London Welsh’s appeal against a decision preventing their promotion to the Premiership looks set to be heard later this month on June 21.

The Exiles won this season’s Championship after beating Cornish Pirates in both legs of the final.

But the Richmond-based club were told just hours before the first leg kicked off in Cornwall they did not meet minimum standards criteria set down by English rugby’s Professional Game Board for Premiership entry.

London Welsh played the final’s second leg at the Kassam Stadium in Oxford, which is thought to be their preferred venue should they gain top-flight status.

As things stand, Newcastle will remain in the Premiership next term despite finishing bottom by a point behind Wasps this season.

But should London Welsh succeed in overturning an original decision that went against them, then they will go up and the Falcons be relegated.

In a statement, the RFU said: “The Rugby Football Union has today received London Welsh’s appeal against the decision that the club failed to meet the minimum standards criteria set out by the Professional Game Board for promotion to the Aviva Premiership.

“It is proposed that the appeal hearing, which will take place before an independent panel, will be held on June 21 at the London Bloomsbury Hotel.

“An expedited timetable has been agreed with London Welsh, with the proposed date of June 21 the earliest possible time to allow for the exchange of cases and evidence.

“During the appeal, no further comment will be made.”

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O2 has announced that it will be sending “pie and pint” packs to rugby fans across England during the forthcoming RBS 6 Nations.

O2 is a long-standing sponsor of England Rugby and the move is part of the new ‘O2 For England’ campaign.

Up to 25,000 ‘O2 For England packs’ will be dispatched to supporters as an accompaniment to watching the action on TV at home; each will contain two fresh Pieminister pies and two cans of Greene King IPA plus an England flag.

The packs are only free of charge to O2 customers, and are available online via www.O2ForEngland.co.uk or by texting PIE to 2020.

O2 ran a similar campaign during the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand called ‘Get up for England’, which was designed to rouse fans for the early GMT kick offs.

O2 marketing and consumer director Sally Cowdry stated, “At O2 we are committed to delivering great experiences for our customers. We know how much they love our pie and a pint offer at Twickenham and so we built upon that to create O2 For England.

“By combining it with Priority Moments we are able to offer a campaign that truly has something for everyone.

“Rugby fans on O2 can now have an enhanced match day experience whether watching a game at home, in a pub with friends or at Twickenham”.

England’s interim head coach Stuart Lancaster added, “Having the support of the fans, wherever they are, is a real boost for the players. O2 For England is a perfect way to help fans cheer on the team from home”.

Schüco International, a German engineering firm, has clinched the title sponsorship of The Princess, a tournament of golf’s European Challenge Tour. The event will enter its third year in the summer of 2011.

The tournament will now be known as The Princess by Schüco with the deal thought to be worth around the same figure as the prize fund which stands at US$130,000.

Schüco International president and chief executive officer, Dirk Hindrichs said: “We are proud to be the presenting sponsor of The Princess. We are all about the future – a sustainable future. Our technology is developed to ensure comfort, without sacrificing any of our scarce natural resources. The Princess is all about investing in the future too, in the next generation as well as the ones to follow. In golf, we see a game played outdoors in harmony with nature, we see precision and technology applied in a gentlemanly manner to achieve seemingly effortless power.”

In addition Alain de Soultrait, Challenge Tour director, stated: “An already strong tournament has become even stronger with the announcement of Schüco as title sponsors. With the support of Henrik Stenson, who won the Challenge Tour Rankings in 2000, and now a well-respected company such as Schüco on board, The Princess has a very bright future. The Challenge Tour shares the same vision of investing in the future, so our partnership with Schüco is a natural fit.”

The Federation Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM) has released the provisional calendar for next season’s MotoGP, and there will be no race in Hungary.

The 18-race schedule was without a Hungarian MotoGP this year as the venue was not ready, and will miss out again to Aragon, Spain, which stepped in for the race this season.

Spain will now host four races for the 2011 MotoGp championship with Aragon, Jerez, Catalunya and the traditional season finale in Valencia.

The season will start in Qatar on 20 March with the British GP at Silverstone taking place on 12 June.

