Organisers of Austin’s new Formula 1 track have announced that the course is scheduled to be completed in the middle of August, with construction efforts now fully back on course at the United States venue.

Although there was uncertainty about the future of the race last year amid a dispute over the contract – with work at the circuit being halted for several weeks – a big push by Austin’s organisers ensured it remained on the final 2012 calendar issued by the FIA’s World Motor Sport Council in early December.

With its deal secure, construction resumed at the track shortly afterwards and track chiefs have confirmed that the recent delays will not have any negative effect on its November 18 event taking place.

Senior representatives from the Circuit of the Americas, including president Steve Sexton, executive vice president Bruce Knox and chief marketing and sales officer Geoff Moore are in London this week for meetings with Bernie Ecclestone to update him on progress.

Moore told Autosport: “The race is on. Construction is happening six days a week. The paddock buildings are being topped off, work on the main grandstand has started and we are looking at mid-August for completion.”

Pressure on the construction efforts has been eased by the fact that the race’s date has been shifted from an original June date to its November slot – where it will form a back-to-back with season finale Brazil.

Although a reported $25 million payment from local government, as part of a Major Event Trust Fund, will not be given to Austin officials in advance – track chiefs say the venue already has advanced funding in place to ensure completion of the track.

The money will be applied for after the race, once it is clear just how much tax revenue the Austin Grand Prix has generated for the local economy.

The total cost for the Circuit of the Americas is estimated at $350 million, with track chiefs hoping to attract 120,000 spectators for the inaugural event.

Formula One’s governing body FIA has been welcomed into the Olympic family after securing a partnership with the IOC.

The International Automobile Federation (FIA) said it had been recognised provisionally for a two-year period by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and had agreed to respect the Olympic charter.

It added that the IOC had asked the FIA to introduce as soon as possible an athlete’s Commission in order to make the recognition permanent.

“I am delighted the FIA is now part of the Olympic family as this is a confirmation of the strength of our sporting credentials as well as a recognition of the values of respect, excellence and friendship which we actively share with the Olympic movement,” said FIA president Jean Todt in a statement.

Formula One and the Olympics will come together, of sorts, in 2014 when the inaugural Russian Grand Prix is scheduled to take place in Sochi after the Winter Games there.

That Grand Prix has been put forward by local Olympic organisers as one of the additional legacies of the Games in the Black Sea resort, using some of the same facilities and providing a use for the Park.

Beverage giant Coca Cola has planned a major marketing campaign poised on Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar’s expected 100th century in international cricket.

Coca Cola are launching a series of 10 cans, with 10 different designs, each chronicling one of Sachin’s best centuries, nine of which were handpicked by the batsman himself.

Coca-Cola will release some 6.5 million special Coke cans with pictures of the batting maestro, with each can having the image from that innings of Tendulkar along with the statistics of the century.

The company plans to release 800,000 units of the 10th can, which will be released once Tendulkar scores the much awaited 100th international century.

It is hoped that Tendulkar will achieve that landmark during the first England vs India Test beginning at Lord’s, England on July 21.

A core team of designers and creative guys from Coke’s creative agency are working on the design and look for the 10th can.

This is the first marketing campaign for which Coca-Cola is using its “Happiness” ambassador Sachin, since the two signed a contract, estimated in the range of US$2.7-3.3 million, earlier this year.

This is also the first time that Tendulkar has listed some of his most important innings that he has ever played. Some of the innings are 200 in an ODI against South Africa, 114 versus Australia in Perth in 1992, 143 versus Australia in Sharjah in 1998 to win the Sharjah Cup.

Anupama Ahluwalia, VP, Marketing, Coca-Cola India, said: “As and when Sachin reaches that historic milestone of 100 hundreds, it will be an ultimate high-point in the history of sports. As a tribute to this legend, who is also Coca-Cola’s ‘Happiness’ ambassador, it is only appropriate that we release nine special edition cans, each depicting an important achievement of his career, and start celebrating in anticipation of his 100th hundred.

“This will be the first time in the history of our operations in India that we will put a celebrity or our brand ambassador on our cans and we are making this exception for one of India’s great sons. The occasion is specially significant for the Coca-Cola family since Sachin is a part of us and this is yet another occasion when Sachin and Coca-Cola are teaming up to spread joy and happiness.”

A revised match schedule was announced yesterday, health | March 30, pharm developed by Rugby New Zealand 2011 (RNZ) in consultation with Rugby World Cup Limited (RWCL) for this year’s tournament following the decision to reallocate all matches from Christchurch following the devastating February 22 earthquake.

