The Rome 2020 Olympic bid has chosen USA based Helios Partners as their main consultants to prepare the bid.

This makes Rome’s second Olympic campaign following defeat to Athens in 1997 for the 2004 Games.

Terrence Burns, President of Helios Partners, said: “For Helios, Rome is an enigmatic choice for 2020 for a lot of reasons. The 1960 Games in Rome were unique in so many ways – the world was changing, the Olympic Movement was changing.  And I think that 60 years later, Rome can help usher in another, new golden age for the Games. So, we wanted to be a part of helping Rome, because of its uniqueness and its history,  articulate a new vision for future Olympic Host Cities.”

Burns has worked on four winning Olympic bids – Beijing 2008, Vancouver 2010, Sochi 2014 andPyeongchang 2018 – as well as on Russia’s successful campaign to host the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Following their amazing success with Pyeongchang, who swept to a first round victory at the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session in Durban in July following two previous failed bids, Helios’ services were much in demand among the cities bidding for 2020.

But they have chosen Rome, who last hosted the Olympics in 1960, having also been strongly linked with Doha and Istanbul.

Mario Pescante, the Rome bid chairman and IOC vce-president, said: “We are pleased to have a great partner like Helios onboard for Rome 2020. Their reputation within the Olympic movement makes them a perfect fit for our existing, excellent team.”

Also Robert Fasulo has recently come on board with the Rome 2020 bid to work with international relations. Fasulo formerly was with the USOC and worked in the same capacity for the Chicago 2016 bid.

Rome is running in the 2020 summer Games race against Baku, Doha, Istanbul, Madrid, and Tokyo.

Lausanne will be the new destination for the World Squash Federation (WSF) after the opening a new office in Lausanne, arthritis Switzerland in the Maison Du Sport International to be close to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) headquarters.

WSF has renewed its intentions to get elected on the Olympic program for the 2020 summer Olympic Games.

WSF president, doctor N Ramachandran, cough said, “Since becoming President of the World Squash Federation, I have visited Lausanne on many occasions. However, given our campaign for Squash to become part of the Olympic Sports Programme, it now makes sense for the WSF to have a base alongside so many of our colleagues in the Olympic Movement.

“Representatives of WSF and the wider Squash family will be spending an increasing amount of time in Lausanne over the next two years as we step up our campaign for Olympic inclusion.

“Thanks to provisions made by the City, Canton and IOC, we will now have an office that will make it much easier to reach out to the Olympic family.

“This is an important step for Squash and one which further demonstrates our commitment to becoming part of the Olympic Sports Programme from 2020.”

The IOC executive board agreed in Durban, South Africa on a short list of the sports up for consideration on the 2020 program and those are: baseball, karate, roller sports, softball, sports climbing, squash, wakeboard and wushu.

Only one will be added to the 2020 sports program and that will be voted at the 125th IOC Session in Buenos Aires in 2013. The Olympic programme can include a maximum of 28 sports.

Serie A soccer Officials are expecting the strike to continue as the first weekend of the new season failed to happen.

Serie A officials on Friday rejected a last-minute proposal from the Italian Players’ Association (AIC) for a one-season deal to avert strike action, ampoule leading to the postponement of Saturday and Sunday’s fixtures. The AIC’s temporary contract was set to run through to June 30, symptoms with the intention of allowing both sides further time to reach an agreement while the football continued.

But Serie A president Maurizio Beretta rejected the idea telling Italian news agency Ansa: “Our assembly was clear. We will only sign an agreement if it contains the two points under discussion – the solidarity contribution and that of training outside the first-team squad.”

The AIC have a very strong opinion on clubs trying to force players to move in the last year of their contracts and unwanted players being forced to train separately. Meanwhile, pills the clubs are seeking to insert a clause confirming players will pay a new solidarity tax announced by the Italian government this month on all workers earning over $129,000 a month. The international break will give both parties sufficient time to discuss the matter.

