According to a report by the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) revealing projections of medal successes at next year’s London Olympics, Australia are set to finish behind Britain, with Russia winning the most medals.

Based on results from World Championships, World Cups and other major international events staged in 2010, Russia is projected to win 97 medals at next year’s Games ahead of 94 for the United States and 93 for China, the AOC said.

However, the US are projected to top the gold medals chart with an estimated 38, pipping China on 37 and Russia on 30.

Britain is fourth, with a projected medal count of 48 medals, made up of 19 gold, 19 silver and 10 bronze, followed by Germany on 47, France on 45 and Japan on 43. 

The findings from the AOC predict that Australia, which finished in sixth place at the 2008 Beijing Olympics with 46 medals, will get four fewer at the next edition, including 11 gold, three less than last time, which could drop them to as low as eighth.

AOC President John Coates stated: “A top five position is still very achievable. There are five countries jostling for fourth and fifth spots who are all very close together.”

An extra $23 million in Government funding to elite sports provided late last year may help lift performances between now and the start of the London Games in July 2012, Coates said: “It took a while coming but it’s kicking in now.”

According to the Associated Press, federally mediated negotiations toward a new National Football League (NFL) labour deal lasted “about eight hours” in Washington, DC on Sunday, 20 February.

The meeting for discussions was the third consecutive day the sides met to try to find common ground before the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) expires on March 4.

The NFL and Players’ Union (NFLPA) have met for “a total of more than 20 hours since Friday” in front of Federal Mediation & Conciliation Service Dir George Cohen.

Cohen requested that neither side comment publicly on these negotiations. A ruling that has thus far been adhered to and therefore it is not clear what, if any, progress is being made.

The president of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah has confirmed that he will be standing for re-election later this year at the general assembly in Tokyo on July 14.

In a letter to OCA executive members and affiliated National Olympic Committees, Sheikh Ahmad stated: “I will be offering myself as a candidate for re-election as the OCA president in the forthcoming general assembly.”

Sheikh Ahmad has held the position as the president of the OCA since 1991 as well as membership of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) since 1992.

He was a supporter of Jordan’s Prince Ali eventual successful bid to oust South Korea’s Chung Mong-joon as the Asian Football Confederation’s (AFC) FIFA vice-president. In an apparent snub to AFC president Mohamed bin Hammam, who is thought to have FIFA leadership ambitions, Sheikh Ahmad announced publicly that all 25 votes which had gone to Prince Ali would also be going to Sepp Blatter in the forthcoming FIFA presidential election.

His letter to OCA officials and directors said: “It has been a singular honour for me to be elected president of the OCA since 1991. It has been a journey which I have cherished very much, especially due to the fact that I have received the whole-hearted support and cooperation of friends and colleagues.

“With your guidance and advice I hope to continue to serve the Asian Olympic Movement to the best of my abilities and capabilities and make the OCA one of the most active and revered continental associations in the world.”

decease helvetica, herbal sans-serif;”>DATE: 5^th April 2011

TIME: 11.00am – 3.00pm (including a stadium tour)

VENUE: Leicestershire County Cricket Club

County Ground

Grace Road

Leicester, LE2 8AD

Notice is herby given of 2011 Annual General Meeting of The Venue Managers Association (formerly UK Stadium Managers Association).

The Managing Secretary, Neil Levett, will firstly introduce the aims, objectives and reasons for the name changes to the assembled audience of members. There will then be a presentation by DC Jim Maietta, from the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure who will speak on threats and protective security including some UK and international examples and what Venue Managers can do to mitigate risk.

At least one other guest speaker will present a paper and this will be followed by a tour of Leicestershire County Cricket Club for Venue Managers to see, first hand, another colleague’s venue and to discuss the issues they commonly face.

