in May but were postponed to coincide with the 2014 European Parliament Elections. Direct elections were held for all 32 London boroughs, all 36 metropolitan boroughs, 74 district/borough councils, 19 unitary authorities and various mayoral posts in England and elections to the new councils in Northern Ireland.


2014 United Kingdom local elections
All registered electors (British, Irish, Commonwealth and European Union citizens) who were aged 18 or over on the day of the election were entitled to vote in the local elections.


2014 United Kingdom local elections
The BBC's projected national vote share (PNV) put Labour on 31%, the Conservatives on 29%, UKIP on 17%, and the Liberal Democrats on 13%. Rallings and Thrasher of Plymouth University's national equivalent vote share (NEV) estimated 31% for Labour, 30% for the Conservatives, 18% for UKIP, and 11% for the Liberal Democrats.


2014 United Kingdom local elections
For the fourth year running, the Labour Party enjoyed the largest share of the vote in local elections, but its share of the vote was its smallest since 2010. UKIP, which topped the same day's European Parliament elections, finished third in vote share, claiming council seats from Labour, the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats.


2014 United Kingdom local elections, Overview of results, England results, English Councils - shift of control
This table depicts how the control of local councils shifted in this election.


2014 United Kingdom local elections, Overview of results, England results, English Councils - shift of control
The data along the diagonal represents no shift in control in that number of councils: for example, Chorley was among the solid colour no change 73 Labour controlled councils. The other cells represent the shifts of control: for example, Harrow was one of five councils of which Labour gained control from No Overall Control. The intensity of the colour in a table cell other than the diagonal reflects the relative number of losses in council control suffered by each party.


2014 United Kingdom local elections, London boroughs
All seats in the 32 London Borough Councils were up for election.


2014 United Kingdom local elections, London boroughs, Individual council results
Harrow's Council was elected in 2010 with a Labour majority but divisions within this majority in 2013 led to a coalition struck between the Conservatives and the Independent Labour Group (formed of eight ex-Labour councillors). Conservatives withdrew their support for Independent Labour on 16 September 2013 leading to a brief Conservative minority administration.


2014 United Kingdom local elections, Metropolitan boroughs
One third of the seats in all 36 Metropolitan Boroughs were up for election (showing those elected and each party's total in the new council).


2014 United Kingdom local elections, Unitary authorities
Two unitary authorities had all of their seats up for election following boundary changes.


2014 United Kingdom local elections, Unitary authorities
One third of the council seats were up for election in 17 unitary authorities (elected and totals shown).


2014 United Kingdom local elections, Non-metropolitan districts, Third of council
† Elected councillors will hold office for one year only as Purbeck District will adopt whole council elections from 2015.


2014 United Kingdom local elections, Mayoral elections
In Copeland, there was a referendum to establish a post of directly elected mayor, which passed.


2014 United Kingdom local elections, Northern Ireland
These were the first elections to the 11 new 'super-councils' in Northern Ireland, following a reorganisation. These will operate in shadow form for one year, with the current 26 councils existing in parallel.


2014 United Kingdom local elections, Northern Ireland, Party composition of new councils
The party abbreviations in this table are explained in the total-vote table that follows it.


2014 United Kingdom local elections, Northern Ireland, Votes cast
These elections used the Single Transferable Vote method of proportional representation. Votes and percentages for each party reflect the first preference on each ballot.


2014 United Kingdom local elections, Electoral administration, Eligibility to vote
All registered electors (British, Irish, Commonwealth and European Union citizens) who were aged 18 or over on the day of the election were entitled to vote in the local elections. Those who were temporarily away from their ordinary address (for example, away working, on holiday, in student accommodation or in hospital) were also entitled to vote in the local elections, although those who have moved abroad and registered as overseas electors cannot vote in the local elections. Those who were registered to vote at more than one address (such as a university student who has a term-time address and lives at home during holidays) were entitled to vote in the local elections at each address, as long as they were not in the same local government area.


2014 United Kingdom local elections, Enacting legislation
These elections were held on 22 May 2014 as provided by 'The Local Elections (Ordinary Day of Elections in 2014) Order 2013' (S.I. 2013/2277).


2014 United Nations Climate Change Conference
The United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP20 or CMP10 was held in Lima, Peru, from December 1 to 12, 2014. This was the 20th yearly session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 20) to the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the 10th session of the Meeting of the Parties (CMP 10) to the 1997 Kyoto Protocol. The conference delegates held negotiations towards a global climate agreement.


2014 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Background
While this was conference in the annual series, more attention is directed towards the 2015 conference in Paris. A statement made by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon forecast the climate change summit to be held in September 2014, but made no organizational reference to the 2014 conference in Lima or the Paris conference.


2014 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Negotiations
The overarching goal of the conference was to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) to limit the global temperature increase to 2 degrees Celsius above current levels.


2014 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Negotiations, European Union
The EU aims a legally binding 40% drop in emissions by 2030 against carbon output in 1990 as baseline.


