U.S. broadcaster ONE World Sports signed a multiyear, online multiplatform carriage agreement with Charter Communications, Inc. the nation’s fourth largest cable operator.

The agreement provides more than 3,000 hours annually of exclusive world-class sporting events to Charter customers.

“This is a major step forward in delivering on our key business objective of expanding our reach around the country,” said Alexander “Sandy” Brown, president and CEO of ONE World Sports.  “We’re excited to be allied with Charter in bringing exclusive global sports to the fast growing segment of fans who are demanding to see their favorite sports from around the globe.”

“ONE World Sports offers the types of sports programming that are of increasing interest to the multicultural and millennial audiences in our markets,” said Allan Singer, Charter senior vice president, programming. “We look forward to a successful partnership ahead.”

ONE World Sports will be available in Charter’s all-digital markets by September.

Benchmark Sport International, owners and operators of the Sport Industry Group, Beyond Sport, Benchmark Talent and Square Mile Sport, and IMG Worldwide, the global sport, fashion and media company, have announced a new partnership which will take the Bloomberg Square Mile Relay outside the UK for the first time. 

The joint venture sees Square Mile Sport and IMG partner to launch the Bloomberg Square Mile Relay in Singapore. The event will combine IMG’s in-depth local knowledge of the market and experience in staging major events, with the expertise Square Mile Sport has honed over six years of hosting the event in London. 

“We are hugely excited to partner with both IMG and Bloomberg to take the Bloomberg Square Mile Relay to Singapore,” said Nick Keller, CEO of Square Mile Sport and Benchmark Sport International. “There is no more respected brand in sport than IMG and no more respected brand in business news than Bloomberg, and we could not ask for better partners as we take this fantastic event around the world.” 

James Robinson, Managing Director of IMG Challenger World, the mass participation sport division of IMG, said: “The Bloomberg Square Mile Relay is one of the most exciting events on the London calendar and a fantastic addition to the roster of international events which IMG delivers around the world on an annual basis. We are delighted to partner with Benchmark Sport to take the Relay to a new continent and look forward to a successful debut event in Singapore.” 

The inaugural Singapore edition of the race will be held on Thursday 24th October 2013. For more information, visit www.squaremilerelay.com

The Qatar Olympic Committee have said they will send women athletes to the Olympics for the first time at the London Games.

Sheik Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, troche the general secretary of the Qatar Olympic Committee, cialis says the IOC has offered Qatar wild card invitations for two female athletes to compete in London—swimmer Nada Arkaji and sprinter Noor al-Malki.

Al Thani says the number of female entrants from Qatar could rise to four.

Qatar, viagra Saudi Arabia and Brunei have never sent women athletes to an Olympics.

Qatar made its announcement Monday as it released details of Doha’s bid to host the 2020 Games.

by Ismail Uddin

Sixteen companies have been verified in expressing an interest in bidding for the use of London’s Olympic Stadium after this year’s games, including West Ham United.

The Championship club’s original deal to take over the $766 million Olympic Stadium collapsed in October amid legal uncertainty and a dispute with Tottenham.

The government opened a tender process on 20 December and bidders have until 23 March to submit full proposals.

The Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC) revealed the numbers after the 30 January deadline passed.

“Each successful bidder will add to the athletics legacy already secured for the stadium”

OPLC spokesperson

A spokesperson for the OPLC said: “There have been 16 registrations from parties interested in bidding to use the stadium after the Games. They now have until 23 March 2012 to submit their full bids.

“The Legacy Company plans to appoint the winning bidders in May 2012 and remains on track to reopen the venue in 2014.”

Tottenham is no longer interested in the 2012 site, while West Ham was one of 16 parties to register an interest, but has yet to decide whether to bid again.

The OPLC also reiterated that the athletics track remaining in place is a non-negotiable part of the process.

The spokesperson added: “Each successful bidder will add to the athletics legacy already secured for the stadium, including the new national centre for athletics and host of the 2017 World Athletics Championships.”

Who should win the bid? Have your say here

Indian broadcaster Sony Six has secured broadcast rights of Champions Tennis League.

The inaugural league will take place between 17 to 26 November and will be held in six cities in India.

The league formed of six teams will witness national and international tennis talent with each team having top ATP and WTA players, viagra captained by a tennis legend. Each team in the Champions Tennis league will feature one male and one female international player ranked amongst the top 25 in the ATP and WTA rankings. Each team will also have an international legend as their playing captain, order apart from a noted top ranked Indian male tennis player. Two juniors, aged under 21 will also be a part of the team, selected by the All India Tennis Association, in order to give them exposure and the experience of playing with some of the best players in the world.

MSM India CEO NP Singh said, “Introduction of Champions Tennis League will help redefine the Indian tennis market paradigm. This will be a landmark event that will put India on the global map of tennis, featuring some of the world’s greatest tennis stars playing right here in our country. We are excited about this partnership and believe that the tournament will be a perfect blend of tennis and entertainment that has never been seen in India.”

Sony Six EVP and business head Prasana Krishnan added, “We are delighted to have Champions Tennis League on board as this acquisition signifies yet another endeavour by Sony Six into bringing diverse sports offerings to the viewers. Champions Tennis league will be a treat for viewers as they will get to see the best of tennis action where International players and our National talent share the court. We believe that the league will not only give a fantastic viewing experience to the viewers but also help young Indian talent to perform on a grand stage.”

