Newbury Racecourse announced today that it will be moving forward under the ‘Newbury Racecourse’ brand and discontinuing use of ‘The Racecourse Newbury’.

Julian Thick, order CEO of Newbury Racecourse, capsule said: “As we embark on an important chapter in our history, pills I am pleased that we will be doing so under the banner of Newbury Racecourse. The business is performing well and with the redevelopment now well underway, I am confident about the future.”   

He added: “The Racecourse Newbury name was part of a wider project to wrap up all the elements of the site here, and whilst there was solid logic behind it as an over-arching brand, it has not proved popular with our customers and other stakeholder groups, so we have made the decision to use Newbury Racecourse from now on.”

Whilst some elements of the rebranding to Newbury Racecourse have been completed already, the whole change-over on site will take place on a gradual basis over the next few months.

The Buffalo Bills are set to exchange hands after Buffalo Sabres owners Terry and Kim Pegula agreed to be only the second ever owners of the storied NFL franchise.

The estate of longtime Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson, who died earlier this year, reached an deal on Tuesday to sell the NFL franchise to the NHL team owners.

Terry Pegula, 63, a natural gas development and real estate mogul, has been a popular figure in Buffalo for his commitment to keep the franchise in western New York state.

The price tag for the Bills was not revealed although multiple reports suggest the deal is worth $1.4 billion, more than the $1.05 billion truck-stop magnate Jim Haslam paid for the Cleveland Browns in 2012.

“Kim and I are humbled and honored that the Wilson family has chosen us to be the second owner of the Buffalo Bills.  Pending the NFL approval process, being the next owner of the Buffalo Bills would be a great privilege for our family. 

“Ralph Wilson left an indelible mark on our community and we will strive every day to honor his legacy.

“Our interest in owning the Bills has everything to do with the people of Western New York and our passion for football.  We have knowledgeable, dedicated fans here and along with our ownership of the Buffalo Sabres, it is gratifying to reassure these great fans that two franchises so important to our region are both here to stay.”

The team was put up for sale when Wilson, the franchise’s founding owner, died in March at the age of 95.

Among the unsuccessful bidders was singer-songwriter Jon Bon Jovi, who was part of an ownership group from Toronto, where the Bills play some of their home games.

“On behalf of myself, Larry Tanenbaum and Edward Rogers, we wish Terry and Kim Pegula all the best as they continue the legacy and tradition of the Buffalo Bills and the Wilson family,” he said.

“This is a very important day in the history of the Buffalo Bills franchise,” Bills controlling owner Mary Wilson said in a statement.

“Ralph brought professional football to Buffalo in 1959 and it was his life’s passion. He loved his team and he cherished the fans and his legacy will remain for all time.

“Ralph would have been pleased with the sale of the team to the Terry Pegula family, who has been so committed to Buffalo and the Western New York region.”

The NFL could approve the transaction during the owners’ fall meeting on Oct. 8 in New York City.

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Ray Whelan, a company director of FIFA partner Match Hospitality, has been labelled a ‘fugitive’ after going on the run following his arrest by Brazilian police as part of an investigation into allegations of illegal ticket sales at the World Cup.

Whelan was one of 11 people arrested last week. He was later released without charge but had to surrender his passport as investigations continued.

Now the authorties in Brazil say he has escaped from his hotel in Rio de Janeiro – and is being treated as a fugitive as they looked to re-arrest him.

Police investigator Fabio Barucke said that Whelan left the Copacabana Palace hotel shortly before police arrived to re-arrest him.

“He’s now considered a fugitive,” Barucke said. “We have security camera images of him exiting the hotel through a service door.”

On Monday, Whelan was detained at the Copacabana Palace by police who seized tickets for World Cup matches; he was released early on Tuesday.

Match Hospitality denied any wrongdoing by Whelan and said he was willing to cooperate with any investigation, confident that it would exonerate him of any wrongdoing.

Jaime Byrom, executive chairman of Match, and Whelan’s brother-in-law, said: “Notwithstanding our belief that the action taken against Mr Whelan was illegal and baseless, MATCH Services and I personally remain totally committed to assist the authorities in FIFA’s fight against illegal ticket sales.”

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The International Cycling Union (UCI) has named Rock Hill, South Carolina as the host of the 2017 UCI BMX World Championships, the first time in 16 years the event has been staged in the United States.

The 2017 event at the Novant Health BMX Supercross Track.

The UCI BMX World Championship has not been held on American soil since 2001, when Louisville, Ky., played host. Three-thousand amateur and 300 pro racers are expected to compete in the world championship, which will be held July 26-30, 2017, with practice days on July 24-25.

“The return of the UCI BMX World Championships to the United States in 2017 will mark the first time these championships have been held on American home soil since BMX was added to the Olympic Games,” said USA Cycling President and CEO Steve Johnson. “The Rock Hill facility is home to one of the world’s finest BMX tracks; and the local organizing committee staff and community leaders have worked tirelessly to secure this bid and we congratulate them on the success of their efforts.”

A bid launched by the city of Rock Hill about three months ago culminated in the awarding of the world championship by the UCI.