The new schedule will see three of the five rescheduled pool matches remain in the South Island. Nelson, vialis 40mg Dunedin and Invercargill will each host an additional match while the remaining two matches have been reallocated to Wellington and North Harbour.

As announced earlier this month, the two quarter-finals due to be played in Christchurch on October 8 and 9 will be played at Eden Park in Auckland.

The new fully enclosed Otago Stadium, a 30,000-capacity venue, has been added to the schedule as a World Cup host and will stage England’s Pool B games with Argentina and Georgia on September 10 and 18.

Australia’s clashes with Italy and Russia have been moved to Auckland and Nelson respectively, while Argentina’s game with Scotland will switch to Wellington. Operational reasons have also necessitated the transfer of one non-Christchurch match, Scotland versus Georgia, from Dunedin to Invercargill.

RNZ 2011 CEO Martin Snedden stated: “Our desire was always to transfer as many of the Christchurch pool matches as was reasonably possible to other existing South Island venues. At the same time we are very conscious that time is pressing, with just 163 days to go before the world’s third largest sporting event kicks off, so we have also sought to minimise disruptions to ensure as few teams and their supporters were affected as possible. This has meant minimising any changes to matches that weren’t originally scheduled for Christchurch.”

He continued: “While we know that our rescheduling decisions won’t please everyone, on balance, we have achieved the best possible result taking into account all relevant factors. We firmly believe that RWC 2011 will be a tournament which all New Zealanders can experience and be proud of and will continue the outstanding success of recent tournaments.”

Rugby World Cup Limited chairman Bernard Lapasset added: “We appreciate the patience shown by the teams and fans during this difficult period and are enormously grateful for the support and cooperation of all our partners during what has been a complex process.”

The International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) has officially opened the bidding process for the 2014 ITTF World Tour, and 2014 ITTF Global Junior Circuit.

The ITTF World Tour has been in place since 1996 and attracts the world’s best table tennis players fighting it out for lucrative prize money and points to qualify for the $1 million World Tour Finals which offers $1 million prize money since the 2012 Finals.

ITTF World Tour events for 2014 are already scheduled in Qatar, Germany, Japan and Czech Republic. The Qatar Open, German Open and Japan Open are on the Super Series calendar this year, while the Czech Open is a Major Series tournament for 2013.

The 2014 Global Junior Circuit is split into 2 tiers: the Global Junior Circuit Premium events and the standard Global Junior Circuit events which have less requirements for organisers.

Under the Global Junior Circuit banner, there is also the special “Road to Nanjing 2014 Series”. There are 6 events available (one in each continent), to be held between 1st February 2014 and 31st May 2014, and will act as qualification events for the Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games. These events are only open to players born between 1 January 1996 and 31 December 1999.

Bidding period last until 15th July for ITTF Global Junior Circuit and 22nd July for the ITTF World Tour.

For further details or interested in bidding for these events please click here>>  

The Manchester Eastlands regeneration Framework Manchester is looking at the potential development of a new regional sports hub or house of sport concept and has appointed TSE Consulting to assist with the market research and concept development.

The City of Manchester has a vision to establish itself as the world-leading sport city with Eastlands at the centre of the sports city

Manchester City Council, New East Manchester Ltd and Manchester City Football Club partnered in 2010 to create a transformational plan for the Eastlands area around the Manchester City Stadium that would further drive forward the regeneration of East Manchester. Together they have developed the ‘Eastlands Regeneration Framework’ that highlights the importance of sporting, education and community facilities within the area and sets out aspirations relating to education, sport, recreation and employment.

As one of the key focus areas of this framework, Manchester is considering plans for a new regional house of sport. The new sports hub would add to the current sports environment already existing in Manchester that has positioned it among the best sporting cities within the UK, Europe and the world. Manchester has appointed TSE Consulting to assist them in market research and concept development.

Neil Fairlamb, Head of Sport – Manchester City Council, said: “Manchester is a truly unique city when it comes to sport. We have already accomplished a lot for our communities through sport and will continue to keep this at the centre of our plans moving forward. A potential regional sports hub would further add to the economic development of the region. We are happy to be working with TSE Consulting as they have a unique understanding of the sports market, both national and international. This provides an educated perspective and an efficient way of working, allowing the project to move quickly.“

Lars Haue-Pedersen, TSE Consulting Managing Director, added: “Manchester is a great example of a city that has clearly planned for how sport facilities and events can help to push forward their regeneration plans while at the same time showcase their city on an international scale. We are honoured to be working with them as they continue to build on an already impressive sporting landscape.“