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Accenture Match Play Championship to Return to Ritz-Carlton for 2013

The PGA TOUR, ailment has announced today that the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship will return to The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain for the 2013 event.

The Accenture Match Play Championship, which is the first in a series of four World Golf Championships, has been played in the Tucson area since 2007 and at The Ritz-Carlton Golf Club, Dove Mountain since 2009. The 2013 event will be held February 18-24 and will again feature the top 64 players in the world from the Official World Golf Ranking. This year’s Accenture Match Play Championship was won by Hunter Mahan (USA) over Rory McIlroy (NIR) in February.

“We look forward to returning to Tucson next year for what promises to be another exciting Accenture Match Play Championship,” said Roxanne Taylor, Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, Accenture. “The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain has been a great venue for world-class competition, and Tucson has been a terrific host city, particularly with the tremendous support from the Conquistadores.”

“We had an incredibly successful 2012 Accenture Match Play Championship, with great crowds, beautiful weather and tremendous support from the Tucson community,” said PGA TOUR Executive Vice President of Championship Management, David Pillsbury. “We’re excited to continue the long-standing tradition of world-class golf in this marketplace at least through 2014, and we think The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain is an outstanding venue to host the Accenture Match Play Championship again next year.”

“The Tucson Conquistadores are thrilled to see the Accenture Match Play Championship return to The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain for 2013,” said Jim Berwick, 2013 tournament chairman. “Our organization has worked to help the PGA TOUR stage an amazing, world-class event here in Tucson, with the end result being a positive impact on local kids through the charity dollars the tournament generates. We’ve had a great run at The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain over the past few years and look forward to continuing that momentum in 2013.”

“We have truly valued our relationship with the PGA TOUR and we welcome the return of the Accenture Match Play Championship for 2013,” said David Mehl, the developer of Dove Mountain. “It is a privilege for our Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain Golf Club to be the host of this great World Golf Championships event again next year.”

Motorsport Transporters Face Strict Custom Checks After Drugs Scandal

cialis Arial, symptoms Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; color: #000000; line-height: 18px;”>Transporters from the world of motor racing and Formula One are to face tougher scrutiny at UK customs after drugs were found in the trucks of a Superbike World Championship team last month.

Quantities of cocaine, amphetamines and cannabis were discovered in the vehicle belonging to Paul Bird Motorsport, which runs the Kawasaki Racing Team. Four staff from the team have been arrested and released on bail.

On the back of the incident, a source at the United Kingdom Border Agency said that there was now likely to be a ramping up of checks on motor racing transport vehicles, telling the Daily Telegraph: “Our intelligence analysts will be looking much more closely at motorsport vehicles from now on, including Superbikes and even Formula 1. They have been pulled over very rarely and that will now change.”

Ecclestone Hints at Exit if Murdoch F1 Bid Succeeds

Formula One chief Bernie Ecclestone has hinted that he could quit his role if Rupert Murdoch’s media group succeeds in a proposed bid to take control of the sport, the Sunday Times reported.

Having previously dismissed the idea of retirement, Ecclestone, 80, said in an interview with the newspaper: “I’m old enough to get a pension, so I don’t have to get a job. I’d have to be sure the people (who end up owning F1) are people I would like to work with and whether they would want to work with me.”

A source familiar with the situation told Reuters last week that News Corporation had held early talks with Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim and at least one of the sport’s big car manufacturers about forming a consortium to acquire control.

Separate sources had previously told Reuters that private equity firm CVC, the current owner, was conducting a strategic review and could sell.

Miami Heat begins legal action against Clear Channel Broadcasting

National Basketball Association (NBA) side Miami Heat has started legal action against Clear Channel Broadcasting over claims that the broadcaster is favouring National Football League (NFL) team Miami Dolphins.

The Heat had signed a contract with Clear Channel giving the team a “priority broadcast position” on the company’s Miami radio stations, and claims the broadcaster is in breach of that contract after agreeing a “more favourable” deal with the Dolphins.

The Dolphins’ contract means its games are broadcast on the “extremely powerful station” of WBGG-FM as well as on WINZ-AM, both owned by Clear Channel.

