Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) and the Association of Irish Racecourses have signed a new deal with At The Races, allergist along with partner SIS, capsule for the British television channel to retain the rights to Irish racing from January 2014 to December 2016.

Under the terms of the new agreement ATR will have exclusive, cross platform, non-LBO media rights worldwide to all Irish fixtures. SIS retains all domestic and international betting shop rights under the terms of its current contract with HRI.

As part of the new partnership, ATR has offered HRI/AIR the opportunity to take up a seat on its board.

Matthew Imi, chief executive of ATR, said: “We are delighted that our relationship with Horse Racing Ireland, the Association of Irish Racecourses and all 26 tracks will be continuing next year and beyond.

“Irish racing forms a significant part of our business and since 2004 an important partnership has formed to which we, our shareholders and UK racecourse partners attach considerable value.

“Individually, each of the Irish racecourses has its own characteristics and requirements from us as their media partner and we work very hard to ensure that our business objectives are firmly aligned with theirs.

“Collectively, the racecourses offer a consistent and high quality schedule of Flat and Jump racing across the year which our domestic and international audiences and commercial partners find increasingly attractive.

“HRI and AIR made it very clear that not only did they feel ATR had done a great job monetising their rights across our current distribution platforms but that they were also excited about the long-term potential of the business and we look forward to welcoming their representative on to the ATR board as we start to roll out our growth strategy.”

Paddy Walsh, chief executive of AIR, said: “I am very pleased that the AIR, on behalf of all our racecourses, has now agreed terms with ATR/SIS in relation to the sale of the non-LBO rights that we recently offered to the market.

“This new deal extends our long-standing arrangements with both At The Races and SIS and I look forward to all parties benefiting from the partnership approach that we have always adopted in the past.”

The Australian Taxation Office wants to wind up the club for non-payment of back taxes.

Gallop, who met senior Hunter Sports Group officials yesterday, will resume talks in Sydney today to work out a timeline to pay the A-League club’s $1m tax bill.

“The FFA has been given assurances by Hunter Sports Group, owner and operator of the Newcastle Jets, that the club’s operations will not be affected,” Gallop said.

Embattled Jets chief executive Robbie Middleby said he was hopeful the matter would be resolved quickly.

“I’ve been given assurances the issue involving the Australian tax office will be resolved in the near future,” Middleby said.

“Our main concern is for our players and staff, who are in Perth for a game, to keep their minds on the job. The club looks forward to continuing an outstanding 2012-13 season.” 

Although HSG owner Nathan Tinkler had allegedly failed to make payments to his NRL players at the Knights, Jets players said the same had not happened to them.

“We’ve just got to go out there and do our best, and things will either work out or won’t,” stand-in captain Ruben Zadkovich said.

“I don’t think the Newcastle Jets are in any danger at the moment. We’ve just got to focus on the football and let the off-field drama sort itself out.”

Ricardo Prado, ex-swimmer and Olympic medallist, took over the presidency of the Sport Advisory Committee of Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The Committee held a meeting this Tuesday, 25 September, at Rio 2016 headquarters in Barra da Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro.

The Committee plans to increase the participation of the members in the planning, operation, promotion and legacy process of Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games. During the meeting, the division of the Committee into discussion groups by themes aiming at improving the contribution of its members in specific areas and themes of Rio 2016 was proposed. In a first moment, the groups will discuss themes relating to the Olympic and Paralympic Village, Sport, Ceremonies, Education and Culture.

The meeting was attended by 12 of the 17 members of the Committee, composed of athletes, coaches and/or experts of the Olympic and Paralympic Movement.

“It is a great honour to be ahead of this Committee, which will play a major role conveying the athletes’ real needs to the organisation of the Rio 2016 Games, said Ricardo Prado, whose mandate will be valid until 31 December 2016.