2014 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Politics of oil producing countries
Before the Conference on Climate Change, oil producing countries increased the oil production and oil became cheaper than it had been for years.


2014 United Nations Security Council election
The 2014 United Nations Security Council election was held on 16 October 2014 during the 69th session of the United Nations General Assembly, held at United Nations Headquarters in New York City. The elections were for five non-permanent seats on the UN Security Council for two-year mandates commencing on 1 January 2015. In accordance with the Security Council's rotation rules, whereby the ten non-permanent UNSC seats rotate among the various regional blocs into which UN member states traditionally divide themselves for voting and representation purposes, the five available seats were allocated as follows:


2014 United Nations Security Council election
The five members will serve on the Security Council for the 2015–16 period. The countries elected were Angola, Malaysia, New Zealand, Spain, and Venezuela.


2014 United Nations Security Council election, Campaign
Malaysian Permanent Representative to the UN Datuk Hussein Haniff said: "I have been participating in all the open debates. The Malaysian mission is actively engaged in lobbying to get elected. We are the only candidate from Asia, so far, for a UNSC non-permanent seat, and need to get a two-thirds majority in the General Assembly for a non-permanent membership". Additionally, he asserted that while Malaysia was the sole candidate as of the end of 2013 for the seat, he hopes that "this will remain so until the electoral process is finalised". Foreign Minister Dato' Seri Anifah Aman also said that "We must not take it for granted. We have to work very hard and we have to engage and meet leaders from various countries to secure the seat, but I am quite confident that Malaysia has a very good name globally".


2014 United Nations Security Council election, Opinions about Venezuela's candidacy
Due to the ongoing protests against the government within Venezuela, and the International Criminal Court's reopening of the preliminary investigation of the head of state and others on suspicions of Crimes Against Humanity, there have been objections from domestic dissidents, such as Diego Arria, former ambassador of Venezuela to the United Nations during Venezuela's last term on the Security Council and Governor of the Federal District of Caracas in the mid-1970s during the presidency of Carlos Andrés Pérez, to having Venezuela as an elected member of the Security Council. Opposition has also come from figures such as Hillel Neuer, head of human rights organization UN Watch, according to whom "[e]lecting Venezuela to the UN Security Council is like making a pyromaniac into the fire chief". Neuer further declared:


2014 United Nations Security Council election, Opinions about Venezuela's candidacy
"[...] Venezuela is notorious as the only country at the UN Human Rights Council last year to vote against holding Syria accountable, effectively backing its mass murder of 200,000 people. So the E.U. knows exactly what Venezuela will do with its U.N. vote".


2014 United SportsCar Championship
The 2014 IMSA Tudor United SportsCar Championship (TUSC) was the inaugural season of the International Motor Sports Association's new series created out of a merger of the Rolex Sports Car Series and the American Le Mans Series and the first to be held under the name as the Tudor United SportsCar Championship. It began with the 24 Hours of Daytona, the first time since the 1997 IMSA GT Championship season that IMSA sanctioned an event at Daytona International Speedway on 25 January and ended on 4 October at Petit Le Mans. It was the 44th overall season of IMSA GT championship racing tracing its lineage to the 1971 IMSA GT Championship.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Classes
The class structures were revealed on March 14 and are as follows:


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Classes, Car capacities
Due to the expectation of a large number of entries for the series, IMSA announced preliminary car capacities for each class on October 11, 2013. They noted, however, that they are subject to change based on factors such as the number of full-season entries in each class.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Classes, Driver limits and classifications
Teams will be limited to utilizing a maximum of three drivers per car for events less than 6 hours in length. This capacity increases to four drivers for races from 6 hours up to 12 hours in length, and five drivers for the 24 Hours of Daytona.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Classes, Driver limits and classifications
The series will utilize a driver classification system, rating each driver as platinum, gold, silver, or bronze based on numerous factors regarding their competition history. Platinum and gold rated drivers are considered "pro" drivers, while silver and bronze rated drivers will be considered "amateur" or "gentleman" drivers.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Classes, Driver limits and classifications
In PC and GTD, a maximum of one Platinum or Gold-rated driver is permitted for two or three driver team combinations, with it being increased to two for Daytona and Sebring, should they utilize four or five-driver squads, however should a car utilize two platinum or gold-rated drivers, it must also utilize at least two silver or bronze-rated drivers, each meeting the minimum required driving time. Should this requirement go unfulfilled the team may be penalized at the discretion of the stewards, up to and including exclusion from the race results.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Classes, Driver limits and classifications
There are no driver classification restrictions in the P and GTLM classes.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Classes, Driver limits and classifications
A driver will be allowed to drive up to two cars in a single event, given that all minimum and maximum drive time limits are adhered to.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Classes, Drive time limits
The minimum and maximum allowable driving time for an individual driver vary by race and class as specified in the table below. No driver may drive for more than 4 hours of any 6 hour period at any time and that a minimum of two drivers must be used in each race. An exception are Prototype Challenge races with a two 45-minute segment format. These require a silver or bronze-rated driver for the first segment. Teams may use another driver with any rating in the second segment, but are not required to do so.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Series development
On July 31, 2013, a tire partnership was announced, with Continental Tire serving as the exclusive tire supplier for the Prototype, Prototype Challenge and GT Daytona classes. Continental was previously the specification tire of the Rolex Sports Car Series, as well as the Prototype Challenge class in the American Le Mans Series.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Series development
On December 11, 2013, Michelin announced that they will supply tires for the GT Le Mans Class Teams Corvette Racing, BMW Team RLL, Risi Competizione, SRT Motorsports, Aston Martin Racing and the new Porsche North America team. Michelin previously supplied tires for LMP1, LMP2 and GT Classes of American Le Mans Series, and was the spec-tire of PC class from 2010 to 2012.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Series development, Rule changes
The series introduced several procedural changes after the first two races of 2014:


