The future of relegated Premier League side Portsmouth looks to have finally been secured after creditors voted in favour of a deal which should see the club exit administration this summer.

Creditors of the Championship club are owed a total of US$155 million, but have now accepted a deal which will see them repaid at least 20p in the pound over five years.

The acceptance of a Company Voluntary Agreement (CVA) was passed with 81.3 per cent of the vote, with the only opposition coming from HM Revenue and Customs who are currently in dispute with club’s adminstrators.

HMRC issued a statement after the meeting, saying: “HMRC notes that the result of today’s vote was to accept the CVA proposals. We will now be carefully considering our position. HMRC stands by the full amountof its claim (US$54 million).

“We will now carefully consider our position following (the administrator’s) decision tor educe the amount of our claim for voting purposes.”

The Federation of International Motorcycling (FIM) has appointed Tony Skillington as Commission Director.

Skillington replaces Wolfgang SRB, apoplectic who was elected as FIM Europe President during the FIM Europe Congress held in Krakow (Poland) in early July, anesthetist  as CMS Director until the current mandate expires on 22 November 2014. 

Tony Skillington was a Member of Management Council of the MCUI from 1988 to 1994, price pills before becoming a Vice President from 1994 to 1998. He was elected on to the FIM Motocross Commission in 1991 and has been in the Commission ever since.

FIM said in a statement: “The FIM wishes to warmly thank Mr Wolfgang Srb for his long service in the FIM Motocross Commission and for playing an active role in the development of our sport from 1984 to 2014.”

The University of Houston has selected leading DAS and Wi-Fi provider Boingo Wireless as their exclusive wireless network partner for the new Houston Football Stadium, doctor home of the NCAA FBS Houston Cougars.

Boingo will install, ambulance manage and operate a neutral host, multi-carrier Distributed Antenna System (DAS) at the stadium, providing fast, reliable cellular coverage and data capacity throughout the 40,000-seat venue. Boingo’s industry-leading DAS networks leverage state-of-the-art design to deliver comprehensive stadium coverage, and maximize carrier participation to ensure more fan access. Boingo will also manage any future deployments of cellular small cells at the stadium.

The company will also deploy and manage Wi-Fi networks for both fan and stadium operations use. University of Houston Cougars fans, students and faculty will be able to access ad-supported Wi-Fi throughout the stadium to share their game day experiences. The Boingo Wi-Fi network will also support the stadium ticketing, point of sale, and concessions systems and staff.

“A world-class facility like the Houston Football Stadium requires a state-of-the-art wireless network on par with major league venues,” said Mack Rhoades, Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics at the University of Houston. “Boingo brings experience in managing networks for professional and university stadiums and arenas nationwide, and they’ll provide a comprehensive wireless solution that’ll keep Cougars’ alumni, fans and staff connected from kick-off to the final touchdown.”

“The Houston Football Stadium is a landmark development for the University and the city of Houston, and is designed to support up to 60,000 fans in the future. The stadium is a major addition to our portfolio of stadiums nationwide,” said Doug Lodder, vice president of business development for Boingo Wireless. “We’re building the cellular and Wi-Fi networks to grow with the stadium, and will deliver ample capacity to support public safety and future fans needs, including location-based services.”

The Boingo neutral host DAS and Wi-Fi systems are slated to launch timed to the University of Houston Cougars’ first game vs. UTSA, on August 29, 2014.

The International Softball Federation (ISF) has announced today that Midland, Michigan will host the 2016 ISF Junior Men’s World Championship following approval by the world governing body’s Board of Directors and ISF Congress Members.

It will mark the second time a World Championship has been held in Midland.

“We are excited to welcome national teams from around the world to Midland in 2016,” said tournament host committee co-chairman Jeff Servinski. “Midland has a storied history in hosting fastpitch softball events. It is our intent to build upon this legacy as we host these young, international athletes for the junior men’s world championship.”

The United States has not played host to an ISF world championship since Midland was the site of the 1996 ISF Men’s World Championship. The only other Junior Men’s World Championship in the United States took place in Fargo, N.D. in 1985. Team USA finished second falling to New Zealand 2-1 in the Championship game that year.