However, AIC president Damiano Tommasi remains pessimistic that an agreement can be reached. He said: “I have the distinct impression that 15 days will not be enough. We may need months. The Lega is clearly split. They’ve been saying no for a year and a half. The players are disappointed not to be playing but it’s not down to a question of finance or because of a whim. For professionals it’s just right to begin a season with a signed collective agreement.”

brandRapport Sport and Entertainment have announced today two senior appointments with Alex Hennessy and Peter Watkins both joining the agency as Account Directors. 

Hennessy will be responsible for leading the Samsung/Chelsea FC Global Hospitality & Events programme and Watkins will oversee the LV= sponsorship portfolio which includes the LV= Cup, medic Harlequins RFC and the ECB County Cricket partnership. 

Prior to joining brandRapport, Hennessy was at the International Tennis Federation (ITF) where she oversaw the event operations for the Davis Cup.  Before that she had been in key operations roles at the International Rugby Board (IRB) and Gloucester Rugby Club.  Watkins joins from the Australian Rugby Union where as Partnerships Manager he was responsible for managing & building marketing programmes with its leading sponsors including DHL, Qantas, Castrol and Blackberry. 

Commenting on the appointments, brandRapport Managing Director, Andy Kenny said: “We are very pleased to have secured the services of two strong Account Directors who have exactly the right credentials to ensure that we continue to provide best in class insight, client servicing and delivery”.

Pedro Evora, the grandson of Affonso Evora, a Brazilian Olympic medalist has been selected as the architect to design the clubhouse of the golf course for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games.

Pedro Evora is the 34-year-old grandson of Affonso Evora, a point guard on the Brazilian men’s basketball team that won the bronze medal in 1948.

Pedro Evora’s design beat more than 50 projects that entered the bidding process, which was open to young architects who graduated in the last 15 years.

He said the clubhouse will be an “open space, with full contact with nature, integrated with the landscape,” and that players will have a “unique experience.”

Fellow Brazilian Pedro Rivera is a co-author of the project.

Carlos Arthur Nuzman, Rio 2016 President said: “We wished to showcase Brazilian culture and to give this opportunity to young architects of our country. They produced noble projects that are a pride for Brazilian architecture. I’m delighted with the results.”

“The terms of reference or, in other words, what the customer wanted done, were clear and very demanding, facilitating the development of projects. Of the 57 submitted, 40 were approved in the first round, which demonstrates the high level of selection. To offer this opportunity to young Brazilians proved to be an excellent choice, ” added Sergio Magalhãe, President of IAB.

American Gil Hanse will design the course, which will mark golf’s return to the Olympics after more than 100 years.

University of Alabama football fans will enjoy enhanced wireless coverage in and around Bryant-Denny Stadium after the completion on a Distributed Antenna System (DAS) at the stadium that will deliver improved wireless coverage, viagra capacity and data speeds during peak network usage.

The DAS includes separate antenna locations mounted throughout the facility to boost network strength and capacity. In addition to ensuring calls are successfully connected, the DAS allows smart phones, tablets and other mobile devices to access the Internet, send text messages and quickly share photos and videos to social networking sites. Coverage includes the surrounding streets and walkways outside of the stadium as well as all corridors, executive offices, locker rooms and seating inside the stadium.

“The installation of the DAS at Bryant-Denny Stadium should improve the game day experience by enabling fans in the stadium to stay connected and share the incredible experience of a University of Alabama game with their family and friends via their mobile devices,” said Mal Moore, Director of Athletics. Verizon Wireless and AT&T selected TE Connectivity to design and install the DAS, which will be operated by both carriers. According to Jonathan LeCompte, president, Georgia/Alabama Region for Verizon Wireless, “We are pleased to work alongside our partners to deploy this type of DAS network at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Running the Verizon Wireless network on TE Connectivity’s infrastructure will help ensure our customers have the best wireless experience on our 3G and 4G LTE networks when attending Alabama’s home games this season and beyond.”