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Schedule, Official Testing
Three official preseason tests were conducted for 2014 for both team testing and to determine balance of performance adjustments for the classes. They were as follows:


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Schedule, Official Testing
One official test took place between the 24 Hours of Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Schedule, Race schedule
The preliminary 2014 schedule was released on September 20, 2013 and featured twelve rounds. All circuits are carried over from the 2013 schedules of both the American Le Mans and Rolex Series. Circuits dropped were longtime sports car venues at Lime Rock Park and Mid-Ohio, as well as Barber and Baltimore.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Schedule, Race schedule
Some rounds on the schedule will feature only some of the four classes in the USCC. Long Beach will only feature the Prototype and GTLM classes, Detroit will have all classes except GTLM, and Virginia will feature two separate races: an event for the GTLM and GTD classes, and another race solely for the Prototype Challenge class. This will give each category only 11 races in their respective championships, excepting the Prototype Challenge class, which will contest just 10 rounds.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Schedule, Race schedule
The endurance races at Daytona, Sebring, Watkins Glen and Road Atlanta will retain their traditional lengths, while four events will have the regular 2 hour and 45 minute lengths (Mosport, Indianapolis, Road America, Austin), and the two street races will have 1 hour, 40 minute races (Long Beach and Detroit).


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Schedule, Race schedule
On October 11, 2013 a revised schedule was released. The key changes to the schedule included the addition of a stand-alone Prototype Challenge event to be held at Kansas Speedway on June 7. Subsequently, the Prototype Challenge events at Detroit and Canadian Tire Motorsport Park were removed, leaving the class with a 10 race schedule. It was also announced that two events would be contested during the May 4 event at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. One would feature the Prototype and GT Le Mans classes, while the other would feature the Prototype Challenge and GT Daytona classes.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Schedule, Race schedule
It is expected that the Prototype Challenge events which will occur at Kansas Speedway and Virginia International Raceway will be combined with the Cooper Tires Prototype Lites development series in a two-segment race format.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Schedule, Race schedule
The team winners of the North American Endurance Cup will receive prize money in each class: $100,000 for P or GTLM and $50,000 for PC or GTD.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Schedule, Race schedule
The Rolex 24 at Daytona was broadcast on Fox, Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports 2 and IMSA.com in stages as TV slots change.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Entries
On December 6, 2013, IMSA unveiled the entry lists for the 2014 season, confirming entries with full and partial season statuses as well as revealing alternate entries for multiple classes due to an oversubscribed field.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Entries, Prototype Challenge
All entries use an Oreca FLM09 chassis powered by a Chevrolet LS3 6.2 L V8 on Continental tyres.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Championship standings
Championship points are awarded based on finishing positions as shown below. The points system from the Rolex Sports Car Series has been carried over into the new series.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Championship standings
Additionally, each driver who competes in a race, receives one point.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Championship standings, Prototype, Drivers (Top 10)
João Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi won the championship at Petit Le Mans.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Championship standings, Prototype, Teams (top 10)
The No.5 Action Express Racing won the championship at Petit Le Mans.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Championship standings, Prototype Challenge, Drivers (Top 10)
Jon Bennett and  Colin Braun won the championship at Circuit of the Americas.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Championship standings, GTLM, Teams (top 10)
The #93 SRT Motorsports won the championship at Petit Le Mans.