Editors are reminded that membership of UKVMA is open, exclusively, to Managers/Directors of multipurpose venues such as Stadia, Arenas, Athletics Tracks, Racecourses, Dog Tracks, Motor Racing Circuits, Auditoria, Theatres and Exhibition Centre’s and that it is the person who is the member and not the venue.

For further details on UKVMA please contact the Membership Secretary, Sandy Lopes, on

01732 459683, by email sandy@aladltd.co.uk or visit the UKVMA website www.ukvma.org

The Soccerex European Forum on 30-31 March in Manchester has announced that Nike, Konami, Facebook and Lionside will feature in a special session on Digital Media in soccer.

The session, titled ‘Digital Media: The Changing Face of Fan Interaction’, will feature a series of interactive presentations looking at how digital media has moved the goalposts of fan engagement and the different challenges and opportunities presented to the football industry by the new media landscape.

The presentations will be made by Rick Kelley, Head of Mid Market Sales EMEA, Facebook, Florian Stronk, Head of Online Business Development, Konami and Mario Turza, Global Digital Lead, Nike Football. The panel will be chaired by Michael McBride, VP Business Operations at leading sports social gaming company Lionside.

Konami’s Florian Stronk commented on his involvement, stating: “The European Forum is a great opportunity for us to present our involvement in football, including but beyond the gaming aspects that Konami has been known for. It is a rapidly changing business field for license owners as well as for sponsors. This session should bring everyone ‘up to date’ and will surely provide interesting insights into the rapidly evolving monetization and promotion opportunities in the digital space.”

Paddy Power has gained full control of Australian betting company Sportsbet, after agreeing to buy the remaining shares in the company. Paddy Power will pay 132.6m Australian dollars (US$133m) for the remaining 39.2 per cent stake.

Paddy Power first bought the majority 51 per cent stake of Sportsbet in 2009 with the overall buyout set to be completed by the end of February 2011.

A further US$25.1m will be owed by Paddy Power if Sportsbet’s 2013 earnings exceed $80.35m.

Patrick Kennedy, Paddy Power’s chief executive, stated that Sportsbet was “a cracking business”.

“The team has made great strides in marrying the best of both Sportsbet and Paddy Power,” he said.

“This is a good deal to acquire the remaining shares early, which will allow us to drive development and investment and secure full participation in the upside of the business.”

The free-to-air broadcast rights in Ireland to show the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand have been awarded to RTE Sport. The company will broadcast 13 live matches during the tournament which will include all of Ireland’s group matches, the opening game, all quarter and semi-finals, the third placed play-off and the final itself. The new deal will mean that the company will also carry the games on their online platform at RTE.ie, and live on RTE Radio.

The Rugby World Cup 2011 will commence from September 9 and run until the final on October the 23. The event will include 48 matches played out between 20 competing nations.

RTÉ’s group head of sport, Ryle Nugent stated: “The tournament showcases the best teams in the world and fans can look forward to following the Irish team’s progression every step of the way on all of RTÉ’s platforms. The awarding of these rights to RTÉ is recognition of the quality of our sports coverage and we look forward to sharing what is set to be a momentous sporting occasion with the Irish public.”

Rugby World Cup Limited (RWCL) managing director, Mike Miller added: “RWCL is delighted to be extending its association with RTÉ Sport to broadcast Rugby World Cup 2011 throughout Ireland.

“RTÉ is recognised as a leading broadcaster of quality sports coverage and with its extensive broadcast experience of Rugby and commitment to the game, RTÉ will ensure the perfect platform for RWC 2011 to reach out to an extensive audience across Ireland.”

Schüco International, a German engineering firm, has clinched the title sponsorship of The Princess, a tournament of golf’s European Challenge Tour. The event will enter its third year in the summer of 2011.

The tournament will now be known as The Princess by Schüco with the deal thought to be worth around the same figure as the prize fund which stands at US$130,000.

