Great Britain’s Men’s and Women’s national basketball teams will compete in next year’s Olympic Tournament at the 2012 London Games after the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) granted them automatic places at the Central Board on Sunday, March 13.

FIBA recognised that Great Britain had met the requirements set out for them, which included; proving their competitiveness on the court with both teams qualifying for
this summer’s EuroBasket tournaments and providing a solid legacy plan for the sport in the country beyond the Games of the XXX Olympiad.

The Central Board voted 16-4 in favour of Great Britain taking their place in the field of basketball teams at next year’s Olympics. However, the board re-iterated the need for British Basketball and the home nations’ (England, Scotland and Wales) federations to work towards proving their commitment to grow the game by figuring out the best governance model going forward.

FIBA Secretary General Patrick Baumann stated: “The Central Board took a vote on the following proposal: yes, both men’s and women’s teams should play at the Olympic Games, but by 30th June 2012 British Basketball and the home nations must figure out the best way for the future governance of the sport.

“They have until that date to decide what governance they want to go forward with after the Olympic Games end.”

The other major decision on the agenda saw Turkey awarded the next FIBA
World Championship for Women in 2014, getting the nod over Australia for the honour.

Golf authority the R&A has appointed experienced golf administrator Mark Lawrie as its Director in Latin America.

Lawrie will join The R&A from the Asociación Argentina de Golf, cough where he has served as Executive Director since 2000.

In his new role, viagra Lawrie will be closely involved in the staging of the Latin America Amateur Championship, a joint initiative between The R&A, the Masters and the USGA, which will be played for the first time at Pilar Golf in Buenos Aires from 15-18 January 2015.

His wider responsibilities will include overseeing The R&A’s development work in Latin America. The R&A supports a range of existing championships in the region, Rules education programmes and development projects in several countries including Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Peru and Uruguay which, in many cases, have led to the establishment of public golf courses and facilities.

Peter Dawson, Chief Executive of The R&A, said: “We are delighted to welcome Mark on board and believe his appointment will enable us to enhance our co-ordination of the increasing range of initiatives we are supporting in Latin America. We have taken a similar approach in the Asia-Pacific region which has proved extremely effective.

“The R&A has been actively supporting golf in Latin America for more than a decade and we have invested considerably in championships and development projects. With golf set to return to the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 there is a real opportunity to attract more people to take up the sport.”

Lawrie, who will continue to be based in Buenos Aires, said, “I am very pleased to be joining The R&A and to have the opportunity to assist with the important work it does in developing golf in Latin America. The advent of the Latin America Amateur Championship is a major step forward and will create an important platform for elite amateurs to compete and progress their careers.

“I will also be working closely with The R&A’s affiliated organisations in the region to ensure that we are effectively supporting their work in encouraging participation in golf.”

He will take up his new role with The R&A with immediate effect.

Wales have revealed that are interested in hosting a future World Cup in a potential join bid with England in 2026.  

Wales First Minister Carwyn JonesFootball Association of Wales chief executive Jonathan Ford said an attempt to land the biggest football tournament on the planet is a future goal.

After next year’s competition in Brazil, the World Cup then moves to Russia and Qatar, but Wales believe they can be part a bid to bring the finals to Britain for the only time since England lifted the trophy back in 1966.

Ford said: “It’s a great future ambition. We know where the World Cup is going in 2018 and 2022, but the process thereafter has yet to be determined.

“I absolutely support the First Minister in having a good ambition.”

Ford was speaking at a major events conference in Cardiff and in response to leader of the Welsh Government Jones’ shock comments.

The First Minister said: “We have got the UEFA Super Cup coming to Cardiff next year and we want that to be the starting point for bringing more major football events to Wales.

“We are talking with the FAW about bidding to be one of the venues for the 2020 European Championships, we want a Champions League final… and then there is the World Cup in 2026.

“The most likely joint bid would be with England and we know we have three good stadia we can offer.

“By 2026 we can get the Liberty Stadium and Cardiff City Stadium up to 30,000-plus to supplement the Millennium Stadium.

“Football is the world’s biggest sport and we know everyone has been talking about Gareth Bale since his move to Real Madrid and giving Wales a lot of global exposure.

“We hope he can inspire the Welsh football team to qualify for a major tournament in the future.

“You only have to look back to the 1990s, at the Jack Charlton era in Irish football, to see how a football team can build the confidence of a nation.”

