The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) have announced today that the Spanish city of Alicante will host the 2013 IPC Shooting European Championships, ampoule taking place from 18-26 October.

Organised by Club Lucetum, sickness the 2013 European Championships will be the first major gathering of international athletes since the London 2012 Paralympic Games, welcoming around 350 athletes from 35 countries. 

Xavier Gonzalez, IPC Chief Executive Officer, said: “We are delighted that Alicante will host the IPC Shooting European Championships. Club Lucetum has an excellent track record for organising competitions to a high standard and have hosted previous IPC Shooting World Cup events in 2009, 2010 and 2011. 

“They have also invested heavily in the facilities to bring them up to a high standard.” 

Between now and Rio 2016, the IPC is planning to develop a comprehensive competition calendar, which will see Alicante also host IPC Shooting World Cup events in 2014 and 2015, with the latter event acting as a Paralympic Games qualifier. 

The last IPC Shooting European Championships took place in 2007 in Suhl, Germany, with 280 athletes taking part.

DeNA Co., view Ltd. has teamed up with the National Football League (NFL) and NFL Players Inc. (NFL PLAYERS) to bring the NFL mobile social card game NFL Matchups to DeNA’s Mobage social games platform.

Featuring hundreds of NFL players, impotent  NFL Matchups challenges gamers to build the ultimate football card collection. The game is available now for free download on Android and is coming soon to iOS mobile devices.

In NFL Matchups each gamer competes to win new offensive and defensive playmakers as they build a top-notch collection of digital player cards. Users take their collection into head-to-head gridiron contests where each player’s unique stats, in combination with strategic offensive and defensive formation choices, can give them an edge. With league and tour gameplay modes, gamers can evolve the players on their squad over time to improve their stats and build the ultimate digital trading card collection.

“DeNA is proud to partner with the NFL and the NFL PLAYERS to deliver NFL Matchups to the millions of dedicated football fans looking for an experience that tests their NFL knowledge, strategy and skill, and a new way to interact with their favorite players,” said Irfan Virk, CEO of DeNA Studios Canada. “The game provides fans with a new way to interact with their favorite players and offers them an opportunity to enjoy football all year long even after the NFL season ends.”

“The NFL is constantly looking for new opportunities to connect our millions of passionate fans with the sport. Our work with DeNA accomplishes just that, and we are excited for our fans to enjoy NFL Matchups,” said David Healy, NFL Director of Media Strategy & Business Development.

“We’re excited to collaborate with DeNA on NFL Matchups,” said Nicole Pozzi, Senior Manager of Multimedia Licensing for NFL PLAYERS. “This new mobile social experience will enable fans to engage with hundreds of their favorite NFL players while designing their very own first-class virtual card collection.”

Puma CEO Franz Koch bestätigte in einer offiziellen Unternehmensmitteilung: „Nach einem starken Jahresendspurt in 2011 ist PUMAs Umsatzwachstum im ersten Quartal im Vergleich zu den Vorjahresquartalen geringer ausgefallen, site was zu einem schwächeren Ergebnis führte. Unsere Umsatzentwicklung im ersten Quartal spiegelt die derzeitigen Herausforderungen in Europa wider, denen wir mit der konsequenten Optimierung unserer Geschäftsprozesse in der Region EMEA begegnen. Ich bin zuversichtlich, dass wir vor dem Hintergrund dieses außergewöhnlichen Sportjahres mit unseren Produkt-Innovationen unsere Umsatz- und Ergebnisziele für das Jahr 2012 erreichen werden.“

Aufgrund stagnierender Konsumausgaben in der Eurozone sind die Umsätze im ersten Quartal um 6,1% auf Euro-Basis sowie währungsbereinigt um 4,2% auf € 820,9 Mio. angestiegen. Die Umsätze in der Region EMEA reduzierten sich um währungsbereinigt 1,4% auf € 368 Mio., was auf die insgesamt gedämpfte Verbrauchernachfrage im Zuge der Finanzkrise innerhalb der Eurozone zurückzuführen ist. Neben dem derzeit herausfordernden Marktumfeld belastete auch der späte Wintereinbruch in Europa die Umsätze im Groß- und Einzelhandel, so dass die Frühjahrskollektionen später geordert wurden und damit die Umsatzentwicklung von PUMA im ersten Quartal beeinträchtigten.

