The International Boxing Association (AIBA) is has announced that it has opened the bidding process for both the 2015 World Boxing Championships and 2015 Junior World Boxing Championships. 

With the 2015 AIBA World Boxing Championships set to serve as Qualifying Event for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, anabolics which city will follow in the footsteps of Baku.

The prestigious Junior World Boxing Championships, cough formerly known as the Cadet World Championships, unites the cream of the crop of 15 to 16 year-olds from around the globe, giving the world a first glimpse of the boxing stars of tomorrow. After the extremely successful previous edition in Astana and the much anticipated ninth instalment in Kiev in August this year, the interest in the hosting of the 2015 tournament is expected to beat all previous records.

For the first time in history, the process is open to cities, and not only for National Member Federations.

Usian Bolt sprint to victory in the 100m was seen by a whopping 20 million viewers on BBC last night.

Usain Bolt retained his 100m Olympic title last night with a peak of 20 million people watching at home. The race attracted a five-minute high of 19.36m (64.51%) viewers on BBC One at 9:50pm, abortion reports Broadcast.

An additional 628k (2.09%) watched on one of the BBC’s 24-dedicated Olympic channels, BBC Olympics 3. Furthermore, 3D coverage managed to pull in a crowd of 66k (0.22%) at 9:50pm on BBC HD.

Those viewing figures have topped the previous ratings high for the Olympic Games, as yesterday iSportconnect reported that the BBC had scored its biggest Olympics audience outside the Opening Ceremony with 17.1 million viewers tuning in to see Team GB take away 3 Golds in the Athletics.

English rugby union team, Leicester Tigers, has partnered with Edge 10 and IBM to implement predictive analytics software that it hopes will help prevent player injuries.

The team will be using a wide range of data from training and games to assess the risk of injuries to its players. This could include physical information such as distance covered and movement on the pitch to information on how well the player slept the previous night.

This data is then used to spot trends that can precede an injury. For example this could be a player rating very highly in two or more ‘fatigue parameters’ that the club sets.

Players can then have individual training schedules devised that can reduce their injury proneness. The data will be pulled together from IBM’s predictive analytics product SPSS Modeler into Edge 10’s reporting portal.

Rugby is an incredibly physical sport with as many as one-quarter of all players picking up injuries during the season. On average a hamstring injury will cost a team an average of 14 playing days.

While this means teams will not be able to put out their strongest team as often as they would like, which impacts on-field performance, it can also impact a team off the pitch. An injured player will still be picking up his or her salary while out of action.

Andy Shelton, head of sports science for Leicester Tigers, explained what sort of impact injuries can have on a club’s fortunes. “We’re playing on an uneven playing field with our European rivals because of the salary cap we have to play under. They can replace one highly-paid international with another; we cannot.”

“So we have to spend our money more wisely to gain any competitive advantage we can. It’s common sense but we always do better when our key players are fit, so that means we have to avoid injuries,” he added.

The platform will be rolled out across the club, from the under-19 Academy players up to the first team. As well as preventing injuries throughout the club, the predictive analytics software will also be used to help spot the best young players coming through the ranks, improving the percentage that graduate to the first team.

“Sport is no longer just a game, it’s becoming more and more a scientific undertaking which is driven by data and numbers,” added Jeremy Shaw, director, IBM Business Analytics for Media and Entertainment. “Gone are the days of relying on raw talent and gut instinct alone to succeed.”

CBR has reported previously on how sports clubs are using predictive analytics to gain a competitive advantage.

Manchester City is also using IBM software to help it identify transfer targets that will improve the club’s on-field performance. For example the software revealed the team was very poor at retaining possession in and around their opponent’s penalty area. The club then studied players across the world that were very good at keeping possession in that part of their field and used that information to identify transfer targets.

Lamine Diack is set to extend his reign as President of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) into a fourth term by being re-elected unopposed at the sport’s Congress later this year.

It has been confirmed that no-one else put themselves forward to challenge him despite rumours that IAAF vice-presidents Sebastian Coe, the former double Olympic 1500 metres champion who is now the chairman of London 2012, and Sergey Bubka, the world record holder for the pole vault, had both been mentioned as possible candidates.

Diack had succeeded Primo Nebiolo after the Italian’s sudden death in 1999 and the Senegalese, who will turn 78 next month, had said when he had been re-elected for another four-year term at Osaka in 2007 that he would not stand again.

He has since changed his mind and claimed that he has been reinvigorated by the prospect of overseeing the sport up until London 2012 and beyond, adding: “I am in very good health, and have even started doing daily exercise again.

“I am very enthusiastic and optimistic about the sport, and really want to complete my mission during my last mandate as head of the IAAF. “

On August 24, the same day that Diack will be officially re-elected at the IAAF Congress in Daegu, there will also be elections for the IAAF Council, which Coe and Bubka will both be contesting.