WRU boss Roger Lewis backed the World Cup plan, saying: “It’s something we would always be a winning partner for but it’s something to be discussed with the FAW and FA.

“You have to respect the governance situation, it’s something they would put forward.

“I have met with the FAW over our European ambitions and we’re hugely supportive of them. We would work in partnership with them to deliver a world class venue.”

Essex Cricket have secured an agreement with developers, view MCD, discount for the first phase of the ground development of The Essex County Ground, Chelmsford to begin.

The 136-year-old club has just signed a deal with developer MCD to start building work on several blocks of flats around the ground.

This will help to finance the long-awaited new pavilion, cricket school, car park, public square and bridge.

Plans have been in the offing for eight years, with planning permission granted two years ago.

The first phase in the redevelopment is to build the smallest of three towers containing 62 flats on top of the current cricket club car park.

Two other towers, both overlooking the park and river, will soon follow..

Keith Brown, Treasurer of Essex County Cricket Club said: “Monday is a landmark day in the history of Essex Cricket, the start of a project which will lead to a first class cricket ground to complement our first class team. The agreements we will be signing with our development partner MCD and Chelmsford City Council enables the first phase of the development to commence in the Spring.”

The International Rugby Board has announced that the IRB Junior World Rugby Trophy 2013 will take place in Antofagasta in northern Chile.

Eight teams will participate in next year’s tournament – hosts Chile, Canada, Italy, Japan, Namibia, Portugal, Tonga and Uruguay.

The tournament format will be the same as in previous years, with two pools of four teams. All matches will take place at the Circuito Deportivo Ciudad de Antofagasta venue.

The winner of the IRB Junior World Rugby Trophy 2013 will earn promotion to the IRB Junior World Championship 2014 in New Zealand.

In 2012, USA won the IRB Junior World Rugby Trophy on home soil in a thrilling final, and will now take part in the premier age-grade IRB Junior World Championship in France.

At the same time, Italy were ranked 12th in the IRB Junior World Championship 2012 that was held in South Africa. They were therefore relegated and will play in the IRB Junior World Rugby Trophy 2013 in Antofagasta.

The pools for the IRB Junior World Rugby Trophy will be confirmed at a later date, but the tournament will take place from May 28 to June 9, 2013.

The first IRB Junior World Rugby Trophy was held in Chile in 2008 and IRB Tournament Director Santiago Ramallo said it’s a great opportunity to build on the massive success of the inaugural event.

“The tournament is growing every year and with the participation of teams such as Italy, Canada, Japan and Tonga, who’ve played in several IRB Junior World Championships in the past, makes for a very exiting rugby event for the fans,” said Ramallo.

“It’s great to go to Antofagasta as it will leave a massive legacy for Rugby in the region. It’s an exciting time for Rugby in Chile. It continues to develop and grow stronger. International events like this will certainly help to build on the important legacy over the coming years.”

The awarding of the tournament to Antofagasta has been warmly welcomed by the Federación de Rugby de Chile (FERUCHI).

FERUCHI President Francisco Davanzo said: “The designation of Chile as the venue for JWRT 2013 is a stimulus and a huge prize. We feel encouraged by the trust involved in organising an event of this magnitude, but at the same time we feel that it is a reward for the effort and sacrifice which the Rugby Federation of Chile, and all its members, show every day in seeking to improve Rugby in our country.”

“We are proud of this designation, and very committed to respond with a Junior World Rugby Trophy of the highest level organisational and sport. Moreover, doing so in Antofagasta, the capital in the world of copper, is both a satisfaction and challenge. We are going to show that Rugby is also lived intensely far from our capital, and Chile is more than Santiago.”

Thousands of fans are expected to make the trip to Antofagasta, known locally as “The Pearl of the North.” Local representatives are looking forward to staging an unforgettable tournament and welcoming fans.

Pablo Toloza Fernandez, the Mayor of Antofagasta, said: “It is a great opportunity for the sport and the players in our region, which develops the future stars of world Rugby in Antofagasta. As a city, we have all the conditions to host this international event, characterised by the warmth and friendliness of our people. We will show to the whole world, in the most arid desert in the world, you will live with deep passion and experience the best matches.”

More than 50 players who played in the inaugural Junior World Rugby Trophy in Santiago have gone on to play on the Test stage, including 15 of the Chile Under 20 side who were runners up to Uruguay.

