Australian motorsport administrator Kelvin O’Reilly has become the new Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Karting Association (AKA)

Australian Karting Association Ltd Chairman Mick Doohan has announced long-time  as the governing body’s new Chief Executive Officer today.

Karting will be the fourth motorsport category for Mr O’Reilly who has held numerous roles within the sporting and corporate arena. His experience covers sporting, administration, technical process and control, governance, marketing and commercial areas within organisations including the Touring Car Entrants Group (TEGA), TOCA Australia (FIA Super Touring), Gold Coast Motor Events and Rally Australia.

The strength and appeal of Karting in Australia was demonstrated by the overwhelming response to the role from local and international candidates.

“We had an incredible response for the new role of Chief Executive Officer with many high caliber applicants and we’re delighted to be able to have Kelvin join Karting as we enter the new era,” said AKA Chairman Mick Doohan.

Mr O’Reilly will officially begin his role as CEO of the Australian Karting Association on September 1.

“I’m looking forward to working with the Board and Karting Community to finalise the transition to the new corporate structure and long term direction of Australian Karting,” said O’Reilly.

“In conjunction with the Board of Australian Karting Association Ltd I look forward to being able to assist them and guide Karting as a sport in Australia as both a participation sport in its own right for all ages and as an enhanced ‘breeding ground’ for our future motorsport Champions.

“I look forward in the first few months to meeting with and working with the people that make Karting tick and to ensuring that the future of Karting in Australia realises the vision that the Board and all of our participants have for the sport.”

The AKA has in excess of 7,000 members with 92 Clubs across the country. The Association sanctions more than 700 race meetings and events annually across all States and Territories.

Mick Doohan, Chairman and Competition Director, is joined on the Australian Karting Association Ltd Board by Bradley Collins (Technical), Melissa Holzberger (Administration), Phill Smith (Finance) and Sam Moreton (Marketing).

Motorsport agency Just Marketing International (JMI) has announced the appointment of Chris Long as Vice President, Client Services International.

Long brings over 15 years’ experience in brand marketing, sports sponsorship, events and hospitality to JMI. His role will focus on ensuring the agency’s international account teams continue to deliver innovative, high-quality service to clients and leverage the range of creative services JMI offers.

Long will report to David Webb, President International, and will take up the role in early September based from the agency’s London office.

Webb commented: “JMI continues to grow and the strength of its client roster is reflected in our management team. The position of Vice President, Client Services International, is key in the provision of a first-class offering from our Account Management and Event Marketing divisions.

“Chris brings with him a breadth and depth of experience and skills in the marketing space that will create more opportunities for our clients and help develop their outstanding sponsorship activation programmes.”

Chris Long said: “Joining the world’s leading motorsports marketing agency at such an exciting time is a superb opportunity. I look forward to being part of this strong team focused on delivering added value to all of JMI’s international clients.”

Long joins JMI from RBS where he oversaw both the RBS and NatWest brands as Head of Sponsorship in the UK Retail Division. His previous experience includes Group Sponsorship Manager leading the RBS global golf programme and sponsorship marketing at IMG Consulting.

IOC president Jacques Rogge has ruled out Turkey from hosting the Olympics and Euro 2020 soccer tournament in the same year.

Rogge made the comments to French news agency AFP, medicine saying: “On September 7 next year in Buenos Aires, if Istanbul is elected we will respectfully ask them not to host the European Championships.” 

However, he acknowledged, there was little the IOC could do. 

“Ultimately, it will be for the government to make their mind up but I would say the election would be conditional on not organizing another competition.”

Turkey submitted a bid for Euro 2020 last month and is so far the only candidate for the UEFA showpiece, scheduled just weeks prior to the Games. The strain on infrastructure for a quick turnaround on events is seen as potentially dooming for Istanbul’s Olympic bid. 

In a statement released later in the day from Istanbul 2020, Turkish sports minister Suat K?l?ç said Istanbul is still on track to host the Olympics. 

“Our Prime Minister announced the bid himself, and Istanbul 2020 retains the same support from the same highest level,” he said. “We will fulfil every requirement to win the right to host the Games, under the leadership of our Prime Minister.”

Leading digital content group Perform have signed a two-year sales agreement with MLB Advanced Media, search LP (MLBAM).

The deal will allow PERFORM exclusive rights to re-sell premium display and pre-roll video on the national pages of MLB.com for IP addresses associated with a location in Australia.

The deal with MLBAM allows PERFORM to offer advertisers a range of commercial opportunities through display and video. Across Australia, pills the average monthly unique visitors to MLB.com has doubled compared to 2013.

James Peel, stuff Director of Sales for Asia-Pacific, PERFORM, added: “We are very excited about this strategic partnership that leverages the current interest in baseball locally. PERFORM has a track record of delivering innovative solutions across premium sports content and we look forward to enabling advertisers to benefit from the high levels of interest in the MLB.”

