Seven sports in the UK have had their funding withdrawn by UK Sport ahead of Rio 2016 it was announced today.

The other Olympic and Paralympic sports include Basketball, synchronised swimming, water polo, weightlifting, five a side football, goalball and wheelchair fencing.

Two sports have had their funding reduced, including badminton and swimming which has seen it’s funding reduced by £500k. A further 34 elite sports had their funding either increased or unchanged.

The announcement was made by UK Sport which is funded by the National Lottery and the Government as part of their annual funding review process. In December 2012 it announced that it would be increasing it’s elite sport programme by 11% from £264 million for London 2012 to a record £347 million for Rio 2016. However, the agency says some sports have little chance of achieving a medal at the next Games which is why they’re losing all their investment.

British Basketball is one of the sports that will lose its funding. Roger Moreland, Performance Chairman of British Basketball told Sky Sports News he would be appealing. He said: “British Basketball is desperately disappointed for the players, coaches, staff and basketball community in this country. One of the factors in restoring funding last year was on the basis of our medal potential for Tokyo 2020 and we still believe all the indicators for our senior and age group teams show the strength of the programme is building towards that aim”.

British Swimming Chief Executive David Sparkes also stated he was disappointed by the news and confirmed they would consider appealing the decision in order to secure financial support. “We will now carefully look at our options and, in due course, may well consider a more formal appeal over these devastating decisions,” he said in an official statement.

Liz Nicholl, Chief Executive of UK Sport, said “This is a very significant point on our journey to Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020. The high level goal of winning more Olympic and Paralympic medals at the next Summer Games is very challenging. We know that if we continue to focus our energy and resources we can deliver our commitment to Government, build on that success in London, and make this nation proud again.

Minister for Sport, Helen Grant, said: “The ambition to win more medals in Rio than we did in London is huge and will not be easy to achieve. UK Sport’s strategy has shown through the incredible results at the Beijing and London Games that it works. I am pleased that 36 sports have strong talent pathways in place that could result in medals for Britain in either Rio 2016 or Tokyo 2020”.

UK Sports say it will re-invest the money withdrawn from some sports into other elite programmes.

Manchester in England will host the 2018 FIL Men’s World Championship, the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) has announced.

English Lacrosse will host the quadrennial event at the Armitage Centre, Fallowfield with support from Manchester Council, Manchester University and Sport England. As many as 40 countries are due to compete.

“The successful games which were hosted here in Manchester in 2010 were a major factor in the FIL decision and we are looking forward to welcoming the world to England once again.” said Mark Coups, CEO.

This is the second time that English Lacrosse will have hosted the prestigious Lacrosse tournament in the past decade, as Manchester was the venue for the 2010 games.

English Lacrosse are expecting over 1,000 athletes to compete in the 2018 with over 30,000 spectators expected to attend. In 2010 the World Championships contributed over £5.2 million to the local economy and 2018 is expected to be even bigger.

“We are extremely confident that English Lacrosse, having successfully hosted the 2010 Championship, will again run an event that FIL and the International lacrosse community will be proud of.” said FIL President Stan Cockerton.

The Caribbean Premier League (CPL) has hired IMG, the global sports, fashion and media business, to assist in the delivery of the inaugural franchise-based tournament. 

IMG will advise on the operational and commercial execution of the tournament and be responsible for television production and media distribution.  

CPL Chief Executive Officer Damien O’Donohoe said he was delighted IMG would be involved in the tournament.

“IMG will bring with them a wealth of commercial, financial and organisational knowledge to aid the CPL team we are assembling,” he said.

“They know cricket and they know Twenty20 cricket as they have a proven track record in T20 leagues.”

“On top of that, they have worked with several cricket boards over many years and, most notably from our perspective, that includes a long-standing relationship with West Indies cricket so they know the Caribbean too.

“Having a company with their level of experience across a range of areas will help to ensure we are able to work together and build the necessary platform to produce an exciting and memorable event,” added Mr O’Donohoe.

Andrew Wildblood, Executive Vice-President of IMG, said: “It is a privilege for IMG to be involved in the development of the Caribbean Premier League.

“Our long experience of working in the region, allied to our wide ranging involvement in the sport of cricket will enable us to make a valuable contribution to the delivery of the CPL.

“The CPL is a wonderful opportunity for IMG to try to contribute to the next stage of development of cricket in the West Indies. The West Indies is one of the most important cricket regions in the world, a region that every true cricket fan cares about passionately, and one which has contributed so much to international cricket in the past with a flavour and atmosphere all of its own. IMG produced the first ever internationally distributed live coverage of international cricket in the West Indies in 1990 and we have been involved there ever since 

“That West Indies are the current World Twenty20 champions and Chris Gayle’s astonishing 175 not out in the IPL adds to the positive feel around this project and we are looking forward to being part of the CPL which will showcase the fabulous talent that the region continues to produce alongside a wealth of international stars.”

The agreement with IMG is the latest part of the organisational structure to be put in place by CPL organisers as the tournament, set to get underway on 30 July, moves ever closer.

Six top West Indies stars have already been confirmed as franchise players – Dwayne Bravo, Chris Gayle, Sunil Narine, Kieron Pollard, Darren Sammy and Marlon Samuels.

