Forbes have worked alongside E-Poll Market Research firm Encino to conduct a poll on the world’s most influential athletes with NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson topping the list.

After a prolonged slump, “Nascar has had a bit of resurgence, people are becoming more aware of the drivers this year,” says Gerry Philpott, CEO of Encino. Combined with the retirement of Lance Armstrong, the diminished reputation of Tiger Woods, and the fading of interest in 2010 winter Olympians like Apolo Anton Ohno and Shaun White, the mini-rally has launched three Nascar drivers into the ranks of the most influential athletes.

E-Poll and Nielsen Media Research surveyed over 1,000 adults as to the athletes they considered influential, while also assessing their likeability and awareness levels. Only those known to at least 20 per cent of the respondents were considered. (That eliminated boxer Manny Pacquiao, who scored the highest influence numbers of anyone but who’s familiar to only 12 per cent of the US population.)

1. Jimmie Johnson (NASCAR) – Influential: 25%; Awareness: 20%; Like/Like a lot: 47%; Dislike/Dislike a lot: 6%; N-Score (endorsement potential): 72 (avg. athlete 14)

2. Tom Brady (National Football League) – Influential: 23%; Awareness: 35%; Like/Like a lot: 40%; Dislike/Dislike a lot: 11%; N-Score (endorsement potential): 131 (avg. athlete 14)

3. Dale Earnhardt Jnr. (NASCAR) – Influential: 22%; Awareness: 40%; Like/Like a lot: 45%; Dislike/Dislike a lot: 3%; N-Score (endorsement potential): 217 (avg. athlete 14)

4. Shaquille O’Neal (National Basketball Association) – Influential: 21%; Awareness: 71%; Like/Like a lot: 45%; Dislike/Dislike a lot: 4%; N-Score (endorsement potential): 334 (avg. athlete 14)

5. Michael Phelps (Swimming) – Influential: 21%; Awareness: 49%; Like/Like a lot: 47%; Dislike/Dislike a lot: 4%; N-Score (endorsement potential): 214 (avg. athlete 14)

6. Troy Polamalu (NFL) – Influential: 21%; Awareness: 23%; Like/Like a lot: 64%; Dislike/Dislike a lot: 3%; N-Score (endorsement potential): 165 (avg. athlete 14)

7. Peyton Manning (NFL) – Influential: 20%; Awareness: 49%; Like/Like a lot: 54%; Dislike/Dislike a lot: 5%; N-Score (endorsement potential): 262 (avg. athlete 14)

8. Jeff Gordon (NASCAR) – Influential: 20%; Awareness: 39%; Like/Like a lot: 35%; Dislike/Dislike a lot: 7%; N-Score (endorsement potential): 144 (avg. athlete 14)

9. LeBron James (NBA) – Influential: 20%; Awareness: 42%; Like/Like a lot: 33%; Dislike/Dislike a lot: 15%; N-Score (endorsement potential): 131 (avg. athlete 14)

10. Tim Tebow (NFL) – Influential: 20%; Awareness: 19%; Like/Like a lot: 44%; Dislike/Dislike a lot: 13%; N-Score (endorsement potential): 41 (avg. athlete 14)

One of the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) leading sponsors, Dow Chemical, has strengthened its ties in sports investment upon being announced as the official chemistry company of the Special Olympics.

Dow joins Microsoft, Coca-Cola, and Cisco as a major sponsor of the Special Olympic World Summer Games in Athens this summer, which will be held between 25 June and 4 July, featuring more than 7,000 athletes from 180 nations across 22 sports.

Andrew Liveris, Dow chairman and chief executive, stated: “Supporting the upcoming World Summer Games aligns with Dow’s core values of integrity and respect for people. The Special Olympics celebrates the human spirit unlike any other sporting event, and Dow is proud to be part of it as an official sponsor.”