2014 United SportsCar Championship, Championship standings, GTD, Teams (Top 10)
The #94 Turner Motorsport team won the championship at Petit Le Mans.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team
The United States men's national basketball team won the gold medal at the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup held in Spain. Prior to 2014, the event was known as the FIBA World Championship. The 24-team tournament was held from August 30 to September 14, and the victory automatically qualified the U.S. into the 2016 Olympics in Brazil. Kyrie Irving was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the tournament.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team
The United States had automatically qualified for the World Cup by virtue of the gold medal won by their 2012 Olympic team. The Americans were expected to win the World Cup, and advanced to the knockout phase after starting the tournament 5–0 during the group stage. They were an undefeated 9–0 in the tournament, winning by an average margin of 33.0 points. The United States was just the third country in World Cup history to repeat as champions. Combined with their 2010 World Championship along with gold by their 2008 and 2012 Olympic teams, they also became the first country in FIBA basketball history to win four consecutive major titles.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Roster
The squad consisted of only six former NBA All-Stars after multiple players declined to participate. Still, the team remained deep in NBA talent, and was considered the favorite to win the championship. Holdovers included 2012 Olympic gold medalists James Harden and Anthony Davis, in addition to Stephen Curry, Derrick Rose, and Rudy Gay from the 2010 championship team. The 2014 roster featured four players 6 feet 10 inches (2.08 m) or larger, the most of any US team since Mike Krzyzewski began coaching  the team in 2006. The team was also the youngest American team since 1992, when NBA players were first allowed on the team; the average player was 24.08 years old, roughly a half-year younger than their 2010 team.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Roster
In January 2014, USA Basketball announced their initial 28-man list of players to be considered for their roster for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics. Players on the list who withdrew themselves from World Cup consideration were LaMarcus Aldridge, Carmelo Anthony, Tyson Chandler, Dwight Howard, Andre Iguodala, LeBron James, David Lee, Kawhi Leonard, Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook and Deron Williams.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Roster
A 19-man preliminary roster was announced on July 14, 2014. Two of the players, DeMar DeRozan and Chandler Parsons, were not named to the initial January roster. On July 25, Blake Griffin pulled out due to concerns with his back, and John Wall was named as a replacement. Mired in unresolved trade talks between his Minnesota Timberwolves and other teams, Kevin Love withdrew on July 25. Love was replaced on the training camp roster by Paul Millsap on July 27. The day before, USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo said that final squad members could also potentially come from the Select Team that is scrimmaging with the main camp roster in Las Vegas. On July 29, Mason Plumlee was promoted to the senior team to give them an extra big man.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Roster
During a scrimmage on August 1, Paul George suffered a compound fracture of both bones in his lower right leg, and underwent surgery hours after the injury. George's injury  was similar to one suffered by Louisville Cardinals player Kevin Ware during an 2013 NCAA tournament game against the Duke Blue Devils, coached by Krzyzewski.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Roster
The next set of cuts came on August 5, when Wall, Millsap, and Bradley Beal were cut. On August 7, Kevin Durant withdrew from the team, citing physical and mental fatigue. Coupled with George's injury, the small forward position went from being a strength to a weakness for Team USA. Shortly after Durant's withdrawal, Gay was added to the preliminary roster. Kyle Korver, Chandler Parsons, Gordon Hayward, and Damian Lillard were the final cuts on the team.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Roster
Big men Davis, DeMarcus Cousins, Andre Drummond, and Plumlee—a Krzyzewski favorite whom he previously coached at Duke—were kept in anticipation of facing Spain in the title game against their frontline trio of Pau Gasol, Marc Gasol, and Serge Ibaka. Rose made the team after team officials were confident in the health of the 2010–11 NBA Most Valuable Player, despite his playing in just 10 games the prior two NBA seasons due to knee injuries.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round
Team USA entered the opening round with a 54-game winning steak, including exhibition games. They completed group play 5–0, averaging 102.2 points with an average victory margin of 33.2. They competed in Group C with the Dominican Republic, Turkey, Finland, New Zealand and Ukraine. Each team played the other respective teams from the group once, for a total of five games per team, with all the games being played at Bizkaia Arena in Barakaldo (at Greater Bilbao). After all the games were played, the four teams with the best records from each group qualified for the final round.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round
The U.S. had few problems advancing to the knockout round, though they habitually started games slowly, and their guards had yet to meet expectations to consistently excel on offense. The team was most dangerous when playing in transition, while they struggled at times in their half-court offense.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round, Finland
The Americans held Finland without a field goal in the second quarter, outscoring them 29–2 in the period en route to a 114–55 blowout victory. Klay Thompson scored 18 points and Davis added 17 to lead the U.S. The Americans quieted the vocal Finnish fans, who filled an entire side of the arena, by holding their opponents to 0-for-17 shooting in the second quarter. They forced 17 first-half turnovers to build a 60–18 lead by halftime.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round, Finland
Team USA shot 59 percent from the field as every American scored. Rose added 12 points playing a team-high 23 minutes, and Gay had 10 against Finland, who were ranked 39th, the lowest ranked team to ever receive a wild card from FIBA. The Finns finished the game with 31 turnovers and only five assists.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round, Turkey
In a rematch of the 2010 gold-medal game, the U.S. was behind 40–35 at the half and Turkey led by six early in the third quarter before the Americans pulled away for a 98–77 win. Despite the final margin, the U.S. did not manage a double-digit lead until 8:57 remaining in game. The Turks effectively slowed the pace of the game for much of the first three quarters before Team USA used a 17–1 run to pull away. Kenneth Faried led the U.S. with 22 points and eight rebounds.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round, Turkey
The game was unexpectedly tough after Team USA's 59-point rout against Finland and Turkey's needing to rally to win 76–73 against New Zealand. The Americans and Turks were tied at 16 after one quarter, and the U.S. showed frustration in the second period over the pace of the game and calls that went against them. The U.S. could not get into their transition game, unable to force turnovers or missed shots from Turkey.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round, Turkey
Davis had been the best player during the summer, but he was scoreless and had only one rebound in the first half as he was limited to 10+1⁄2 minutes while committing two fouls. The Turks held a 21–12 rebounding edge at the half, and had shot 18 free throws to the Americans 5. The game was tied at 59 with 3:10 remaining in the third when the Americans went on a 7–1 run to lead 66–60 after a basket by Faried. They opened the fourth quarter with 10 unanswered points to pull ahead 76–60.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round, Turkey
Davis scored all of his 19 points in the second half, and finished with six rebounds. Harden added 14 points, and Kyrie Irving scored 13 while playing extended minutes with a struggling Rose on the bench until Team USA was safely ahead in the fourth quarter. Without Ersan İlyasova and Enes Kanter on their team and Hedo Türkoğlu retired from international play, Ömer Aşık was the only NBA player on Turkey's roster; they did return eight players from their 2010 team. "I guess we felt like last night's game was pretty easy and tonight was going to be the same way", Harden said. Added Krzyzewski: "The big lesson for our team is you can’t take things for granted, especially when you’re playing teams the caliber of Turkey".