Also confirmed are the six overseas icon players – former Australia captains Adam Gilchrist and Ricky Ponting, ex-New Zealand captain Ross Taylor, Pakistan Twenty20 International captain Mohammad Hafeez, Herschelle Gibbs of South Africa and Sri Lanka spin wizard Muttiah Muralitharan.

Clarksville Country Club, located in Clarksville, Tennessee just 40 miles northwest of Nashville have selected Troon Golf , the leader in upscale golf course management, development and marketing to manage the club.

Nestled amongst the rolling hills of middle Tennessee, and shaded by the region’s mighty oak and blooming dogwood trees, sits Clarksville Country Club as a fixture of the Clarksville community. Its 18-hole, par 72 golf course has earned nationwide respect, hosting both Tennessee Golf Association tournaments and United States Golf Association qualifier events. Golf at Clarksville Country Club is always a unique and entertaining experience, providing an ideal escape from the bustling city. Portions of the course line the clay banks of the Red River, featuring rolling hills, undulating topography, testing greens, and tree-lined fairways.

“Clarksville Country Club is an exciting addition to our portfolio,” said John Easterbrook, executive vice president of operations, Troon. “We are confident that combining the club’s amenities and charming character with the skill and expertise of Troon Prive, our private club operations division, will result in an extraordinary experience for members and guests.”

“Our goal has always been to deliver premium hospitality to our members, and serve as an integral part of our community,” says Board Chairman John Manning. “After a comprehensive and exhaustive investigation, it became clear that hiring Troon Prive would give Clarksville Country Club the best chance of success for improving our member experience, while simultaneously ensuring a vibrant future.”

 

The furore surrounding the London 2012 Olympics has bounced back positively on Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games preparations as more people wanting to volunteer and get tickets for their event.

Glasgow 2014 officials say they are “already seeing the benefits of London 2012 action”.

Glasgow 2014’s budget is £524 million ($832m), just over five per cent of the nine-billion-pound budget for the London 2012 Games. David Grevemberg, chief executive of Glasgow 2014, says that as the result of the limited funds, the event’s branding “will find smarter ways to work within our budget” to maximize marketing opportunities.

Although still in the planning stages, the marketing strategy will reportedly focus on using social media to get sports fans across the UK to share their ideas with the organizing committee.

Gevemberg adds, “the Commonwealth Games is the second largest global multi-sport brands Games in the world and we’re already benefiting from an Olympic bounce. Companies want to do business with us and want to be associated with the Glasgow 2014 brand, mindful that there are real and lasting business benefits”.

He adds that sponsorship activity should play to the event’s strengths of “community engagement” and social responsibility” if it is to capture the Commonwealth’s imagination.

The dispute between the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the National Basketball Players Association is no closer to being solved, mind with players association executive director Billy Hunter claiming that the NBA has long wanted to “lock us out in order to break the union.”

Hunter, impotent in New York for the National Basketball Players Association’s off-season meetings, remedy said the NBA has threatened for two years to impose a lockout when the current labour contract expires in one week’s time, and that despite several proposals by both parties, little has changed over that period.

Hunter said: “I think their real intentions are still what they were before, which is to lock us out in order to break the union and achieve what they want to achieve.”

Mike Bass, a spokesman for the NBA, said that the league was “dismayed by the union’s unfortunate rhetoric.”

He added: “A lockout is something that we are trying to avoid by making multiple offers that treat our players fairly.”

Hunter’s comments came a day after Derek Fisher, the union’s president, said the two sides “haven’t been partners in this venture.”

NBA Commissioner David Stern outlined a new proposal to the union two days ago that calls for a 10-year contract guaranteeing players at least US$2bn a year. Hunter said under those terms, the owners and players would be more than US$7bn apart.

Discussions between the two parties are set to continue on Friday.

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) treasurer Sujeewa Rajapakse has revealed that the body has sought financial help from the government and state banks in an interview on the BBC Sinhala service.

The request follows capital expenditure on the recent World Cup which has put the country’s richest sports body in trouble after Rajapakse, also treasurer for the World Cup secretariat, said that unlike India and Bangladesh, Sri Lanka had to work on its venues from scratch.

The BBC have claimed that as a result of its hosting role, the SLC is facing a sizeable debt, and the crisis comes at a time when Sri Lanka is competing with Australia to host another mega sporting event, Commonwealth Games in 2018.

The BBC added that a recent report in Sri Lanka’s Daily Mirror newspaper claimed that the treasury agreed to grant a US$7.26m loan to the SLC, a figure which could be exceeded by a large amount.

Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo has accepted substantial undisclosed libel damages from the Daily Telegraph at London’s High Court.

It claimed in July 2008 that he put an injured ankle at risk by “living it up” at a Hollywood nightclub while a Manchester United player.

The report that he put down crutches to dance with four models caused offence and embarrassment, the court heard.

The paper has accepted the allegations were false and apologised.

In a statement, Ronaldo said he was “delighted” with the outcome.

“I take enormous pride in my professionalism. I treat my training and recovery from injury very seriously and would never have drunk and danced in a nightclub without my crutches,” he said.