| VANCLIBURN | Winner of the first International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition, 1958 |
| EMANUELAX | Winner of the first Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Competition |
| BELOV | Sergei was the first international player inducted into the hoop Hall of Fame |
| LILL | John ___, British pianist; joint winner of the 1970 International Tchaikovsky competition (4) |
| HAMM | This two-time medalist was the first international star of women's football (soccer) |
| PIECESOFEIGHT | Also known as Spanish dollars, these widely used coins became the first international currency in the 16th Century (6,2,5) |
| OVAL | The -, London cricket ground that staged the first international football match between England and Scotland in 1870 (4) |
| GLASGOW | British city where the first international football match was held, 1872 |
| ENG | One side in the first international soccer match (1872): Abbr. |
| BAKUNIN | Mikhail ___, Russian anarchist and writer expelled from the First International after conflicts with Karl Marx |
| ALSOP | Marin who conducted the final round of the quadrennial Van Cliburn International Piano Competition (June, 2025) |
| ERICLU | Winner of this year's Leeds International Piano Competition (4,2) |
| RADU | ___ Lupu, Romanian pianist who won the 1969 Leeds International Piano Competition (4) |
| WARSAW | Polish city home to the International Chapin Piano Competition |
| LEEDS | UK city that hosts the triennial International Piano Competition |
| CHATAWAY | Christopher _, winner of the first BBC Sports Personality of the Year (8) |
| ASHE | Winner of the first ATP Player of the Year award |
| YOUNG | The winner of the first series of Pop Idol, Will _ (5) |
| WILL | _ Young, the winner of the first series of Pop Idol (4) |
| LEANNE | Winner of the first series of The Voice UK, _ Mitchell (6) |