Joanna Despotopoulou, president of Athens 2011, added: “We are thrilled to have Dow’s support for the upcoming Special Olympics World Summer Games Athens 2011. The Special Olympics are about changing lives, building advocacy networks and creating a lasting positive impact. Dow’s commitment to excellence and helping people around the globe makes them an ideal partner for the Special Olympics.”

South African Tourism and the country’s Ministry of Tourism has revealed figures of a report, bronchi claiming that the country’s economy received a US$523m boost due to the hosting the FIFA World Cup last year.

South Africa has benefited from a 9 per cent increase in its image as a secure travel destination in comparison with the overall perception before the start of the event, apoplectic after more than 309, advice 000 foreign tourists entered the country for the tournament.

Of the 309,000 tourists, 38 per cent were from Africa, 24 per cent from Europe, 13 per cent from Central and South America and an impressive 11 per cent from North America.

United States fans topped the charts with 30,175 travelling fans, while 24,483 arrived from Mozambique, even though the country’s national team did not qualify for the World Cup.

Tourism Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk told African Business Review: “More than half of the tourists who had attended other World Cup events in the past also felt that South Africa was a better host than other countries they had experienced.”

The government-commissioned report did not include tournament “pre-spending” in the country.

Yesterday, February 23, FS Arizona agreed a new long-term broadcast rights deal with National Basketball Association (NBA) side the Phoenix Suns as of the 2011-12 season.

Under the terms of the agreement, FS Arizona will air about 75 Suns games a year, making it the exclusive local TV provider for teams games. The side’s previous rights agreement with RSN saw only the Suns home games televised. 

FS Arizona previously split telecasts with KUTP-MYT, and FS Arizona Senior VP & General Manager Mike Connelly said that the net offers 96 per cent penetration “in the Phoenix market and more distribution to Tucson and Yuma.”

Phoenix’s National Hockey League (NHL) franchise, the Coyotes and Major League Baseball (MLB) side the Arizona Daimondbacks also have exclusive deals with FS Arizona, but the Suns will continue producing and selling their games and hiring the broadcasters.

English nPower League One soccer club Plymouth Argyle have been deducted 10 points with immediate effect after they issued a notice of intention to appoint an administrator.

In a decision which breaks Football League sanctions and commands, a 10-point deduction was inevitable with the notice classed as an ‘insolvency event’.

The League One strugglers now find themselves bottom of the league and 10 points from safety after relegation from the Championship last year, having been the subject of three winding-up petitions from HM Revenue & Customs this season.

A statement on the club website said: “The directors of Plymouth Argyle Football Club have today issued a Notice of Intention to appoint Brendan Guilfoyle, Christopher White and John Russell of The P&A Partnership as administrators.

“This action gives the club protection from insolvency action from creditors.

“This does not mean that the club is in administration today nor does it assume that it will necessarily enter into administration at a future date.”

With his side now facing the stark reality of dropping into English soccer’s fourth-tier next season, Argyle manager Peter Reid told BBC Spotlight: “From a football point of view it’s a massive blow to the club.

“You’ve just got to get on with it. It’s going to make it really difficult but we’ve just got try and start the fight back against Brighton.

“Hopefully the board of directors can sort out the financial problems and hopefully this is the lowest ebb and we can start rising from this situation.”

Leading stadium specialist AEG has reportedly offered to make lease payments for use of city land as part of a financing deal for Farmers Field, ailment the planned NFL-ready stadium in downtown L.A.

AEG lists rent from a proposed ground lease as “part of the revenues that would be used to repay” the $325-350m in city bonds that would be issued for the project.

AEG submitted a three-page document to city negotiators on Wednesday, remedy February 16, but according to the LA Times, this “does not indicate how much would be derived from a long-term lease”.

The National Football League (NFL) have been enforced into a third offer of compensation to those fans who were not seated at this month’s Super Bowl. Having offered to refund tickets to triple their face value, many of the upset supporters were unsatisfied.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has offered a new option to the 400 fans who were denied seats at the showpiece event and now intends to offer them US$5,000 or more as compensation.