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round, New Zealand
Team USA led the game from beginning to end and won 98–71 over New Zealand. The game was close for a little more than a quarter before the Americans overpowered the Kiwis with their inside game. The U.S. was led by Davis' 21 points and nine rebounds, and Faried scored 15 and had 11 boards—including seven on the offensive end.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round, New Zealand
The score was 27–20 after the first quarter, and the Americans were leading by nine when they went on a 12–0 run behind seven points by Irving. The streak featured Team USA's transition game, but they frequently took advantage of Davis' and Faried's inside game in the first half. Rose started the second half in place of Irving, as Krzyzewski wanted the former NBA MVP to receive more playing time with starters. He played the first 6:17 of the third and started the fourth as well. Harden scored 13, and Curry finished the game with 12 points after struggling with just 4-for-17 shooting in the opening two games. Thompson also scored 12, while Irving added 10, as Team USA had six players in double figures.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round, New Zealand
Faried, who entered the game shooting 14-of-17, made 7-for-9 in the game for an overall 80.8 percent in the series. "Overall, from the start of training camp, he's been the biggest and best surprise and has turned out to be a very, very important player for us", Krzyzewski said. "He’s made that happen. We never call a play for him".


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round, Dominican Republic
The Americans cruised to 106–71 victory over the Dominican Republic after a sluggish first quarter. A 25–22 first-quarter lead grew to 15 by the half, and the U.S. led 92–52 after a 22–0 second-half run. Faried led the team with 16 points and added six rebounds, and Cousins also scored 13.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round, Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic was playing without injured Francisco Garcia, who was averaging a team-high 21 points per game, but remained close after Team USA missed five free throws in the first period. The U.S. led by seven in the second quarter when Faried scored three consecutive baskets and Davis hit a jumper to build a comfortable 44–29 lead. The Americans scored 25 points in the third and another 25 in the fourth, including a series of dunks by end-of-the-bench players Drummond and Plumlee. The team exceeded triple digits for the second time after scoring 98 in each of the previous two wins.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round, Ukraine
Ukraine slowed the pace of the game for most of the first half before Team USA overcame another poor start for a 95–71 win. Harden had his best game during group play with a team-high 17 points. The only major scare for the U.S. occurred near the end of the game when Irving fell hard.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round, Ukraine
The Ukrainians slowed the pace of the game for the first quarter and a half, and led 19–14 after the first period. They remained ahead 27–25 midway through the second until Curry made a pair of three-point field goals during a 19–5 spurt in the last 4:43 that gave the U.S. a 44–32 lead at the half. The Americans led 69–54 after three, and were never in danger of losing in the second half. Irving left the game with 1:12 remaining after slipping and falling hard on his tailbone; he walked off holding his lower back. He said he was "fine" after the game, and the team stated it did not "anticipate a serious injury".