Provisional 2011 MotoGP Calendar:

• March 20 Losail International Circuit, Qatar*
• April 3 Jerez, Spain
• April 24 Motegi, Japan
• May 1 Estoril, Portugal
• May 15 Le Mans, France
• June 5 Catalunya, Spain
• June 12 Silverstone, Great Britain
• June 25 Assen, Netherlands**
• July 3 Mugello, Italy
• July 17 Sachsenring, Germany
• July 24 Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, United States***
• August 14 Brno, Czech Republic
• August 28 Indianapolis Motor Speedway, United States
• September 4 Misano, San Marino
• September 18 Motorland Aragon, Spain
• October 16 Phillip Island, Australia
• October 23 Sepang, Malaysia
• November 6 Valencia, Spain

* Evening Race
** Saturday Race
*** Only MotoGP class

David Jackson has been appointed Marketing Manager for Sunderland AFC and 1879 Events Management.

The 32 year-old, ailment who lives in Sunderland, try was formerly Marketing and Communications Manager for Newcastle-based law firm Dickinson Dees and was promoted to Head of Business Development Operations for the firm’s entire UK operation when it merged to form Bond Dickinson in 2013.

Before that the Northumbria University Economics graduate had worked on a freelance basis for a number of small service companies, ambulance including various law firms and recruitment agencies, and spent time in the in-house PR and Communications departments of several Newcastle-based firms, including Watson Burton and Eversheds.

In his new role as Marketing Manager for SAFC David will oversee a team of eight staff members, specifically tasked with managing marketing campaigns for the club and its subsidiary 1879 Events Management.

This includes all relevant activities for the forthcoming concerts at the Stadium of Light featuring One Direction and multi-artist event North East Live, along with catering and events at the Stadium and National Glass Centre, Sunderland, which are both managed by 1879 Events Management.

David said: “The same principles of marketing apply for almost every sector, but moving from law into football and food is certainly going to be a change of pace for me and one I’m really looking forward to relishing over the coming months.”

IMG Challenger World, viagra 60mg the Mass Participation Sport division of IMG Worldwide, the global sports, fashion and media company, has been awarded an extension to its contract with Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority to deliver the Abu Dhabi International Triathlon until 2015. 

As delivery partner, IMG will continue to successfully plan and manage the event with a large emphasis on operational delivery, while also providing commercial, marketing and communications support. 

During the initial three year delivery which began in 2010, IMG – together with the Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority – established the event as one of the must-do long course events in the world, attracting top professional athletes, such as two-time Ironman world champion Chris McCormack and three-time champion Craig Alexander, whilst also securing over 2,000 mass participation entries. 

Greg Sproule, Managing Director for IMG Middle East, said: “IMG has harnessed the rapid and successful development of sporting events in the UAE to create and deliver an event which is attractive to both elite and amateur athletes. 

“The aesthetics, culture and points of interest in the city, combined with a challenging and exciting course give us a great event to further establish and grow over the next three years.  We are grateful for the opportunity to continue our association with the Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority; they are fantastic host partners and share our vision to continue to elevate the event year-on-year.” 

The fourth edition of the event will take place on 2nd March 2013 and will be raced over three unique distances to ensure athletes experience the very best of Abu Dhabi. 

The race village and transition will once again be based at the East Plaza (Public Beach) on the Corniche. It will be a sea swim from the beach; the bike course will weave through the unmistakable scenery of the city of Abu Dhabi, featuring tree-lined roads, landscaped parks and gardens and the sparkling waters of the Arabian Gulf, which surround the city, all under the safety of completely closed roads. 

To the east of Abu Dhabi city, the bike route passes over Saadiyat Island and on to another attraction sure to whet the appetite of cyclists: Yas island, the emirate’s leisure and entertainment destination. Here, athletes in the short and long course will cycle round the Yas Marina Circuit, which has hosted four hugely successful editions of the Etihad Airways F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. 

The run course remains unchanged, heading west along the Corniche out onto the breakwater with stunning views back to the city on the return leg.  Athletes will finish at the East Plaza location. 

In addition to this, IMG Consulting’s UK based PR team, has also been awarded a three-year contract as the international PR team to the event, having successfully delivered over the previous three years. They will be leading the global triathlon, sport and lifestyle PR, working with the UAE based local agency for the event and Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority’s international offices across nine key global source markets. 

Faisal Al Sheikh, Events Manager at the Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority, added: “The IMG Consulting PR team has been invaluable the last three years in helping to position the event globally as a ‘classic’ destination race amongst the global triathlon audience.  We are looking forward to working with them again over the coming three years to cement this status and widen its appeal through travel and lifestyle audiences, as well as to communicate Abu Dhabi as the premier winter training destination for endurance athletes.