The Annecy bid team hoping to be named as host of the 2018 Winter Games has signed a new partnership with the LVMH/Moët-Hennessy – Louis Vuitton Group.

Marc-Antoine Jamet, Secretary General of the LVMH, Eric Marechalle, CEO of Kenzo and Charles Beigbeder, President of Annecy 2018 were all present in reaching an agreement consolidating LVMH’s decision to become an Annecy 2018 Supporter.

Through the partnership, Kenzo, an LVMH brand, will offer its expertise to the bid committee by tailoring the delegation’s look to further strengthen Annecy 2018’s identity.

Bernard Arnault, President of the LVMH Group, stated: “The creative passion and spirit of enterprise that drive the men and women of the LVMH Group are the essential to our success. These are values that we share with Annecy 2018. I am happy that with the same qualities and the same desire for excellence, the Annecy bid committee is claiming a success it is sure to achieve.”

Beigbeder said: “It’s a great reflection on the bid that a high-profile, global brand like LVMH has chosen to partner with us. It’s an example of the platform Annecy can provide for the Winter Games to help raise its profile worldwide. They believe in our vision of an authentic Winter Games in the heart of the mountains, with the athletes and for the future.

“Through this partnership, LVMH is bringing us both financial support and value in kind assistance. It is a great honour for the entire Annecy 2018 delegation to be able to wear suits by KENZO, reputed for its savoir-faire and the great quality of its products.”

Marc-Antoine Jamet added: “As an ambassador of the European and worldwide art de vivre, it was natural that we should support the bid of a major French region which combines the culture of sport and performance with the quality of the local environment to form a venue second to none.”

The Sri Lankan city of Hambantota’s bid book handover to host the 2018 Commonwealth Games overshadowed their rival bidders from Gold Coast in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia today, May 11.

The bid team were accompanied by a choir, ethnic dancers, elephants and drummers as they handed in their bid book while Gold Coast used a 10-year schoolgirl as the spearhead of their campaign.

Each city were able to give 20 minutes presentations at the official ceremony which was attended by senior officials from the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF), including vice-president Prince Tunku Imran and chief executive Mike Hooper. 

Anna Bligh, the Premier of Queensalnd, Australia, spoke of 10-year old Eve Lutze, stating: “Eve has got Gold Coast written all over her – she embodies the youthful energy, freshness and enthusiasm of the Gold Coast.”

“The weather would be perfect for athletes and spectators alike, and these dates would include two weekends and coincide with school holidays,” she said in a statement.

But the Gold Coast’s presentation was eclipsed by Hambantota, who started off the campaign as rank outsiders but whose bid is increasingly beginning to gain creditability.

In contrast to the Gold Coast bid, who claim that 80 per cent of their facilities are already in place, Hambantota are promising to create a new park to stage the Games, which have been held in Sri Lanka before. 

“Given the opportunity to host the Games will make such a difference to Commonwealth sport, to its athletes and to the young people in Sri Lanka, South Asia and around the Commonwealth who aspire to excite and thrill us with their performances in 2018,” said Ajith Nivard Cabraal, the chairman of Hambantota 2018 and the Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka.

South African broadcaster SuperSport has signed a sub-licence agreement with the SABC, impotent enabling the public broadcaster to air seven matches of the 2014 ICC World Twenty20, denture | starting in Bangladesh this weekend.

The agreement allows for the broadcast by the SABC of the opening game (Bangladesh versus Afghanistan), viagra order the four South African pool matches (starting with SA against Sri Lanka on March 22), one semifinal and the final, on April 6.

“We are happy to have come to an arrangement with the SABC regarding this event,” said Brandon Foot, Acting CEO of SuperSport.

SuperSport will broadcast all 35 matches live and in High Definition.

Munich’s bid to host the 2018 Winter Olympics received a timely boost yesterday, May 17, when officials secured the last piece of property needed for the downhill course.