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Preliminary round, Ukraine
Curry scored 14, one of six Americans in double figures. Ukraine was coached by former NBA coach Mike Fratello, and they were led by 7-foot (2.1 m) NBA player Slava Kravtsov's team-high 15 points.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Final round
The U.S. advanced to the knockout stage in which the top four teams from the respective preliminary round groups qualified in the single-elimination tournament. The losers in the semifinals will play for the bronze medal. Teams from Groups A and B will play at the Palacio de Deportes de la Comunidad de Madrid in Madrid, while those from Groups C and D play at the Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona. The third place game and the final will be held at the Madrid arena.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Final round, Round of 16 – Mexico
The U.S. avoided another slow start and Curry scored 20 while making six three-pointers in an 86–63 win over Mexico. Curry was 7-of-10 from the field and 6-for-9 from outside. Thompson, Curry's teammate on the Golden State Warriors, added 15 points, and the Americans made 13 three-pointers.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Final round, Round of 16 – Mexico
Team USA jumped out to an early 13–2 lead before Mexico scored seven unanswered points. The Americans stretched the lead to 23–13 after one quarter, and the lead remained in double digits for most of the second period for a 42–27 halftime lead. Curry then made back-to-back threes to make it 50–27. Davis and Faried, Team USA's dominant players in the first round, scored four and eight points, respectively. Instead, the team's top three scorers were its  perimeter players; Harden added 12 points.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Final round, Round of 16 – Mexico
Cousins, who Krzyzewski commended for another strong outing, made all five of his shots for 11 points and added seven rebounds. Mexico's 6-foot-9-inch (2.06 m) Gustavo Ayón, who played in the NBA in 2013–14, finished with 25 points.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Final round, Quarterfinals – Slovenia
Team USA won 119–76 after a troubled first half against a Slovenia team they comfortably handled in an exhibition game two weeks earlier. The Americans were led by Thompson's 20 points, and Harden scored 12 of his 14 in the third period.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Final round, Quarterfinals – Slovenia
The U.S. missed 10 of their first 11 shots and misfired on 21 overall in the first quarter, but their 14 offensive rebounds led to 15 second-chance points for a 29–22 lead after one. Slovenia made 70 percent of its two-pointers in the first half, but the Americans still led 49–42 despite shooting just 36 percent overall in the first two quarters; Harden and Curry were a combined 0-for-12. Team USA led by just five early in the third before going on a 27–10 run, as Slovenian turnovers led to American dunks. The U.S. scored the first 10 points in the fourth for a 96–64 lead.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Final round, Quarterfinals – Slovenia
Faried had 14 points with 10 rebounds, and Davis added 13 and 11. The U.S. finished with 23 offensive rebounds and 53 overall, which Slovenia coach Jure Zdovc called the difference in the game. Rose added 12 points on 6-for-12 shooting after going just 8-for-37 in the first six games of the World Cup. Slovenia was led by Goran Dragić's 12 points. He combined with brother Zoran Dragić for 24 points on 27 shots and nine rebounds.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Final round, Semifinals – Lithuania
Harden scored all 16 of his points in the third quarter, when the United States outscored Lithuania 33–14 for a 96–68 victory. After a tight first half, the U.S. started forcing turnovers to trigger its fast break, opening up the game. Irving scored 18 points and Thompson had 16 off the bench.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Final round, Semifinals – Lithuania
The first half was dominated by fouls on both sides, and the Americans led at the half 43–35. Late in the half, Cousins was elbowed in the throat by Lithuanian center Jonas Valančiūnas while boxing out for a rebound. Cousins then charged at him without throwing a punch, and received a technical foul. For the second straight game, Harden was scoreless in the first half. He scored the first field goal of the second half, and finished a 10–0 U.S. run with a three pointer that put the team ahead 53–35 in under two minutes. An 18–2 run to start the half was capped by a lob from Irving to Davis for the basket. Team USA made 14 of 19 shots in the quarter to build a 76–49 lead to start the fourth.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Final round, Semifinals – Lithuania
Curry received his fourth foul two minutes into the second half, and Davis fouled out early in the fourth quarter after receiving a technical for his fifth foul. Valančiūnas and Mindaugas Kuzminskas both scored 15 points for Lithuania. Entering the contest, Kuzminskas averaged 2.4 points in five games in the tournament for Lithuania while averaging a team-low 9.0 minutes.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Final round, Final – Serbia
Serbia made their first five shots of the game to jump to a 10–5 lead. After a U.S. timeout, Serbia scored anew, then the Americans had a 17–3 run to go up by seven. Irving and Thompson scored three-pointers to give the U.S. a 35–21 lead. In the second quarter, the Americans made six more three point shots to give them a 26-point lead at the half. Team USA held its largest lead of 39 points by the middle of the third quarter.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Final round, Final – Serbia
The final deficit of 37 points and the 129 overall points scored were the largest in a World Cup final since Team USA's 137–91 victory over Russia in the 1994 FIBA World Championship. The Americans also became the third team, along with Brazil and Yugoslavia, to successfully defend the world title, and tied the Yugoslavs with having the most championships, with five.


2014 United States FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Final round, Final – Serbia
The Americans shot 58% from the field and 50% from beyond the three-point line in the game, won all nine games by an average of 33.0 points, and qualified to the 2016 Olympics. Irving was named the tournament MVP. He and Faried were both named to the All-Tournament Team.


2014 United States Grand Prix
The 2014 United States Grand Prix (formally the 2014 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race held on 2 November at the Circuit of the Americas in Travis County near Austin, Texas. It was the 17th round of the 2014 Formula One World Championship and the 36th United States Grand Prix held as part of the series. Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton won the 56-lap race starting from second position. His teammate Nico Rosberg finished second and Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo was third. It was Hamilton's tenth victory of the season, his second at Austin, and the 32nd of his career.