PUMA hat bereits begonnen auf diese Herausforderungen zu reagieren und optimiert die Geschäftsprozesse in der Region EMEA. In diesem Zusammenhang wurde Sergio Bucher, bisher verantwortlich für das globale Einzelhandelsgeschäft bei PUMA, zum neuen Geschäftsführer für Europa ernannt. Im Rahmen der Transformation, die Teil der Wachstumsstrategie ist, wird PUMA seine Geschäftsabläufe in den Ländergesellschaften verschlanken und einige Backoffice-Funktionen auf regionaler Ebene zentralisieren

Eine starke Entwicklung der Umsätze in der Region Asien/Pazifik und in Amerika hat dem Umsatzrückgang in der Region EMEA entgegengewirkt. Aufgrund des Wachstums in Indien, Korea und Japan, die eine kräftige Nachfrage nach PUMAs Motorsport-, Running- und Lifestyle-Produkten verzeichnen konnten, sind die Umsätze in Asien um währungsbereinigt 10,2% auf € 192,1 Mio. angestiegen.

Die Umsätze in der Region Amerika verbesserten sich währungsbereinigt um 8,5% auf € 260,8 Mio. In der Region Lateinamerika verzeichneten vor allem Mexiko, Argentinien und Brasilien ein starkes Umsatzwachstum im zweistelligen Bereich.

Ultimate Fighting Championship’s lightweight champion Frankie Edgar is excited at the prospect of returning the organisation to Japan for the first time in more than a decade in February and hoops to boost the event in the country

Japan was the major player in the MMA world in the late 1990s and early 2000s, with the Pride promotion attracting the top fighters and staging some of the biggest events ever seen in the sport.

The Pride Shockwave event in 2002, which also featured some bouts fought under K-1 kickboxing rules, drew a reported 90,000 spectators at the Tokyo National Stadium.

However, the sport was beset by financial problems in Japan and after the UFC purchased Pride in 2007 (and closed it later that year), interest in MMA began to wane.

Edgar, who will defend his title against Ben Henderson in Saitama on February 26, believes the UFC 144 event in Saitama will breathe new life into MMA in Japan.

“There’s such a deep history and tradition of MMA in Japan already so I think it will boost the sport back to where it used to be,” the 30-year-old American told Reuters.

“The Japanese are very knowledgeable about MMA and they are excited to have the UFC back in their country.”

The UFC’s last event in Japan was in December 2000. A month later the company was in new hands following its purchase by Station Casinos executives Lorenzo and Frank Ferttita.

Aldo Rebelo, viagra sale the recently-appointed Brazilian sports minister, case has forcefully claimed that Brazil will be ready to host the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

He cast aside doubters at the opening ceremony of the Soccerex Global Convention 2011 in Rio de Janeiro with his assertions.

FIFA officials, including general-secretary Jérôme Valcke, have repeatedly said Brazil’s preparations – in terms of building airports and stadia and ensuring venues will be ready on time – are behind schedule.

“Rest assured Brazil will have a great World Cup in 2014,” said Rebelo, speaking alongside Sérgio Cabral (Governor of Rio), Tony Martin (Chairman of Soccerex) and Mário Zagallo (former Brazilian footballer and manager).

“We are going to have a good World Cup in terms of organisation. The federal government, the state governments and the municipal governments of the 12 host cities are fully engaged in organising this event to meet all the expectations of the world, of our country, of the athletes, the tourists and the organisers and promoters.”

