G4S, allergy the Official Security Services Provider of London 2012,  have failed in their promises to provide the recommended amount of security personnel for the Games.

Instead up to 3,500 extra troops will be needed for security duties during the Olympics amid fears that private firm G4S will not be able to meet the needs, the defence secretary will say today.

Philip Hammond will say the military force at the Olympics will be boosted to some 17,000 troops with just two weeks to go.

It comes as security-providers G4S admitted it was experiencing “some issues in relation to workforce supply and scheduling” and had accepted that the government was turning to the military for extra help.

Some 17,000 troops will now be involved in the Olympics, with 11,000 of these involved in the security of more than 30 sporting venues and some 70 non-competition venues, including car parks and hotels.

Military personnel will also be involved in specialist support roles including air security, search teams, communications and logistics, among others.

Mr Hammond will give further details to MPs today.

A London 2012 spokesman said: “Security for the Games is big and complex but we have the best brains in the security business working on this – Home Office, Metropolitan Police, Ministry of Defence and world’s largest private security business.

“Delivering a safe and secure Games is everyone’s number one priority.

“We do not anticipate an increase in the overall venue security numbers.”

Andy Hunt, chief executive of the British Olympic Association (BOA), has refuted claims that his position, as well as that of chairman Colin Moynihan, has been weakened by the deal that brought an end to a bitter dispute with the London 2012 Olympic Games organising committee (LOCOG).

The BOA was forced to give way in its cash row with LOCOG, a case which they had initially stated that they would take to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), and abandoned its legal action against Games organisers.

The deal agreed will see LOCOG waive rights to royalties on two items of Team GB merchandise and will also allow the BOA to buy extra Olympic Games tickets and Hunt denied the episode had jeopardised his position, telling Sky News: “Not at all. We work with our boards, and with the IOC (International Olympic Committee), and the 33 sports to make sure that we were pursuing a contractual right that we had. We have consulted widely, and everyone has supported the way we have handled this.”

Hunt added: “We have always said we wanted a settlement and that’s what we have got. When you have to pursue something that you think is right, it might not always be popular. What we have done in pursuing what was a narrow contractual dispute has been blown out of all proportion and now we are taking a stand to make sure we can close it off and agree a settlement that helps LOCOG and British athletes.”

London 2012 has agreed “in principle” to lift the suspension of Moynihan and Hunt from its board meetings and LOCOG chief executive Paul Deighton added: “We are obviously pleased to get the dispute behind us so we can just move on and concentrate on what’s important, which is delivering a great Games and a great Team GB that can win medals.”

If successful in their bid to host the 2017 World Athletics Championships, Doha will use the same air-cooling technology that they plan to employ during the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

The Qatari capital is one of four cities bidding to host the event alongside London, who want to stage the Championships in the stadium being built for next year’s Olympics, and are seen as the English capital’s biggest rival.

Doha’s bid to host the 2016 Olympics and Paralympics failed two years ago because the International Olympic Committee (IOC) ruled that holding the Games there in July or August could be too dangerous because of the searing heat at that time of the year in the Gulf.

But pioneering cooling technology was invented during the country’s controversial bid to host the World Cup to counter the threat of average temperatures in Qatar in the summer which peak at around 41 Celsius and can often pass 50 degrees Celsius and they now plan to utilise that in the World Championships if they are awarded the event.

Qatar has developed system of solar-powered, air-cooled stadiums with roofs designed to shelter the fans and players. Qatar proposes playing World Cup matches in 12 stadiums equipped with the technology.

The technology can keep the temperature at under 20 degrees Celsius – a long way below the 30-degree mark at which most medical experts agree conditions become dangerous. 

If Qatar officials also manage to convince the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) of the benefits of the system then it could also have major benefits for its proposed bid to host the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics.

A spokesman for the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) told insidethegames: “We are presently considering the potential dates for hosting the 2017 IAAF World Championships, and we will enter discussions with the IAAF over dates at the appropriate time during the bidding process.

“Should Qatar’s bid for the Championships be successful, the proposed stadium would be Doha’s Khalifa International Stadium which will be fully equipped with the latest environmentally friendly air-cooling technology.”

The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) has announced Curt Harnett as their Chef de Mission for the TORONTO 2015 Pan American Games. 

Four-time Olympian, treatment three-time Olympic medallist and Board Member of World Bicycle Relief Canada will lead Team Canada at the TORONTO 2015 Games

“We are so excited to at last, decease inform Canadians and those across the Americas of the individual who will be responsible for leading our TORONTO 2015 Canadian Pan American Team, impotent ” said Marcel Aubut, President, Canadian Olympic Committee. “Curt is one of Canada’s most decorated Olympians, and we are so grateful that he has accepted this great responsibility. I have full confidence that Canada’s Pan American athletes will benefit greatly from his extensive experience, unending passion and tremendous intensity.”

“What a truly incredible honour this is for me. I am ready for the task ahead and accept this massive responsibility,” said Curt Harnett, four-time Olympian, three-time Olympic medallist and the new Chef de Mission for Canada’s TORONTO 2015 Pan American Games Team.

“One of my goals as Chef will be to illustrate to all Canadians that these Games matter,” added Harnett. “They matter not just because an unprecedented amount of resources are being invested into sport, or because they afford Canada’s best athletes the opportunity to compete at home, in front of a hometown crowd. They matter because come 2015, various cultures and languages will be coming into our home and we will host them with a true Canadian spirit – one of peace, fair play and equality. To me, these are values worthy of promoting and celebrating.”

Canada’s 2015 Pan American Team is expected to be the largest team ever fielded at an international multi-sport competition. The unprecedented size of the Canadian Team for TORONTO 2015 will exceed 1,100 with the inclusion of athletes, coaches, and mission staff and is a result of the COC’s landmark financial investment.

“With this investment, we are ensuring that every Canadian athlete who is eligible to compete will compete,” added Aubut.

“On behalf of the Government of Canada, I would like to congratulate Curt Harnett on being named the Chef de Mission for Canada’s 2015 Pan American Games team,” said the Honourable Bal Gosal, Minister of State (Sport). “Curt’s experience, both as an athlete and as 2011 Assistant Chef de Mission for Team Canada in Guadalajara, will provide our athletes and coaches with unparalleled leadership, knowledge, and enthusiasm leading up to and during the Games.”

The world governing body for air sports (FAI) has announced that it has opened the bid process that will determine the hosts for the 2015 FAI World Air Games.

FAI Member Organisations, pills cities, drugs regions, event organisers or commercial bodies interested in bidding for this event are asked to submit their initial expressions of interest to the FAI by 30 November 2012.

The FAI World Air Games is the flagship event of Air Sports. This multi-disciplinary event is the only world competition that brings together the various different Air Sports. It is a combination of elite competition and spectacular demonstrations which exemplify the very best that Air Sports have to offer.

“We are very excited to get the bid process for the next FAI World Air Games started and we look forward to receiving the applications. Hosting the FAI World Air Games, where the very best air sports athletes from all around the world pit their skills and talents against one another, is a unique way to promote the image of a city, region or even a country”, said FAI Secretary General Jean-Marc BADAN.

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.