2014 United States Grand Prix
Rosberg won the pole position by recording the fastest lap in qualifying and kept the lead on the first lap. The race was neutralised by a four-lap safety car period when Sergio Pérez, Adrian Sutil and Kimi Räikkönen made contact. During the first half of the race, Hamilton ran close behind teammate Rosberg to conserve fuel but braked heavily through parts of the track to prevent brake glazing. After the two Mercedes cars made their pit stops for new tyres, Hamilton passed his teammate Rosberg for the lead on lap 24, and pulled away to achieve victory and overtake Nigel Mansell for the highest number of wins for a British driver in Formula One.


2014 United States Grand Prix
In the week before the event, the Caterham and Marussia teams went into administration and were granted dispensation to miss the race, leaving the sport with nine entered teams, the lowest number since the 2005 Monaco Grand Prix. Hamilton's victory, his fifth in a row, moved him further clear from Rosberg atop the World Drivers' Championship, as Ricciardo's third-place finish eliminated him from title contention. Valtteri Bottas moved further ahead of Sebastian Vettel in fifth. Mercedes increased their unassailable lead in the World Constructors' Championship to 245 points over Red Bull while Williams moved further away from Ferrari in fourth with two races left in the season.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Background
The 2014 United States Grand Prix was the 17th of the 19 rounds of the 2014 Formula One World Championship, and the 36th running of the event in Formula One. It was held on 2 November at the 5.513-kilometre (3.426 mi) 20-turn Circuit of the Americas in Travis County, Austin, Texas. The sport's governing body, the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), elected to retain two drag reduction system (DRS) activation zones from 2013: one was on the straight between turns 10 and 11, and the second was on the straight linking the final and first corners.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Background
The circuit was changed following the 2013 race. At the request of motorcycling's governing body, the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme, some sections of turn ten's asphalt run-off area were replaced by gravel and some light panels were mounted closer to the ground for better visibility. Tyre supplier Pirelli brought the yellow-banded soft and white-banded medium dry compound tyres to the race, as opposed to the Hard and Medium tyres in 2012 and 2013. The event's official name was the 2014 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Background
Before the race, Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton led the World Drivers' Championship with 291 points, ahead of teammate Nico Rosberg in second and Daniel Ricciardo third. Valtteri Bottas was fourth with 145 points, with Sebastian Vettel two points behind in fifth. While the Drivers' Championship had not been won, Mercedes had taken the World Constructors' Championship in the preceding Russian Grand Prix. Red Bull were in second place on 342 points; Williams (216 points) and Ferrari (188) were third and fourth and McLaren were fifth with 143 points.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Background
After spending most of the season behind Rosberg, Hamilton had won the previous four races, converting a 29-point deficit into a 17-point lead over his teammate. With three races left, Hamilton said he would prioritise not allowing any negative thoughts consume him and would take any opportunities presented to him: "We've just got to do our due diligence and work as hard as we can to make sure we don't have any problems."


2014 United States Grand Prix, Background
Hamilton hoped to achieve his fifth consecutive victory of the year: "A lot of the American side of my family come to the race, plus I won the first F1 GP at the circuit back in 2012 – it's a special one for me. I really enjoy going there and I'm looking forward to another great race." Rosberg aimed to improve on his best finish in Austin and lower Hamilton's points lead. He said Mercedes targeted "a big finish" to the season, declaring he would not concede defeat until the final round, and hoped to maintain the level of entertainment for the fan base.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Background
After both Friday practice sessions, the FIA tested for the first time a new system called the virtual safety car, which is in response to minimising the risk of serious accidents and injuries, such as those suffered by Jules Bianchi at the Japanese Grand Prix. Its aim is to force drivers to slow by about 35 per cent in an accident zone, with the aid of a dashboard display. Drivers agreed it was a worthwhile system that, however, required refinement for further testing at subsequent races before it was introduced for the 2015 season.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Background
Caterham and Marussia were each granted permission by Formula One's commercial rights owner Bernie Ecclestone to miss the race due to their long-term financial problems and entering administration. With 18 entered vehicles, this was the smallest field entered into a Formula One race since the 2005 Monaco Grand Prix. There were driver changes for the first free practice session. European Formula Three Championship third-place finisher Max Verstappen replaced Jean-Éric Vergne at Toro Rosso for the second time in 2014, and Williams reserve driver Felipe Nasr drove Bottas's car.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Background
The press reported that the Sauber, Lotus and Force India teams had considered withdrawing from the race to signal to Formula One's commercial leaders about its financial state following Caterham and Marussia's non-participation in the race. Ecclestone said if two of those squads left the series then "that is what will happen" and teams should only participate if they were competitive. Force India team principal Bob Fernley stated discussions about a boycott were as a final recourse. Lotus owner Gérard Lopez said he had not heard about the proposed boycott and the team insisted that they would race.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Background
Vijay Mallya, the owner of Force India, severely criticised suggestions of a boycott six days after the race: "Who said that we wanted to boycott the race? Please tell me. If I am wrong, you educate me. I speak on behalf of Force India. I have never said that we are going to boycott, and I have clarified this in Austin. Why would we? We have come to go racing."