Heat now faces having its next game on 31 October blacked out by Clear Channel as the Dolphins will be playing at the same time.

Clear Channel said it was “not willing to provide the Heat with any of the more beneficial material terms granted to the Dolphins.”

Yahoo! continues Beckham campaign with internet interview

England footballer David Beckham is due to take part in a 90 minute online interview as the next part of Yahoo!’s football-based campaign.

Beckham, who is a brand ambassador for Yahoo!, will answer questions from fans simultaneously by video from 20 countries on 14 July.

Yahoo! users are being encouraged to submit questions for Beckham on ‘Yahoo! Answers’, Yahoo! Mail, Beckham’s Facebook page, the Yahoo! World Football Facebook page and Twitter.

Fans from the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Canada, USA, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, India and Dubai will be involved in the interview.

Earlier this month, Beckham signed a deal to be Yahoo!’s global sports ambassador for the World Cup and the 2010-11 football season.

EOC Restructures Digital Platforms to Benefit NOCS

The European Olympic Committees (EOC) has announced today it has updated its digital platforms.

This movement hopes to help the EOC communicate more efficiently with its 49 National Olympic Committee members, herbal (NOC) and also promote integration for all parties within the Olympic Movement.

Furthermore in hoping to achieve its goals a new website has been set up including an intranet facility where member NOCS can download documents and carry out online accreditation for EOC.

The new website is driven by a state-of-the-art Content Management System (CMS) which will be operated entirely in-house by EOC staff in Rome.

Along with the new website a new twitter handle has been added and created to communicate EOC news published from the website and promote wider stories from the Olympic movement.

EOC Secretary General Raffaele Pagnozzi said:“Our new website and Twitter account are now fully operational and we are very happy with these upgrades to our online presence. These platforms are often the first contact point for our NOCs and the media. These stakeholders want to engage with us in a simple and appealing way. Now they can do that more easily than ever.”

EOC President Patrick Hickey, who is also an IOC Executive Board Member, Said: “The EOC’s updated digital platforms are part of our wider vision to constantly improve how we support our NOCs. The new website and social media account will significantly enhance our communications around some of our vision’s key components, such as the European Games.”

Scott Blackmun Gets Three-Year Extension as USOC CEO

The United States Olympic Committee (USOC) have given a new three-year contract to chief executive officer Scott Blackmun.

It includes a 9 percent base salary raise to $550,000 but eliminates the long-term incentive bonuses in his previous contract according to reports.

According to USOC spokesman Patrick Sandusky, the low-profile Blackmun did not think it was necessary to send out an official release of the deal, approved at an Oct. 10 USOC board meeting and referenced in one sentence in the minutes of that meeting.

It will take Blackmun, 56, through the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Blackmun’s total compensation for 2012 was $965,359, according to the USOC’s most recent tax filing That included a base salary of $461,913; bonus / incentive compensation of $231,750; and retirement / deferred compensation of $218,750.

During Blackmun’s tenure, he and unpaid board chairman Larry Probst – recently elected an International Olympic Committee member – have resolved the longstanding revenue-sharing dispute with the IOC as part of an effort to improve the USOC’s international standing.

“Scott came to the USOC at a time of turmoil and he, along with the senior team he has built around him, have provided not only much needed stability to the USOC but have helped further enhance the Olympic Movement in the U.S.,” Probst said in a statement.

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Poland & Slovakia Confirm Official 2022 Winter Olympics Bid

Poland have put forward the city of Krakow as a possible host for the 2022 Winter Olympics as they confirmed their bid for the prestigious competition jointly with Slovakia.

A letter has been sent by Poland’s Olympic committee to the International Olympic Committee.

Under the bid plans, Krakow and the Tatra mountain resort of Zakopane would host the ice events. The Alpine events would be held across the border, in Jasna, Slovakia.

Jasna is about 95 miles from Krakow.

“The rules allow two countries to team up in case the host country cannot accommodate certain sport disciplines,” Slovak Olympic Committee chair Frantisek Chmelar told AFP.

The Poland-Slovakia joint bid is the fifth declared candidacy for the 2022 Games.