Second Serve chairman and managing director Vijay Amritraj said, “I am delighted that The Champions Tennis League in its inaugural edition will be seen on Sony Six and Sony Six HD. This would be first time that an event of this nature with top international players, men and women along with some wonderful legends will be seen in six cities across India. I am also proud to say that our Indian Davis cup players will be alongside the international players, along with two Indian youngsters, a boy and a girl; who will be on the team to practice and gain experience traveling with these top players. It will be a spectacular 10 days for sports and tennis lovers across the country.”

Matt Phelan has taken on a temporary position as acting CEO of Parramatta Eels less than 24 hours after Ken Edwards left the National Rugby League club.

Phelan joined the Eels in February as general manager of operations and strategy and has over 20 years experience in sports administration.

He becomes the fourth person to fill the position since 2009, after the club said on Tuesday Edwards had left by ‘mutual consent’ as a result of a change of strategic direction following the installation of the new board in May.

“Our primary focus for the remainder of the year is to ensure that the Parramatta Eels are working hard both on and off the field,” Phelan said in a statement on Wednesday.

“This has been a tough year for our organisation, but we owe it to our members and fans to remain dedicated to making this a club they are proud to call their own.”

The search for a new CEO has already begun, but Eels chairman Steve Sharp said the club was in no rush to find a permanent replacement.

“We will not rush this decision, as we need to make sure we find an individual best suited to implement our club’s strategy for the future,” Sharp said.

Sochi 2014 Winter Olympic Games have already received 34,000 applications from potential volunteers a week after the recruitment drive was launched, according to Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak.

Speaking at a press conference concluding the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Coordination Commission’s seventh visit to Sochi, Kozak spoke of the importance of the volunteer programme.

“They are needed not just for the Olympics but it provides restoration of the volunteer movement in Russia,” he said.

“Volunteers can work in other areas of social significance.

“Competition will be harder than for most prestigious universities and this shows the importance of this movement.”

Sochi 2014 will recruit 25,000 volunteers for the Winter Olympics from the 26 volunteer centres around the country.

With 35 per cent of Games personnel expected to be volunteers, they will be of fundamental importance during Sochi 2014.

Though the intention is to inspire volunteering in Russia, Sochi 2014’s programme has had a far wider reach than that, with applications coming from as far afield as Ghana, the Dominican Republic and Kenya.

by Ismail Uddin

The Spanish Olympic Committee (SOC) has officially launched its campaign for Madrid to host the 2020 Olympic Games.

The event, check which was held in the offices of the SOC, allergist also saw the presentation of the official logo for the 2020 campaign which has already caused a stir.

Madrid has twice previously presented its candidacy to host the Olympics, finishing third behind London and Paris in the race to 2012 and losing out to Rio de Janeiro in its bid for the 2016 edition.

The 2020 bid will be led by the committee president, Alejandro Blanco, who replaces former Mayor of Madrid, Alberto Ruiz Gallardon, as the leader of the campaign.

Blanco will be assisted by a team which includes former Olympic medal winner Teresa Zabel, who will look after international relations, and Victor Sanchez Naranjo, who is a former General Secretary of the International Fencing Federation

The logo for the bid was chosen from a competition which had been contested amongst the young Spanish designers and the winning design was chosen for its best representation of the Olympic values of solidarity and inclusion, as well as inspiring young people to participate.

The winning design is based on the construction of the famous Madrid monument, the “Puerta de Alcala” with five arches signifying a welcome to the five continents.

However the new logo has caused controversy as many consider it confusing but Madrid International Relations CEO Theresa Zabell stands solidly behind the logo and her bid.

“We had a fully booked house…we were surrounded by people in the design business and they liked the logo very much.” the double-gold Olympian in sailing toldGamesBids.com.

The act also saw the presentation of the official website for Madrid`s 2020 candidacy, www.madrid2020.es. The web includes opportunities for “Madrilenos” to contribute articles, photos and videos to help promote the Spanish capital.

Alejandro Blanco highlighted the importance of the previous bids to host the Games, which had shown the way to success.

Blanco said that a third bid confirmed Madrid`s desire to host the Olympics, stressing that the bid would be financially austere, ecologically sound and backed by the high level of success from Spanish sportspersons in major events.

He said no city in the world had organised more major sports events in recent years than Madrid and that the city already enjoys an ample sporting infrastructure, while the AVE high-speed train provides rapid links to other venues.

Finally, Blanco said the bid would include education and integration projects for young people, which was one of the key factors.

Ignacio Gonzalez, the vice president of the Community of Madrid, commented that the candidacy represented a collective dream held by the city to organise the Games.

Spanish Secretary of State for Sport Miguel Cardenal said the candidacy counted on the total support of the government and highlighted that the success Spain has enjoyed in international sport and in hosting major events, was a guarantee for success.

Madrid will compete against Istanbul, Tokyo, Rome and Baku and Doha in the race to host the 2020 Olympics and the winning city will be named Sep 7, 2013 in an event held in Buenos Aires, Argentina.