2014 United States Grand Prix, Practice
Per the regulations for the 2014 season, three practice sessions were held, two 90-minute sessions on Friday and another 60-minute session on Saturday. Hamilton lapped fastest in the first practice session—which took place on a damp track that later dried—at 1 minute, 39.941 seconds; his session 18 minutes ended early due to a gear shift problem. His teammate Rosberg, Jenson Button, Daniil Kvyat, Kevin Magnussen, Fernando Alonso, Vettel, Nasr, Nico Hülkenberg and Verstappen occupied positions two to ten. Ricciardo was only able to drive the first 3⁄4 of an hour because his energy recovery system failed and was restricted to five timed laps.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Practice
In the second session, where it was difficult for teams to alter their car's race set-ups because of strong crosswinds, Hamilton set the day's fastest lap at 1 minute, 39.085 seconds on super-soft compound tyres; Rosberg was three-thousands of a second slower in second and had the fastest time until Hamilton's lap. Both Mercedes cars had reliability concerns with Hamilton reporting another gearbox problem and his session ended early with a minor hydraulic issue. Rosberg had a downshifting concern which he attributed to hitting the clutch pedal after lifting his leg.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Practice
Alonso was third-fastest, followed by Ricciardo, Felipe Massa—who locked his brakes lightly and later spun his car—and Kimi Räikkönen. Kvyat, Magnussen, Button and Hülkenberg followed in the top ten. Romain Grosjean and his teammate Pastor Maldonado both lost control of their tight-handling Lotus cars and drove onto the run-off area several times.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Practice
Hamilton was fastest in the third session, which was held in chilly but bright weather, with a time of 1 minute, 37.107 seconds; Rosberg had a brake issue until the final minutes and went faster in the first two-thirds of the lap but an untidy final third of the lap caused by a glazed left rear brake disc only allowed him to go quicker by one-thousands of a second and placed second. Massa, Bottas, Alonso, Ricciardo, Hülkenberg, Adrian Sutil, Räikkönen and Button completed the top ten. Upon switching settings on his steering wheel, Hamilton spun under braking at turn 12, and Rosberg ran wide at turns 11 and 12. Vergne's session ended early when his engine cut out.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Qualifying
Following the withdrawal of the Caterham and Marussia team's two entries, minor changes were made to Saturday afternoon's three-part qualifying session. The first part ran for 18 minutes, eliminating cars that were 15th or below. The 107% rule was in effect, requiring drivers to reach a time within 107 per cent of the quickest lap to qualify. The second part lasted 15 minutes, eliminating cars in 11th to 14th. The final 12-minute session determined pole position to tenth.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Qualifying
Cars who progressed to the final session were not allowed to change tyres for the race's start, using the tyres with which they set their quickest lap times in the second session. Rosberg was fastest in the second and final sessions and achieved his ninth pole position of 2014, his first in the United States, and the 13th of his career, with a lap of 1 minute, 36.067 seconds. He praised the balance of his car but said it was challenging due to track and wind direction changes.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Qualifying
Rosberg was joined on the grid's front row by teammate Hamilton, who had a left-front brake 100 °C (212 °F) cooler than the right-front, slowing him, which was observed by him constant locking them in the second session. Bottas and Massa were third and fourth, and Ricciardo improved greatly on his final timed lap for fifth, ahead Alonso in sixth.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Qualifying
Button qualified seventh, but incurred a five-place grid penalty for changing his gearbox, promoting his teammate Magnussen to seventh. Although Räikkönen in eighth improved his car's balance, he slid multiple times after a unrectifiable frontal problem, creating understeer. Sutil took ninth and Maldonado, who was the fastest driver not to advance into the final session, was tenth, after sliding in turn 19, losing about two-tenths of a second, preventing an improvement. Sergio Pérez, 11th, used two sets of soft tyres in the first session to get into the second.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Qualifying
Hülkenberg, 13th, was forecast to qualify in the top ten until a tear-off visor wrapped itself around a front tyre into turn 12, losing grip, ran wide, and lost time. Kvyat complained of tyre temperature issues in slower traffic on his out-lap. However, he incurred a ten-place grid penalty for changing an engine component. His teammate Vergne started 14th and was the fastest driver not to enter the second session, attributing the result to switching to an older, less powerful engine and excess oversteer. Esteban Gutiérrez took 15th ahead of Grosjean. Vettel in 17th opted to do one lap on soft tyres to comply with the 107 per cent rule. He began from the pit lane after changing his engine, his sixth of the season.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Qualifying, Qualifying classification
The fastest lap in each of the three sessions is denoted in bold.


2014 United States Grand Prix, Race
The race began before 107,778 people at 14:00 Central Time Zone (UTC−06:00), in dry and sunny weather with an air temperature of 23 °C (73 °F) and a track temperature between 31 to 34 °C (88 to 93 °F). Every driver, bar Vettel, Kvyat and Hülkenberg, started on the soft compound tyres. The trio began on the medium compound tyres. A strong cross wind cutting through turns three and five caused cars to oversteer. When the race began, Rosberg maintained the lead into the first corner. Hamilton. who put his car at an angle towards Rosberg, stayed in second.