The candidate who gains the most votes is set to be installed as the senior vice-president, putting them in prime position to take over when Diack steps down in four years time and Diack stated: “I am sure that after the Congress in Daegu we will elect a very experienced and competent team, and I especially look forward to working hard with them in the interests of athletics.”

Major new £1.45bn (US$2.35bn) retail and leisure development, Westfield Stratford City, that will form the gateway to the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics, is still looking to host both rights-holding and non-rights-holding broadcasters during the Games with facilities in place that offer a spectacular view of the Olympic Park.

Westfield Stratford City will be the largest urban shopping centre in Europe with 1.9 million square foot of retail and leisure land, 300 shops and over 50 places to dine upon its scheduled opening on September 13.

There is still a limited number of leases available, including space on the top floor of the venue for rights-holding and non-rights-holding broadcasters.

Westfield Stratford City are due to host two non-rights-holding broadcasters during the London 2012 Games already, and with the location offering arguably the best view around of the Olympic Park as well as brand new facilities able to cater for all media demands, the retail centre are confident they will have at least five or six broadcasters working at the venue during the Games.

Mark Zimmer, the Westfield Stratford City Head of Olympic Brand Alliance, stated: “At present, we are set to have two non-accredited broadcasters broadcasting from this venue but we are currently in talks with a number of accredited broadcasters and by the time we get to London 2012; I imagine we will have a combination of both here.

“It obviously works for both because the venue is not actually on the Olympic Park but offers a spectacular view of it and it also has all the facilities to cater for the media following an in-depth feasibility study from us.

“The location is obviously a fantastic one for all of our partners and during the Games, we have so far confirmed that two major National Olympic Committees will be hosting cooperate functions with us.

“Retailers leasing here also have a huge advantage as 70 per cent of visitors to the Games will pass through Westfield City Stratford and therefore walk directly past the retail shops.

“We will clearly have to be careful regarding ambush marketing on the Olympic Games and abide by the strict laws in place.

“We also want to be good neighbours to the London 2012 Organising Committee so the Official Olympic Sponsors have been offered first refusal on taking up the space here.

“However, that doesn’t rule out other companies being based here and receiving the huge advantage of having so many people here before, during and after the Games.

“Around 10 million people will visit the 2012 Olympics including 20,000 journalists, 10,500 athletes, 5,000 sponsors, 70,000 volunteers and 9.7 million ticketed spectators so to have around 70 per cent of them coming through Westfield City Stratford is a huge boost and illustrates the phenomenal benefits to retailers based here.”

Former Manchester City chief Graham Wallace has been appointed chief executive officer of Scottish League One team Rangers.

Wallace, 52, was previously chief operating officer at Manchester City and is also former chief financial officer with IMG and MTV Europe.

The Ibrox CEO post has been vacant since Craig Mather’s departure in October.

And Rangers in recent weeks have appointed David Somers as acting chairman and Norman Crighton as a non-executive director.

They joined James Easdale and finance director Brian Stockbridge on a board which been depleted by the resignations of Mather, chairman Walter Smith and director Ian Hart.

Dumfries-born Graham will assume his role immediately and also joins the Rangers International Football Club Plc board of directors.

“I watched from afar as the Rangers support came to the club’s aid during the times of turmoil and now it is the turn of the board and management to provide the stability and governance to drive Rangers’ recovery forward and ensure further football success,” said Graham.

Global sports brand, viagra adidas has announced their Olympic sponsorship has allowed them to reach their £100 million ($156m) sales mark.

adidas CEO Herbert Hainer (pictured) said the German group had sold around £100m of Olympics merchandise since products first hit the shops over a year ago, asthma with more to come.

adidas has got its money back on the 100 million pounds it has invested in sponsoring London 2012 and associated marketing.

“The biggest sales are coming now, apoplectic ” Hainer said from the adidas media centre in London that the company has set up next to the Olympic Park in Stratford for the duration of the Games. “We can see people are queuing in stores now to get their products.”

Hainer, speaking to journalists after adidas reported second-quarter results, said licensed product sales were already more than triple what it achieved in Beijing, making London 2012 the most successful Games ever for adidas from a commercial perspective.

Traditionally, sportswear makers do not see the Olympics as such a big money-spinner as football tournaments. The Euro 2012, for example, will help adidas to record football sales of over 1.6 billion euros ($2 billion) this year.

Along with making the official London 2012 sports apparel merchandise – which does not feature its three-stripes logo – for sale in the UK, adidas provides the kit for hosts Team GB, replicas of which can be bought in stores.

As official sportswear partner, it is also providing 3 million items of clothing for the athletes to wear in the Olympic village and for volunteers.

adidas will not be official sportswear partner of the next Olympics in Brazil in 2016. Hainer said the group had decided instead to focus on the football World Cup, also to be held in Brazil in 2014.

Undoubtedly the biggest public corruption scandal of its history hit world soccer’s governing body FIFA this weekend, which saw presidential candidate Mohamed Bin Hammam and key executive committee member Jack Warner suspended as the roof was lifted on the much maligned body’s worst kept secret.