“We very excited to have the 2016 ISF Junior Men’s World Championships right here in our backyard,” said USA Softball Junior Men’s National Team Head Coach Tim Lyon. “Midland is a great city for men’s Fastpitch and they will do a tremendous job hosting that event.”

Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, was also awarded with the 2016 Women’s World Championship and Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada won the bid to host the 2017 Men’s World Championship on Friday.

The Rugby Football League (RFL) have announced the 2013 World Club Challenge has been sold out.

The game will be played out in front of a capacity crowd at Headingley Carnegie Stadium on Friday night after the last remaining tickets for the showdown between Super League champions Leeds Rhinos and NRL Grand Final winners Melbourne Storm were sold.

All 20, drug 400 tickets were snapped up as fans flocked to secure their place for the fixture between the two most successful Rugby League clubs of the modern era.

“It’s going to be a night to remember for every Rugby League supporter and I’m sure the atmosphere at Headingley Carnegie Stadium will be one that everyone at the game will remember for a long time to come,” said RFL Chief Executive Nigel Wood.

“I would like to congratulate everyone concerned for their efforts in selling every single ticket and wish both clubs the best of luck on Friday night.

“With strong demand for tickets for the Rugby League World Cup which takes place in England and Wales at the end of the year, this news provides more evidence of the need for fans to purchase in advance to secure their seat at the biggest games.”

The Woodlands Country Club has completed a $1 million renovation led by its owner’s, Sequoia Golf, renowned Greenscapes Team to enhance its golf facilities.

The improvements made to The Palmer, The Player and The Tournament golf courses during the three-month project included course and landscape enhancements as well as new cart fleets.

Receiving the bulk of the renovations was The Woodland’s Tournament course, which hosts the Champions Tour’s annual Insperity Championship, and this past April hosted the Greats of Golf Competition featuring Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Lee Trevino. Completed in advance of the 2013 Champion’s Tour event, the course received new greens, cart paths and landscape upgrades. The course’s greens, which previously used Champion Bermuda, were replaced with high-quality Mini Verde Ultra Dwarf Bermuda. The new grass has a strong reputation throughout the industry for providing quality play year-round and is known to be superior to its competitors in terms of recovery, tolerance to temperature extremes, stress and wear from foot traffic.

“We are extremely proud of our courses at Woodlands Country Club. Our team works extremely hard year-round to maintain its allure that makes it one of the top clubs in the state of Texas,” said Joe Guerra, president and CEO of Sequoia Golf. “The recent renovations further prove our commitment to offering our members and their guests the best amenities available. We want to thank all of our members for being patient during the renovation period, but we’re confident that they will be pleased with the end results.”

The renovation project was managed by Sequoia Golf’s Greenscapes division, the company’s specialized team of designers and construction managers that was created to oversee all major facility renovations, expansions, and capital improvements. Sequoia Greenscapes has completed dozens of construction and renovation projects for clients ranging from individual golf course
owners to municipalities, including greens, tees, and fairway construction and renovation, bunker renovations, cart path repairs, erosion control, irrigation and drainage work, and a host of other projects and services.

To commemorate the grand re-opening of the courses, The Woodlands Country Club is hosting a ribbon cutting ceremony at its Tournament course with the South Montgomery County Woodlands Chamber of Commerce on Oct. 12 at 10 a.m.

Acquired by Sequoia in 2007, the upscale Woodlands Country Club is a world-class private club facility that provides its members with elite access to three championship golf courses. Located approximately 30 miles north of Houston, the Woodlands Country Club is truly Texas’ legacy club, having hosted the PGA Tour’s Shell Houston open for over 25 years.

Sochi have revealed their slogan for the 2014 Winter Olympic Games as “Hot. Cool. Yours.” as the Black Sea resort started it’s 500 day countdown to the opening of the Games.

Dmitry Chernyshenko explained at a presentation in Moscow Tuesday: “Russia in many ways is a country of contrasts and we wanted to emphasize that in the slogan. The climate is cold but the hospitality is warm. The Olympics are Winter but Sochi is a southern city, and you could list many other contrasts here, so we picked this slogan”.

In Russian the slogan reads “Hot. Wintry. Yours.”

The “hot” refers to the sheltered subtropical Black Sea resort of Sochi, which has palm trees, in contrast to the “cool” mountains above the city, which Russia hopes will be thickly coated with snow for the ski events.