Alexander Pigeon, Vice President, International, MLB Advanced Media, commented: “We are excited about our new partnership with PERFORM, which will allow us to deliver targeted and relevant local media advertising to Australia-based Major League Baseball fans who visit MLB.com.”

Former Breeders’ Cup Vice President Carter Carnegie has been appointed as the International Executive for Great British Racing International (GBRI) in order to encourage overseas investment in the British bloodstock and racing industry.

Carnegie, click whose background is in commercial sports development, click has been associated with the National Basketball Association (NBA) and National Football League (NFL), apoplectic as well as serving ten years with Breeders’ Cup Limited, where he was successful in seeking new marketing partners and securing sponsorship deals.

GBRI receives its funding from Great British Racing, the British Horseracing Authority and the Horserace Betting Levy Board. Carnegie will report to an operating board chaired by Chris McFadden and comprised of the respective Chief Executive Officers of the three organisations in Rod Street, Paul Bittar and Alan Delmonte.

Carnegie, who starts in his new position on Monday, August 12, said: “I wish to thank the members of the GBRI operating board for giving me the opportunity to lead this new international initiative. I look forward to working with and on behalf of all the various constituents of the British racing and breeding community in developing initiatives targeted at foreign investment in the sport as well as promoting the values and prestige affiliated with racing and breeding in Britain.”

He added: “I plan on being in London and the UK quite a bit but the role is designed to be largely overseas so it would be an exaggeration to say I’ll be based there. For the first couple of months it will be about understanding the UK landscape and some fact-finding but I’m really looking forward to diving right in.

“I’m such a big fan of British racing as a whole and it’s great that such a pro-active  approach is being taken with regard to promotion.”

GBR Chairman Chris McFadden added: “The lead role at GBRI requires a strong and specialised skill-set with a balance of international racing experience, an understanding of the bloodstock industry and high-level commercial expertise. Carter has been able to demonstrate these, principally through his roles at the Breeders’ Cup.

“Great Britain hosts some of the best racing in the world and the industry’s stakeholders have agreed that our unique assets provide a serious opportunity to attract greater investment from high net worth individuals and companies. We feel Carter will add tremendous value to GBRI and help us to achieve our objective of delivering new income to British Racing.”

Spain’s latest recesssion will not push Madrid to pull out of their 2020 bid, Theresa Zabell, the CEO behind the bid said.

Spain have been induced to streamline the euro zone’s fourth largest economy, reduce a huge public deficit and fix a banking system battered by a four-year economic slump and a burst property bubble.

Bidding for 2020 Olympics also began before their government pulled the plug on the candidacy in February, saying it could not provide financial guarantees as they worked towards heading off their own debt crisis.

Following Rome’s surprise withdrawal there have been concerns that Madrid’s bid could also be affected by the debt crisis in Spain, where the economy slipped into recession in the first quarter in late April.

“Madrid has absolutely no intention of backing out of bidding for the Games. This is not going to be Rome II,” the bid’s CEO of international relations Theresa Zabell told Reuters in an interview. “We will be in Buenos Aires next year with a strong bid.”

The International Olympic Committee will elect the winning bid for the world’s biggest multi-sports extravaganza in September 2013 in Argentina, with Istanbul, Azeri capital Baku, Qatar’s Doha and Tokyo also in the running.

Madrid is bidding for the third consecutive time after losing out to London for the 2012 Games and Rio de Janeiro for 2016.

“The economic situation is an extra item that did not exist in the last bids,” said Zabell, a winner of two Olympic sailing gold medals. “Bidding for the Olympic Games is not a cost. It is an investment in our country. Not only in material but also in morale.”

“Need the games”

Madrid’s bid has all but six venues already in place, but has decided to shift the focus from past bids on to the Games’ sporting aspect.

Madrid is also keen to push their capabilities as hosts and point to the fact that in the last ten years the city has played host to 85 European championships and 77 world championships.

“Few cities can boast of holding so many international events of such a large category,” she said.

In the coming two years the Spanish capital will host six more world championships for Olympic sports.

“We really need the Games. We have a high percent of unemployment and we need the Games to get the country moving,” Zabell said.

“Unemployment for people under 25 years is very high and they are the best qualified generation of people we have in the history of Spain and we need to give them their first job opportunity. There is no better force to change than the Games.”

Zabell said Madrid’s bid was also the only one from the heart of Europe and would provide a safe return after the first South American Games in 2016.

“New countries are trying to bid for the Games that traditionally did not bid before,” said Zabell.

“But I personally don’t think the Olympic Games can go from new countries (Brazil in 2016) to new countries. They have to come back to countries where they know the Games will be a quality experience.”

 

What are your views on Madrid’s bid for the 2020 Games? discuss here: http://bit.ly/ISSqzQ