It was reported that Qatari Asian Football Confederation (AFC) president Mohamed Bin Hammam had withdrawn his presidential candidacy after being investigated on charges of corruption following a report handed to FIFA’s ethics committee by American ExCo member Chuck Blazer. The report also claimed that Warner was highly involved in offering and accepting bribes as well as investigating current current incumbent Sepp Blatter’s role in the farce to a lesser degree.

The outcome saw the two former officials provisionally suspended despite both denying the allegations, with Bin Hammam having already appealed the suspension. It is now known that Blatter’s challenger did not officially withdraw his candidacy and holds extremely slim hopes of overturning the decision in order to stand against his Swiss counterpart, who is now the sole candidate in tomorrow’s election.

In an extraordinary weekend of breaking news FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke was forced to retract claims made in an email published by the shamed Warner, saying that Qatar had bought the 2022 World Cup. Valcke confirmed that the email was genuine but stated that the comments he made were taken out of context and lost in email translation in a desperate attempt to clear the bids name after the scandal of the ‘whistleblower’ reported by the Sunday Times.

In his explaination Valcke claimed that he was referring only to Qatar’s huge marketing budget, as opposed to unethical behaviour, adding: “What I wanted to say is that the winning bid used their financial strength to lobby for support. I have at no time made, or was intending to make, any reference to any purchase of votes or similar unethical behaviour.”

The retraction was enough for Blatter, and indeed FIFA, to declare that the Qatar bid team were innocent in their lobbying process after the body found ‘no evidence’ from the Sunday Times report to take the case to the ethics committee.

The allegations made by former FA Chairman Lord Triesman were also disregarded with the FAs report suggesting that four ExCo members, including Warner, sought bribes in return for their backing in the 2018 World Cup bidding process at the end of last year. After claiming that there was no case to answer with regards to the report, FIFA agreed to publish a summary of the findings from the FAs case against its members.

As all this occurred, Blatter, who now stands as the sole candidate for re-election into what would be his fourth term as president, was forced to confront the press yesterday, Monday 30, though many of his comments only managed to multiply the feeling among many that a complete overhaul is necessary.

When asked as to whether the latest findings and allegations of corruption within the body had left FIFA in a crisis, Blatter stated: “What is a crisis? Football is not in a crisis. When you see the final of the Champions League then you must applaud. So we are not in a crisis, we are only in some difficulties.”

In a key development, FIFA’s major sponsors Coca-Cola and Adidas have both gone on record confirming their concern following the allegations of corruption that have engulfed the body.

Following the weekend’s extraordinary developments, a Coca-Cola spokesperson told the Press Association: “The current allegations being raised are distressing and bad for the sport. We have every expectation that FIFA will resolve this situation in an expedient and thorough manner.”

An Adidas spokesman had stated: “Adidas enjoys a long-term, close and successful partnership with FIFA that we are looking forward to continuing. Adidas will be an official sponsor of FIFA World Cup 2014 in Brazil. Having said that, the negative tenor of the public debate around FIFA at the moment is neither good for football nor for FIFA and its partners.”

In other news, overshadowed by the chaotic weekend, the FIFA Executive Committee decided to lift the suspensions on the football associations of Bosnia-Herzegovina (FFBH) and Brunei Darussalam (NFABD, formerly BAFA) during their meeting held yesterday, May 30, at the Home of FIFA in Zurich.

The Olympic Stadium row looks set to drag on further following the revelation that two casino chains have now launched judicial reviews into the decision-making procedures of the local authority.

City and Eastern and Apollo are both questioning Newham Council’s right to grant a license to a third company, Aspers, to build a casino within the adjacent Westfield Stratford City shopping centre.

The council is now under attack on four fronts following separate judicial reviews launched by soccer clubs Tottenham Hotspur of the English Premier League and Leyton Orient of League One, who are both fighting the decision to allow West Ham United to move to Stratford in 2014 after the Olympics and Paralympics.

A City and Eastern spokesman said: “The Gambling Act of 2009 makes it very clear that as party of any casino bid, regeneration has to form a significant element.

“Our project and that of Apollo both had over £250 million ($405 million) of urban regeneration. 

“This deal has been done behind closed doors in the dark. 

“Why wasn’t the bidding process open?”

Tottenham are unhappy with the process which led to West Ham being chosen as the winner after Newham Council arranged a US$65m loan to finance the move. The club have since widened their appeal and asked the High Court to start a separate judicial review into the roles of several other parties involved.

Fergus Kinloch, Director of City and Eastern, said it was clear his organisation never had a chance of winning the bid – exactly the same argument being used by Tottenham – stating: “Newham Council has in our view needlessly turned away over £250 million ($405 million) of investment plus substantial financial benefits for local residents, and at a time when councils are having to make major spending cuts.

“The whole situation quite simply beggars belief and certainly doesn’t work in the best interests of Newham residents.”