Chips will not be allowed to be served on its own following a new regulation by London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG).

A memo from the LOCOG to catering teams has come to light on Twitter, generic advising that staff are only able to serve chips in the Olympic precinct provided they are part of a “fish and chips” combination.

It appears that LOCOG were reluctantly forced to agree to the decree due to the International Olympic Committee’s sponsorship deal with a fast food giant.

“Due to sponsorship obligations with McDonalds, sale sale LOCOG have instructed the catering team they are no longer allowed to serve chips on their own anywhere within the Olympic park, cough ” the memo reads.

“Please understand this is not the decision of the staff serving up your meals, who given the choice would gladly give it to you however they are not allowed to.”

McDonalds are expected to serve approximately 10 per cent of all meals eaten at the London Games.

The British Olympic Association (BOA) and London 2012 have reached an agreement with regards to the drawn out financial dispute between the two, with BOA chairman Colin Moynihan being forced to accept defeat in his argument that any surplus from the Games should be calculated before the costs of the Paralympics are taken into account.

Both parties signed an agreement last night which means that the BOA will drop its threat to take London 2012 to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

The deal is heavily weighted in favour of London 2012, meaning Moynihan failed in his main goal to raise extra cash for the BOA, who are struggling financially. The London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) were supported by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Jacques Rogge and Britain’s Sport and Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson in the row.

The BOA remain to be due 20 per cent of any surplus after the Games having originally claimed that the cost of staging the Paralympics should not be taken into account when calculating that surplus.

However, Moynihan has now been forced to concede that any surplus will be distributed only after the costs of the Olympics and Paralympics have been settled and had to settle in the agreement that for the fact “confirmation that monies due to both the BOA and the British Paralympic Association (BPA) after the 2012 Games will continue to be prioritised and delivered should LOCOG’s Final Audited Statutory Accounts show a sufficient surplus”.

The settlement includes details such as the confirmation that any surplus will be distributed on the basis of 60 per cent for the benefit of sport in the UK, 20 per cent to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and 20 per cent to the BOA – which was already part of the contract.

Moynihan and the BOA have had to largely settle for scraps, which will bring into question his decision to pursue this case so aggressively, a decision which has damaged the reputation of the Olympic Movement in Britain and almost certainly ruined his own ambitions of playing a leading role within the IOC in the future.

A pledge that London 2012 will support the BOA’s efforts to find new sponsors to back them after next year’s Olympics was involved in the deal. Additionally, they will support the BOA’s plans for the marketing and sale of two items of Team GB merchandise through its official retail outlets and in conjunction with the Torch Relay. 

London 2012 has offered to waive its royalty fee on these items so that the proceeds are designated exclusively for the BOA.

Also, London 2012 will allow the BOA to purchase additional Olympic tickets that will be used as incentives in the Team 2012 appeal and for British Olympians who competed in previous Games.

London 2012 has also agreed to increase support for the BOA’s operational planning prior to, during and immediately after the Olympics including access to venues contracted to London 2012, which chairman Sebastian Coe had already promised that he would do.

Andy Hunt, the chief executive of the BOA, stated: “We appreciate the spirit of partnership and cooperation that LOCOG brought to our discussions.

“We are proud of our long standing partnership with LOCOG and the outstanding work being done by all of the sport stakeholders to deliver what will undoubtedly be a successful Games.

“With this matter now resolved, the BOA will be able to keep its attention focused entirely on our preparations to support Team GB at the Games.”

Moynihan and Hunt will now be able to resume their positions on the London 2012 Board having been suspended after launching legal action.

Paul Deighton, the chief executive of London 2012, added: “I am glad this issue has been put behind us and we can all get on with delivering Games next year that will make this country proud.

“I would like to thank Andy and his team for creating the right environment for us to reach this settlement.”

ESPNF1, viagra 60mg ESPN’s dedicated Formula One website, drugs is launching free iPhone, Android and Nokia mobile applications. The new apps will feature all the key content that sports fans expect from ESPNF1, including comprehensive race coverage, commentary and stats.

The ESPNF1 app, launching on Android and Nokia in the coming weeks, is available now for iPhone (via the App Store) and features:

• Countdown Clock – home page will feature a live countdown to the start of the next race;

• • Simple navigation – easy access to key content areas via an intuitive navigation system;
  • Feature content – original features including Driver Profiles, Q&A’s, and opinion-based articles from ESPNF1 writers;
  • Circuit Detail – After selecting a race, users can view circuit information, including a profile of each track along with historical information.
  • Race updates – upcoming race calendars and exclusive news;
  • Push notifications (coming soon) – fans can get alerts on upcoming key events, meaning they will receive instant alerts when new content is available
  • Race Commentary – latest action on every grand prix

Tom Gleeson, vice president, digital media, ESPN International, said: “The ESPNF1 mobile app is another step in ESPN’s bid to serve Formula One fans with the very best content on multiple devices.”

The free ESPNF1 mobile app adds to ESPN’s growing mobile media portfolio worldwide after the broadcaster launched new iPhone and Android mobile applications for ESPNCricinfo, in time for the ICC Cricket World Cup in February.

Sponsorship consultancy Synergy has appointed Josh Robinson as Head of Digital, it was revealed today.

He will be responsible for digital strategy across all of Synergy’s clients, and for leading Synergy’s fast-growing digital division, which has pioneered digital and social media innovation in sponsorship for clients including BMW, Coca-Cola and RBS.