Of course, players are not the only ones looking to take their skills to the next level at the IRB Junior World Rugby Trophy in 2013. It is also a stage to let referees from around the world showcase their abilities and develop as match officials in a high-pressure, intense environment.

The match days of the tournament will be May 28, June 1, 5 and 9.

The Hong Kong Open’s failure to acquire a title sponsor has left them no choice but to ask the government to help fill the financial hole.

Local media reported that the 54-year-old event, co-sanctioned by the European and Asian Tours, failed to find a replacement for UBS and for the second year running, would need government assistance to ensure the Nov. 15-18 tournament went ahead. 

“We will be approaching the Mega Events Fund (MEF) in the next two weeks for funding,” Hong Kong Golf Association chief executive Iain Valentine was quoted as saying by Friday’s South China Morning Post.

“We hope we will get financial backing from the government once again.”

The paper said that the MEF had provided organisers with HK$8 million ($1.03 million) last year to help fund the 2011 tournament and help pay appearance money to attract top players.

McIlroy, who holed his bunker shot on the 72nd hole to seal victory last year, has not yet committed to defending his title.

“There is no guarantee Rory will turn up this year,” Valentine warned.

“Of course, his (appearance fee) will have gone up now he has two majors in his bag. But we know he has a soft spot for Hong Kong and we hope he will return. It is pretty traditional for the defending champion to come back.”

The paper said that Swiss watch company Omega had rejected the chance to sponsor the event.

“Our interests have moved on. We are looking at bigger events, especially in China,” Omega president Stephen Urquhart told the paper.

The event has been part of a lucrative run of Asian tournaments at the end of each year that have attracted the best players in the world over recent seasons.

The BMW Masters and the HSBC Champions events in China scheduled for October boast $7 million prize funds and are followed by the $6 million Singapore Open.

However, the co-sanctioned Singapore Open is also looking for a new sponsor for next year after Barclays said they would end their backing following this year’s event in November.

Procter & Gamble, sale a Worldwide Olympic Partner, medstore is teaming with Walmart to bring the “Tour of London” to the United States in honor of American athletes competing in this summer’s Olympic Games.

The 535-square-foot London re-creation will be constructed at the Walmart located at 7011 Main St., cure American Canyon, Calif., and will feature iconic London landmarks and symbols including Big Ben, the London Eye and red double-decker buses.

It is estimated that it will take a crew of eight people 36 hours to construct the display. It will be completed in time for the opening weekend of the 2012 Olympic Games. A formal unveiling ceremony will take place on July 28 at 10:30 a.m. The general public is invited to attend.

“The display celebrates our dedicated athletes and creates a unique in-store shopping event that customers will remember for years to come,” said Stuart Heflin, P&G’s brand manager, Walmart Global Consumer Team. “P&G is behind the Olympic Games and our athletes 100 percent. We want to give people who can’t travel to Europe the opportunity to feel some of the excitement of the Games here at home.”

Once constructed, Big Ben will be 21 feet tall and include a working clock in the tower that chimes every 15 minutes. The replica of the London Eye will stand 18 feet tall and rotates just like the world’s largest observation wheel. There are three eight-foot-tall double-decker buses, two featuring front window-mounted television screens airing P&G Olympic Games-themed commercials. Educational maps featuring facts about the landmarks will be posted and available for self-guided tours.

The London landmarks are surrounded by a variety of Olympic Games-branded P&G products. It will take 25 pallets of product to fully stock this enormous display. 

P&G’s tribute to the London 2012 Olympic Games will remain at the American Canyon store July 28 through Aug. 10. The store is open 24 hours a day. On July 28, a time-lapse installation video will be available through a variety of social media channels: Twitter (#tourlondon); Facebook (P&G) and YouTube (Procter & Gamble).

IndyCar have announced that the IZOD IndyCar Series will not return to Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 2012 following the death of British driver Dan Wheldon which has marred the track.

Wheldon died of multiple injuries in a 15-vehicle crash on October 16.  

The series was scheduled to close its 2012 season at the speedway on Oct. 14, here but IndyCar and speedway officials said considerable testing with the new car is needed prior to returning to the facility.

Randy Bernard, CEO, IndyCar, said: “We feel we need to give our technical team ample time to conduct thorough testing at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, once we complete our ongoing investigation into the 15-car accident during the Oct. 16 race at the track.”

The 2012 IZOD IndyCar Series season opens March 25 with the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. The complete schedule will be announced in the coming weeks.