The Norwegian capital of Oslo announced its bid earlier Thursday. The field also includes the Ukrainian city of Lviv; Beijing and the northern Chinese city of Zhangjiakou; and Almaty, Kazakhstan. A referendum will be held Sunday in Germany on a proposed bid from Munich.

The IOC will select the 2022 host city in 2015.

IMG to Represent Female Golfer Shanshan Feng

Shanshan Feng, China’s first Major Champion, has signed with IMG, the world’s leading sports, fashion and media company, for worldwide management and marketing representation.

Shanshan Feng has made history at every step in her career so far. She enjoyed a glittering amateur career that included a remarkable nine wins in China. In 2008, she became the first Chinese player to earn membership on the LPGA Tour after earning her card at Qualifying School at her first attempt and, last year, she made headlines worldwide when she became the first Major Champion from mainland China in men’s and women’s golf, winning the 2012 Wegmans LPGA Championship.

Her 2012 season not only included her historic Major victory but also three wins on the JLPGA tour and two wins in LET. As a result of this stellar season, Shanshan starts 2013 ranked World No. 5 and China No. 1. She commented, “I am very pleased to be joining IMG and I am very excited about the year ahead. I chose IMG because they have so much experience in managing the world’s best golfers and as I play all around the world, I really like that they have offices and golf staff in every territory where I will play.”

Shanshan continued, “I think it is really nice that we are announcing this news here at the HSBC Women’s Champions because it is one of my favourite events of the year. HSBC and IMG do a great job and the IMG team try to make sure every last detail is covered to ensure all the players have a great week.”

Guy Kinnings, Global Head of IMG Golf remarked, “We are delighted to welcome Shanshan to IMG and are very excited about what the future holds for this remarkable young lady. IMG has been involved in golf in China for a number of years at every level, from grassroots programmes to golf course design to running many professional men’s and women’s tournaments and it has been wonderful to see how golf in China has developed. We have followed Shanshan’s remarkable progress right through the amateur ranks and then on to the professional stage and we cannot wait to see what she will achieve next, both on and off the course.”

Shanshan Feng will be managed by Will Wei, IMG China with support from Ruby Chen.

Second iSportconnect Directors’ Club Germany a Huge Success

With almost 50 registered visitors including representatives from Tipico, Interwetten, The Sportsman Media Group, Sport A, Infront Deutschland, ProSiebenSat.1, TSV 1860 München, the German Soccer League and the German Icehockey League, the second iSportconnect Directors Club on “Betting and Gaming – how the state treaty affects the sports and sponsorship industry” was a big success.

Check out the Photos for the Munich event here

After a short introduction from Director of German Operations Sonja Kreye, Dr. Michael Stulz-Herrnstadt, Partner and media rights expert at Bird & Bird LLP, started with a keynote on the current situation with regards to the state treaty. It was Bird & Bird’s partner Joseph Fesenmair, Co-Head of the sports rights group at Bird & Bird, who afterwards anchored a panel discussion between Stefan Meurer, CEO Tipico Deutschland, Ralf Koslowski, CEO Infront Deutschland, Robert Schäfer, CEO TSV 1860 München and Dr. Florian Kolb, Head of Diversification at ProSiebenSat.1.

Many questions and comments from the audience underlined the importance of the topic in the sports industry. More than once it was speculated that the advertising code is only a means of containing the liberalization of the state treaty on betting through additional limitations. Furthermore it was guessed that the advertising code is nothing less than a pre-censorship and prevents expression of opinion. At the end it furthermore became clear that the sports industry still suffers from the unclear legal situation, as turnovers cannot be realized. Not only the top leagues, but also amateur sports would profit from these turnovers. At the same time, the black market flourishes and target of fighting against addiction is not approached in any way.

Sonja Kreye, iSportconnect Director of German Operations, commented: “After our first Directors Club on compliance, it proved right to choose this important topic for our second event. We were completely sold out and received some great feedback from participants. This event provides great opportunities to meet the members of the sports industry in person. We guess that we were able to show what is possible when establishing an event that brings real value and a real possibility to network aside of the virtual services that iSportconnectc.com offers.”

Check out the Photos for the Munich event here