He will also join the 450-strong digital community at Engine, the UK’s largest privately-owned communications group, of which Synergy is a part. Engine recently appointed Alex Balfour, formerly Head of New Media at London 2012, as Chief Digital Officer.

Robinson was previously at media rights holder Sports Revolution, where he led work for UEFA, the RFU and the Football League, which included the strategic and creative direction of StadiumLIVE, a multi-million pound Connected Stadium project.

Robinson also founded the world’s first sponsorship and social media consultancy and was Head of Strategy and Creative at Experience Worldwide, and counts SAP, Heineken, Coca-Cola, Nissan, Canon and PlayStation in an impressive client history.

Robinson said: “This is a renaissance period for sponsorship. Crowds thrive where technology, social media and shared passions come together. To say I’m looking forward to helping Synergy’s clients unlock the largely untapped potential of sponsorship and digital is an understatement’. 

Tim Crow, Chief Executive of Synergy added: “Josh is recognized internationally as a leader on the cutting edge of digital and sponsorship and will add tremendous strategic, creative and operational value to us and our clients. Together with Alex Balfour he will ensure that we remain absolutely at the forefront of thought leadership in digital and sponsorship, and is testament to our ability to attract the very best talent.”

The Asian countries of China, Japan and Korea have revealed their intention to bid to host the 2019 FINA World Championships, and eventually for the 2021 edition.

The countries however have not said what cities will be bidding to host the events.

Formal bids will be submitted by April, with FINA choosing the 2019 host in July in Barcelona, at next year’s World Championships.

On July 2013 the Presentation of the Bid by each NF/City to the FINA Bureau at a meeting will be held during the 15th FINA World Championships in Barcelona (ESP); followed by the FINA Bureau voting and awarding the 18th FINA World Championships 2019, and eventually the 19th edition in 2021.

Before 2019 and 2021, the 15th FINA World Championships will take place in Barcelona (ESP) from July 19-August 4, 2013, while the 16th and 17th edition will take place respectively in Kazan (RUS) in 2015 and Guadalajara (MEX) in 2017.

The International Olympic Committee is hoping a Chinese company will join its TOP sponsorship programme for the next instalment of the Games.

IOC marketing head, medic Gerhard Heiberg said that in the past the TOP program has mainly attracted western companies that have experience in sports marketing but the IOC aims to make the programmes more universal.

According to Heiberg, most major Asian companies, particularly those from China, had little knowledge of sports marketing was up until the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

He said that TOP programme member, Samsung, has benefitted greatly from sport sponsorship and is committed to the program through to 2016.

Heiberg hinted the number of sponsorships on offer under the TOP program may be reduced when the program is reviewed in 2020. The TOP program is currently limited to 12 companies. The IOC has deals with 11.{jcomments on}

Prince Tunku Imran of Malaysia has announced that he is to stand for election to be President of the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF), claiming to already have the backing of Asia.

Prince Tunku is currently the vice-president and hopes to succeed the current incumbent of the position, Jamaica’s Mike Fennell.

Tunku, an International Olympic Committee (IOC) member, hopes to replace Fennell who has led the CGF since being elected at Victoria in 1994. The Jamaican is yet to declare publicly whether he plans to stand again at this year’s elections, due to be held at the CGF’s meeting at St Kitts and Nevis from November 11 to 13.

Datuk Sieh Kok Chi, the secretary of the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM), stated: “Fennell had voiced his intention to step down after the New Delhi Commonwealth Games last year, after holding the post for 17 years.

“If Tunku Imran wins, he will become the first International Olympic Committee (IOC) member elected as the CGF president, which will give a new height to the Federation.”

Prince Tunku, 63, is a former Malaysian squash champion and was President of the International Squash Rackets Federation from 1989 to 1996. A graduate of Nottingham University, he is a qualified barrister and he has been President of the OCM since 1998.

The launch of Prince Tunku’s candidature is due to be formally announced during the CGF’s Executive Board meeting in Kuala Lumpur next month and Chi added: “We hope that the federation, made up of 71 members of the former British empire, will unanimously support Tuanku Imran.”

Opta, sale ed a specialist in the collection and distribution of detailed performance data for soccer matches throughout Europe, has broaden its portfolio after agreeing a multi-year partnership with Major League Soccer (MLS).

Opta has become the official competition-related statistics partner of league, allowing MLS to introduce Opta’s sports information to the MLSsoccer.com website, participating broadcasters and other media outlets.

Opta are the official data provider to the German Bundesliga, providing in-depth live and historical data to the league’s official website, and also work with a number of major broadcasters, publishers, sponsors, governing bodies and professional clubs.

Chris Schlosser, director of digital strategy for MLS, said: “For many years we have heard a desire from our fans for more in-depth statistics. We are very excited to partner with Opta to bring this critical information to our passionate fans. This deal will allow for deeper analysis of all MLS matches and ensure that MLS is at the cutting edge of data technologies in 2011 and beyond.”

MLS and Opta are planning to build a new North American data collection hub in MLS’ digital headquarters in New York, where hundreds of MLS and other North American soccer games will be analysed.

Aidan Cooney, chief executive of Opta, added: “This is a very exciting new step for our business. Our pioneering technology creates digital blueprints of each match, enabling rich statistical and graphical insights into the game’s tactics and strategies. This is an opportunity to take soccer to a new, but statistics hungry, audience in the United States.”