The Committee aims to provide guidance, jointly with Rio 2016 Sport Department, to the remaining 58 functional areas of the Committee as to the planning, delivery and operation of the services that will be offered to the athletes, team officials, referees and coaches who will take part in the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

According to Agberto Guimarães, a former Olympic athlete and current Sports Director of Rio 2016, the Sport Committee allows the members to apply the experience and knowledge acquired in the competitions to contribute to the staging of a major sport event. “Important experiences are exchanged relating to themes that directly impact the sport activity, such as training camps, competition schedules, logistics and transportation”, he highlighted.

Bernardo Rezende, coach of the Brazilian men’s volleyball team and Olympic medallist as athlete and coach, is a member of the Committee, and praises the initiative. “All the athletes involved are willing to contribute. Our active participation may help establish excellent services for sport, increasing our awareness of the complexity represented by the organization of such a big event. We also end up learning about other areas’ needs”.

Daniel Dias, Paralympic medallist athlete with six gold medals in London 2012 in men’s S5 50m freestyle with a world record time, also praised the role of the Sport Committee. “I was not sure of what I would find, and after this meeting I am quite aware of the important role played by the Committee for the staging of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. My ultimate goal is to help the city of Rio de Janeiro to become a national accessibility reference”.

1	Thousands More London 2012 Olympic Tickets Available	Friday, 15 June 2012
2	USOC Launches Team USA YouTube Channel	Friday, 15 June 2012
3	China may withdraw athletes from Olympic training base in Leeds	Thursday, 14 June 2012
4	London 2012 Olympic Games Scheduled to go Under Budget	Wednesday, 13 June 2012
5	LOCOG Unveil Opening Ceremony Design	Tuesday, 12 June 2012
6	Heathrow Airport Staff Pocket Olympic Bonus	Tuesday, 12 June 2012
7	Motorists Warned Off Central London During Olympics	Tuesday, 12 June 2012
8	Train Cleaners to Receive Olympic Bonus	Monday, 11 June 2012
9	London Bus Drivers Issue Olympic Strike Threat	Monday, 11 June 2012
10	Taiwanese tech company’s Olympic sponsorship ends	Friday, 08 June 2012

A crucial court hearing into the sale of Portsmouth’s Fratton Park ground has been postponed amid a row over who should manage the club’s finances during its administration period.

The hearing, due to have taken place at the High Court in London this week, is vital to the Portsmouth Supporters’ Trust (PST) bid to take over the League One club.

Fratton Park is controlled by former Portsmouth owner Balram Chainrai’s Portpin company, the largest creditor in the administration process. Portpin is owed around £12 million by the club, which has debts of more than £60 million, and the company holds a fixed charge over Fratton as security.

That means administrators PKF have had to apply for a court hearing – scheduled to conclude later this week – to determine whether permission can be gained for the ground to be sold at the market rate. The trust has offered £2.75 million for it – an offer which has been turned down.

But on Thursday another party, P&A Partnership, claimed Portpin wanted it, not PKF, to manage the club’s finances until a buyer was found.

Brendan Guilfoyle, of P&A, said Portpin was unhappy with parts of they way in which PKF had been handling matters on the South Coast and could shut Pompey down if it did not secure a change of administrator.

“If I am appointed, I am confident that we can find a buyer to secure the long-term future of this historic and important club,” Guilfoyle said.

A statement from P&A said Portpin had made cash available to allow Portsmouth to continue trading – but only on the condition that Guilfoyle was appointed as administrator.

Guilfoyle, who said the club had “become a lot more saleable in the last six months”, said he believed PKF had asked for the court hearing to be postponed.

He said Portpin wanted him to ensure that, if the PST bid – described by the Football League as having “significant merit” – did not succeed, other potential buyers could be found.

“Portpin don’t feel the club has been fully marketed and they don’t want it liquidated if it can’t be sold to PST,” he added.

“They will fund the continuation of the club until the end of the season as long as the court involve me and I can be given an opportunity to find a new buyer.”