“AT&T strives to connect our customers everywhere they go – where they live, where they work and where they play,” said Chad Townes, Vice President of AT&T’s Antenna Solutions Group. “Football fans at Bryant-Denny Stadium will benefit from the enhanced coverage made possible by this joint effort that we know will provide customers with an even better game day experience.”

“TE Connectivity has delivered a robust InterReach Spectrum & FlexWave Prism DAS solution to support more than 100,000 University of Alabama fans. As a leading provider of mobile connectivity solutions for major stadiums, our broad portfolio delivers mobile services to venues of any size and any configuration,” said Alan Clarke, president of network solutions at TE Connectivity.

Eurostar has appointed Havas Sports and Entertainment to promote its London 2012 Olympic tier three sponsorship and its other sports and cultural partnerships.

The substance of the deal involves creative PR campaign development and activation, generic including experiential events, for sponsorships that include London 2012. The work is expected to lead to further activation of sponsorships work for other Eurostar-backed events.

Eurostar head of sponsorship Nina Ferrier said that Havas was “a great fit for us” because it “combines creative thinking with an in-depth understanding of sport and its audiences”.

The Havas Sports and Entertainment team will be led by global VP for strategic planning, marketing and comms Fredda Hurwitz, and will involve the creative, PR and experiential departments from the UK, France, The Netherlands and Belgium offices.

Lucien Boyer, Havas Sports & Entertainment global CEO and president, said: “Over the coming year Eurostar will be creating a programme of events that will bring together culture, sport and entertainment from across Europe and we look forward to helping them share their stories with the public.”

Eurostar is a tier three sponsor of London 2012, in addition to being the official international rail services provider for the Olympics. Eurostar will be providing arrival and departure services at St Pancras International for those competing and working at the Games who are travelling to London on its trains.

The news comes after the company revealed it has begun a search for a roster of agencies to provide creative and advertising services across its core markets of the UK, France and Belgium.

The successful agency or group of agencies may also assume responsibility for Eurostar’s international and emerging markets.

The International Olympic Committee have given a positive review after their fourth and final inspection of Innsbruck facilities for the first ever Winter Youth Olympic Games in 2012.

The Commission – chaired by Switzerland’s Gian-Franco Kasper, the President of the International Ski Federation – conducted the inspection following the Chef de Mission meetings in the city that saw all of the 65 nations that will compete at Innsbruck in attendance and said they were impressed with what they saw, with a little over 100 days to go until the event begins.

Kasper, said: “The Innsbruck Organising Committee heads into the final few months of preparation with an extremely organised and creative team who are working tirelessly to ensure an unforgettable elite sporting event for the world’s best young winter athletes.

“This unique host city has a rich Olympic history and today we can feel the excitement building as it makes history again with the first Winter Youth Olympic Games.”

The Commission claimed they were particularly impressed with the progress of the Youth Olympic Village, which will accommodate approximately 1,660 athletes and officials during Games time and then become affordable housing once the event has concluded.

The Coordination Commission was also pleased to note the full integration of the unique Culture and Education Programme into the overall schedule for athletes, spectators and local schools.

The Programme will enable athletes to learn new skills, experience different cultures and cover key topics such as the benefits of healthy lifestyles, the dangers of doping, and the values of friendship, solidarity and fair play.

This group will then guide the athletes through the Programme during Games time.

Peter Bayer, Innsbruck 2012 chief executive, said: “Holding 63 medal events and a wide-ranging Culture and Education Programme in the space of just 10 days requires a tremendous amount of detailed planning, organisation, coordination, leadership and monitoring. I am proud of our team.

“The vision of the Youth Olympic Games is within touching distance, and there is great enthusiasm among all the members of the Organising Committee. We have embraced and are living the Olympic Spirit, which is reflected in the excellent work we’ve done so far.”

This inaugural event will hope to follow in the footsteps of the successful Summer Olympic Youth Games held in Singapore in 2010.