Schüco International president and chief executive officer, Dirk Hindrichs said: “We are proud to be the presenting sponsor of The Princess. We are all about the future – a sustainable future. Our technology is developed to ensure comfort, without sacrificing any of our scarce natural resources. The Princess is all about investing in the future too, in the next generation as well as the ones to follow. In golf, we see a game played outdoors in harmony with nature, we see precision and technology applied in a gentlemanly manner to achieve seemingly effortless power.”

In addition Alain de Soultrait, Challenge Tour director, stated: “An already strong tournament has become even stronger with the announcement of Schüco as title sponsors. With the support of Henrik Stenson, who won the Challenge Tour Rankings in 2000, and now a well-respected company such as Schüco on board, The Princess has a very bright future. The Challenge Tour shares the same vision of investing in the future, so our partnership with Schüco is a natural fit.”

 

Qantas has signed on as a silver level sponsor and will assist Perth 2011 in transporting teams and officials to Western Australia and will promote Perth 2011 domestically and internationally.

Perth 2011 Director of Commercial Operations, Darren Beazley, said, “We are delighted to have an iconic brand like Qantas join the Perth 2011 sponsorship family. Qantas is widely regarded as the world’s leading long distance airline and one of the strongest brands in Australia. In an event where more than 5000 athletes and officials will travel to Australia from overseas, an alignment with Qantas was an obvious partnership.”

Qantas Regional General Manager for Western Australia and the Northern Territory, Ian Gay, said, “Qantas believes the Perth 2011 ISAF World Championships will be a great event for Perth and for Western Australia.”

“We are delighted to be involved and working closely with the team at Perth 2011. Not only will Western Australians be able to enjoy the party in Fremantle, but all the competitors, family and friends will have a good reason to visit Western Australia and see all we have to offer. The dream begins in Perth, the journey begins with Qantas,” said Mr.Gay.

Qantas has a long history of supporting sporting events in Australia such as the AFL, the National Rugby League and the Australian Olympic Committee and is proud to join the Perth 2011 sponsorship family and align with a World Class sailing event.

(Source: Bloomberg) Liverpool Chairman Martin Broughton will team up with his son to invest in sports after leaving his post upon the sale of the 18-time English champion.

Broughton oversaw the 300 million-pound ($487.6 million) sale of Liverpool to the owners of Major League Baseball’s Boston Red Sox. The 63-year-old, viagra ed who is also chairman of British Airways Plc, price will work two days a week with his son Michael and Nic Couchman, buy a lawyer with 20 years experience in the industry, to find profits in sports.

Their Sports Investment Partners, which was delayed for six months because of Broughton’s role in Liverpool’s sale, will start meeting potential backers this month. Spending in the sector in Europe, Africa and the Middle East will increase to $46.3 billion in 2013 from $39.4 billion in 2009, according to a PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP report.

“It was certainly put back by Martin’s six-month adventure,” Michael Broughton, 32, said in an interview. “He’s our chairman so we weren’t going to go to market and look to raise funds from direct investors unless he could commit the time to it he should.”

Red Sox owners John W. Henry and Tom Werner completed the purchase of Liverpool on Oct. 15, and Martin Broughton will stay on as chairman temporarily to help the transition.

Broughton, a former chairman of British American Tobacco Plc, headed the company’s Formula One team and was also chairman of the British Horse Racing Authority. His involvement in Sports Investment Partners is the first time the father and son have worked together.

The new company has gotten pledges of about 200 million pounds from private equity and is planning to raise more after a series of investor presentations.

Broughton may need all his powers of persuasion to convince investors to part with money as the global economy remains sluggish following the 2008 financial crisis, according to Chris Lee, head of Barclays’ sports business group.

“I don’t think the market for sport is fantastic at the current time,” Lee said. “It’s a challenging area.”

Sports Investment Partners is planning to take significant minority or majority stakes in small to medium-sized businesses worth as much 100 million pounds. Couchman and Broughton refused to name targets, saying they are looking at sports technology suppliers, betting and gaming companies, support service businesses and sports brands.