He said Portpin believed “the options presented, either a sale to PST or closure, need broadening” and added: “If the court decided the sale to the supporters should go through, I wouldn’t have any role.

“They [Portpin] feel the whole deal with PST is prejudicial to their interests, and they’re not happy with the administrators.”

John Petrie, pills | Chief Executive of England Golf, illness has announced he is to leave the organisation after five years in the role.

He was appointed Chief Executive of the English Golf Union in 2007 and has worked for the national governing body during one of the most significant times for the game of golf in England when the English Golf Union merged with the English Women’s Golf Association to form England Golf.

Petrie was appointed as Chief Executive of England Golf in January this year and has completed the implementation of the merger on time and within budget.

Petrie said: “To be appointed to this position was a great privilege and I have thoroughly enjoyed the many challenges that faced us. I have been supported throughout by excellent staff and so many outstanding volunteers across the country. The merger leading to England Golf was a hugely significant moment and now it has been implemented, arthritis England Golf needs to look to the future with a new Chief Executive.”

Nigel Evans, Chairman of the Board of England Golf said: “I thank John for his contribution during the past five years. The future of England Golf post merger will bring new challenges and we will start the recruitment process for a new Chief Executive shortly.”

Craig Wagstaff, England Golf Finance Director, will assume the role and duties of Chief Executive for an interim period until a replacement is found.

The Chinese government will take a more hands-on approach to soccer because of the nation’s prolonged lack of achievement in the sport.

Five cities-Qingdao, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Dalian and Wuhan- have been chosen by the General Administration of Sport of China and the Chinese Football Association (CFA) for a pilot development programme.

According to CFA Vice-President Wei Di, his association is now working with the five cities to achieve specific targets.

Those targets include the improvement of the local soccer associations, training, competition and evaluation systems and the policy-making of the local sports authorities.

“The pilot cities had to have a strong soccer history, a considerable foundation, the support of local government and an energetic local association,” Wei said.

“We reached specific agreements with these five cities after a lot of research and discussion,” he said. “We expect to advance the programme to the provincial level next year.”

Wei said the CFA has allocated US$1.6 million to the five cities this year to help them organise more soccer activities and encourage retired players get involved in coaching. The CFA said it is likely to provide more funds in 2013 for venue construction and renovation.

The CFA’s decision to its resources with local soccer bodies and sports bureaus could be a significant step forward in giving more associations a say in the sport’s decision-making process.

“The CFA is changing the way it works. Instead of sending instructions to local associations, it is bringing all parties together to discuss how to improve Chinese soccer and boost the sport’s development,” said Gu Jianming, President of the Chengdu Football Association. “I think this is a major change for the CFA.

“As the head of a local association, my responsibility is to find out how to popularise soccer around the city, and to serve people and fulfill their needs in participating in the sport. The pilot cities will benefit (from the program), and the CFA will support them by supplying policies, capital and talent evaluation (of players, coaches and referees).”{jcomments on}

Singapore Sports Council has appointed six new members.

In a statement, denture the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports also announced the reappointment of its Chairman, Richard Seow, and Deputy Chairman, Cheah Kim Teck.

The six new members are Mr Kon Yin Tong, Lim Eng Lee, Mr Hugh Lim, Mr Razali Saad, Prof Tan Cheng Han and Ms Jessica Tan Soon Neo.

They replace BG Chia Choon Hoong, Dr Janice Khoo, Mr Lee Hong Chuan, Ms

Ong Toon Hui, Dr Saiful Nizam bin Subari and Dr Benedict Tan, who have stepped down

In addition to the Chairman and Deputy Chairman, six other members- Mr Bernard Tan, Ms Liew Wei Li, Mr Low Teo Ping, Mr Andreas Sohmen-Pao, Dr Teo-Koh Sock Miang and Mr Yam Ah Mee- have been reappointed.

The newly-appointed and reappointed members will serve two-year terms in office. {jcomments on}