Rebelo, who last month replaced Orlando Silva following his resignation amidst a corruption scandal, added that in the lead up to the World Cup “there will be conflict and a contradiction or another” but it will be resolved by “seeking harmony” between the various stakeholders.

“From Tibet to Patagonia,” he added, “humankind expects Brazil to have a good World Cup.”

FIFA have kept up the pressure on the bribery scandal by charging ten more officials from the Caribbean.

FIFA’s ethics committee has already banned five officials and reprimanded or warned eight others. A further 10 officials will now have their cases heard next month after proceedings were opened against them, FIFA said in a statement.

The officials have been charged with breaching rules on ethics in the wake of the corruption scandal that saw Mohamed bin Hammam banned for life.

The ethics committee ruled in July that he had made or offered cash gifts of $40,000 to each of the 25 Caribbean Football Union (CFU) association chiefs at a special meeting in Trinidad on May 10-11.

FIFA said in a statement: “The FIFA ethics committee has opened ethics proceedings against 10 more Caribbean Football Union (CFU) officials in regard to possible violations of the FIFA code of ethics in relation to the investigation of the cases related to the special meeting of the CFU held in Trinidad and Tobago on 10 and 11 May 2011. The ethics committee has asked the 10 officials for further interviews on these proceedings.”

The 10 officials named by FIFA on Wednesday were: Raymond Guishard (Anguilla), Damien Hughes (Anguilla), Everton Gonsalves (Antigua and Barbuda), Derrick Gordon (Antigua and Barbuda), Lionel Haven (Bahamas, CFU), Patrick John (Dominica), Philippe White (Dominica), Vincent Cassell (Montserrat), Tandica Hughes (Montserrat), Oliver Camps (Trinidad and Tobago).

The ethics commitee will deliberate over the cases at its next meeting in mid-November.

Infront Sports & Media are to deliver all key aspects of this year’s Fédération Internationale de Bobsleigh et de Tobogganing (FIBT) World Championships, from media production, implementing new technologies and providing the highest standards of delivery.

As Official Media and Marketing Partner of the FIBT, Infront has secured title sponsor BAUHAUS alongside a wide range of broadcasters that will ensure live and/or delayed coverage to more than 20 countries and territories.

Infront produces the programming in full HD quality, whilst ensuring the highest standards and technical controls to meet the key criteriaof broadcasters, sponsors and fans across all markets. Approximately 40 staff members deliver the production with up to 27 cameras shootingthe action on and around the tracks.

Bruno Marty, Infront’s Executive Director Winter Sports, says: “Once again we have been able to grow a successful ongoing client partnership organically through adding a new service from our broad range of solutions. Like the previous four FIBT World Cup races, the BAUHAUS FIBT World Championships will now also benefit from our wide experience of handling the media production for other major sports events, such as the FIFA World Cup, Serie A, Ligue 1, the FIM Superbike World Championship, the IIHF World Championship and FIS World Cups.”

Formula One veteran Patrick Tambay has reacted to F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone’s comments that the Monaco Grand Prix would not be a loss if it was replaced on the calendar.

Earlier this week, Ecclestone suggested that Monaco, along with some other European GPs, would need to raise its game financially to compete with countries eager to join the race calendar.

He said: “The Europeans are going to have to pay more money or we will have to go somewhere else. We can do without Monaco [if] they don’t pay enough.”

But now Tambay has responded, saying that dropping Monaco would be a risky move.

He said: “It is the highlight of the season and of the grand prix, with which partners and sponsors from around the world want to be involved.

“There are things that probably need to be put straight, and there are clearly plenty of candidates who want to organise new grands prix, while the other pay fees that may need to be revised upwards, but all of this is a matter of negotiations that Bernie Ecclestone is currently conducting with the Automobile Club de Monaco.”

India is due to join the F1 schedule next year, with the USA and Russia both expected to join the calendar in the next few seasons too.