The announcement was made just in time as far as the German city was confirmed, made on the eve of today’s, May 18, bid presentation to the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The agreement has seemingly killed off the one remaining domestic obstacle to the bid after residents of Garmisch-Partenkirchen recently voted against a bill to withdraw from the 2018 Winter Games tender.

The bid was thrown into serious doubt after some landowners in Garmisch-Partenkirchen had refused to hand over their properties for the Games, but having now secured about 3,500 square metres in the latest deal, officials behind the bid have ensured that the skiing events can be staged in the resort.

Munich bid CEO Bernhard Schwank stated: “We are very pleased that the land ownership discussions have taken this big step forward. Talks have been progressing quickly and constructively for some time now, and we were always confident that we would be able to find the best solution for all parties. This is further evidence that the people of Garmisch-Partenkirchen are firmly behind our bid.

“The properties for the sporting events of the 2018 Winter Games now have been 100% secured. Seven years before possibly staging the games we have an optimal offer for the IOC.”

The IOC will announce the winning bid from the three candidates of Annecy, PyeongChang and Munich in Durban, South Africa on July 6.

WWE have signed a multi-year broadcast right deal with ProSiebenSat.1 to deliver WWE content to the German and Austrian markets through Free TV, view Pay TV and SVOD.

As part of the deal WWE pay-per-view events will be available including WrestleMania 30 which takes place on Sunday, search April 6 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, LA and will be televised in more than 100 countries.

“This cooperation with WWE creates tremendous added value for our viewers and customers. WWE is well recognized in Germany and has a loyal and growing fan base,” said COO of ProSiebenSat.1 Digital. “We will be showcasing some of the very best programming WWE has to offer across our various platforms including SmackDown on ProSieben Maxx and the huge event WrestleMania 30 which will be available live as a pay-per-view for the first time on www.maxdome.de.”

“This new deal with ProSiebenSat.1 provides WWE fans with a great choice of platforms with massive reach to follow the storyline of WWE’s flagship programming,” said Stefan Kastenmueller, General Manager of WWE Germany. “Coupled with the increased activities from our team to bring the very best of all of our lines of business to the German market including Live Events, PPV, Consumer Products and Digital Services, we are set to solidify WWE’s footprint in Germany.”

After it was reported yesterday the the 2018 World Cup bid team of England had hired a private security firm to monitor the behaviour of their rivals, FIFA President Sepp Blatter looked to distance himself from the allegations.

News agency Bloomberg claimed yesterday, May 9, that sources had told them that the English officials reportedly asked the investigators to find out what other bidding nations were doing to gain the support of FIFA’s Executive Committee.

The English Football Association and its spokesman Julian Eccles declined to comment while Blatter maintained he was none the wiser to such rumours, stating: “I don’t know about it but for me the bidding process is finished and we must look forward.

“Spies? Like James Bond?

“In this game there are a lot of people who like to destroy something but it is a question of fair play. That is one of the things that was invented by British football. When we talk about fair play my first thought is always towards the four British Associations.”

Lord Sebastien Coe, chairman of the London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG), feels that the successful hosting of the games will rely heavily on the transport system and the London’s ability to overcome the recent issues.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) have long held concerns over the transport network which is currently in place with the capital’s roads amongst the most congested in the world. The proposed Olympic Route Network (ORN) scheme put forward by LOCOG has not gone down well with many of the natives who feel that the idea is just a ploy to show preferential treatment to those involved during the Games. The number of peak-time journeys made throughout the course of the event is feared to rise by as much as 12.5 per cent which may cause real problems for the committee.

Coe was quick to deny claims that the ORN scheme is merely their to favour athletes and officials saying: “The Olympic route planning is about functionality it’s not about glamour,” the chairman told London Assembly lawmakers, as quoted by Reuters. “You have a choice, you can have this city remembered as a Barcelona or an Atlanta.”

The comparisons were made after the infamous transport system during the Atlanta Games in 1994 overloaded spectators and athletes in a desperate attempt to get them to venues. In contrast the Barcelona Games just two years earlier have long been touted as a model for all the following games to adhere to from a transport perspective.