In an emailed statement to the unhappy spectators, Goodell stated that he would offer $5,000 “or the total of their verified expenses for Super Bowl XLV, whichever is greater.”

In previous attempts to compensate those involved the NFL offered $2,400 plus a free ticket to Super Bowl XLVI or a ticket to a future Super Bowl with airfare and accommodations.

The ITF announced today that Invacare will continue its sponsorship of wheelchair tennis for a 17th successive year by becoming title sponsor of the ITF’s year-end Doubles Masters event in a two-year deal. The 2011 Invacare Doubles Masters will be held in Amsterdam on 2-6 November.

The Invacare Doubles Masters is the ITF’s flagship wheelchair tennis doubles event. First staged in 2000, viagra the season-ending event currently features the world’s top eight men’s doubles pairs, sickness and the top four women and quad doubles pairs. Women’s world No. 1 Esther Vergeer has been the most successful competitor, pills sharing the women’s title on eight occasions.

Invacare Corporation was previously title sponsor of the World Team Cup between 1996 and 2010. The European team of Invacare Corporation has overseen its wheelchair tennis sponsorship since 2008, since when the company has increased its on-site involvement and operational support behind the scenes.

During the 2011 Invacare Doubles Masters, the European team of Invacare Corporation will continue to host the successful international wheelchair tennis symposium that has been held during the World Team Cup for the past three years. The symposium is a public seminar that features a variety of guest speakers from wheelchair sport and various medical experts.

ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti said: “We are delighted that Invacare is continuing its sponsorship of wheelchair tennis. The company’s longstanding support of the World Team Cup helped it become the most prestigious event on the ITF’s wheelchair tennis calendar, and I am confident that its commitment and enthusiasm will have a similar effect on this important year-end event.”

Hans Lautenschlager, Invacare Vice President / General Manager of Commercial Operations EMEA, said: “After 16 years of World Team Cup support, Invacare has been seeking new challenges within international tennis. The Doubles Masters will give Invacare a great opportunity to continue developing ‘best-in-class’ tennis events with the ITF. Our aim is to make the Doubles Masters a long-awaited and popular date in the tennis calendar as the World Team Cup is today.”

After it was announced last week that the British Olympic Association (BOA) were setting guidelines for Twitter use by athletes during the London 2012 Olympics, the Football Association have followed suit.

A statement was released by the body warning soccer players in England that improper comments will not be tolerated on Twitter or indeed other social networking sites. The decision comes off the back of last month’s fiasco involving the Liverpool player, Ryan Babel. The Dutch international posted a mocked-up image of World Cup final referee Howard Webb wearing a Manchester United shirt shortly after a game against the Premier League leaders when Webb awarded a controversial penalty to the Red Devils.

The statement released by the FA read: “The FA has issued clarification to participants relating to the use of social networking sites, including, but not limited to Twitter, Facebook and internet blogs. Participants should be aware that comments made on such sites may be considered public comment, and that further to FA Rule E3, any comments which are deemed improper, bring the game into disrepute, or are threatening, abusive, indecent or insulting may lead to disciplinary action.”

The statement added: “Comments which are personal in nature or could be construed as offensive, use foul language or contain direct or indirect threats aimed at other participants are likely to be considered improper.”

“Consequently, care should be exercised with regards to the contents of such postings. In addition, we would remind participants that social networking postings could also lead to civil proceedings being brought by affected parties.”

The London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) has unveiled the route for the London 2012 Olympic cycling road race, with Buckingham Palace providing the starting and finishing point.

The event will take place from, and conclude at the landmark after travelling through central London before crossing the Putney bridge in Fulham, followed by a loop of Surrey county.

The man’s race takes place on the 28th July and span over 250 kilometres, with 145 cyclists competing. The women’s event will go ahead on the following day, consisting of 67 riders over a course of 140 kilometres.

The route has been altered to the one offered in the original proposal for the London Olympic bid, which would be more concentrated around north London, and a test event has been planned in August.