“Rock Hill is thrilled to be selected to host the 2017 BMX World Championships, joining a list of great cities like Birmingham, Auckland, and Rotterdam,” said Rock Hill’s City Manager David Vehaun. “Hosting the world championships solidifies Rock Hill’s commitment as a premier cycling destination.”

Rock Hill’s BMX Supercross track is expected to open in August and already has several events scheduled for late 2014.

Panini America, health the world’s largest sports and entertainment collectibles company, ampoule has announced that it has signed NFL prospect, sickness Heisman Trophy Winner and former Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel to a multiyear agreement.

The deal will include his first NFL-licensed Rookie Cards including autographed trading cards. In addition, Johnny Manziel will join Panini as an exclusive athlete for autographed memorabilia through Panini Authentic, the autograph and memorabilia division of Panini America.

Manziel joins other exclusive Panini Authentic athletes including NBA superstars Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Blake Griffin, Kyrie Irving and NFL stars Andrew Luck and EJ Manuel.

Manziel’s first NFL Rookie Cards and autographed cards will arrive in the May release of Panini America’s 2014 Score Football, where he will debut on NFL licensed product packaging as a Panini athlete. Panini will also have some other unique plans for collectors of Johnny’s NFL autographed trading cards which will be available in all 2014-15 Panini NFL trading card products.

“Johnny Manziel is one of the most exciting players to enter the NFL Draft in quite some time and his arrival has been heavily anticipated for years by fans and collectors alike. He’s at the head of a 2014 draft class that will drive trading card sales not just in 2014, but for many years afterward,” said Panini America CEO Mark Warsop.

“Making Johnny an exclusive member of the Panini America family has been a top priority for us since he declared for the NFL Draft. We’re excited to add him to the Panini Authentic family as an exclusive autograph and memorabilia athlete.”

During his freshman season at Texas A&M, Manziel accounted for more than 5,100 total yards (including 1,410 rushing) and 47 touchdowns (21 rushing), becoming the first freshman ever to win the Heisman Trophy. In 2013, Manziel passed for 4,114 yards and 37 touchdowns, and added 759 yards and nine more touchdowns on the ground. He finished his college career as Texas A&M’s all-time leader in total touchdowns (94) and total yards (9,989).

“I’m honored that Panini America wanted me to be a part of their great team,” said Manziel. “I remain focused and committed to doing everything I can – on the field and off — to be the best quarterback I can be.”

The great success of this year’s Wimbledon is over, and it’s now just over six months until the Australian Open. Work is continuing apace on the latest redevelopment phase at Melbourne and Olympic Parks, where Margaret Court Arena is undergoing transformation to create the precinct’s third all-weather arena. 

The design team, NH Architecture + Populous, is working for Major Projects Victoria on behalf of the Victorian Government to complete the $366M Melbourne Park Redevelopment (Stage 1). This project to be completed by 2015 includes an innovative retractable roof, seating for 7,500 spectators and concourse connectivity to the adjacent Rod Laver Arena. 

Part of the challenge has been to manage the construction to enable Margaret Court Arena to be used during the Australian Open each January during the three year construction period.  Furthermore the construction has had to minimise disruption to the adjacent Rod Laver Arena and the hundreds of events it hosts each year. 

The primary function of the redeveloped Margaret Court Arena will be to stage major matches of the Grand Slam tournament, but the multi-purpose venue will also host netball, basketball, major concerts and entertainment events. Its operable roof will be the fastest closing roof in Australia, able to shut completely in less than five minutes enabling Margaret Court to become a functional all-weather boutique venue for a busy all year round schedule. 

The bold roof design ensures the venue will create its own identity signalling the beginning of a new chapter in the development of the Melbourne and Olympic Parks precinct. The “copper penny” colour of the metal roof has been deliberately designed to complement the existing architecture, particularly big brother next door, Rod Laver Arena, but also to express Margaret Court Arena’s   own individuality. The colour and shape of the roof reflects some of the traditional elements of Melbourne architecture, particularly the sandstone, zinc and copper of buildings along the Yarra River. 

The roof’s innovative pleated profile reduces its structural depth and importantly reduces the visual bulk of the building. The pleated nature of the roof also provides the flexibility to fold down to pedestrian level to provide weather protection, particularly at venue entrances. Large roof overhangs on all sides of the building provide shade to the surrounding concourse and public realm, offering a respite for patrons facing the hot summer sun which is often a part of the Australian Open. 

The roof is one of the four key individual design elements that have contributed to the overall architectural form; others are the bowl, concourse and the undercroft. The result is a cohesive architectural form conceived as a “container” where the seating bowl becomes the key architectural expression allowing concourse areas to be developed independently. Large areas of glazing maximise views and expose the internal architecture to passers-by. 

The design and construction of Margaret Court Arena has been determined  not only by the demands of its busy working precinct environment,  but also by the physical constraints of having neighbours on all sides which has created  additional  challenges, particularly the phasing of construction. 

But the design team, NH Architecture + Populous, believes this has ultimately provided a positive influence, ensuring the team is both focused and exacting in the way it has planned and executed the project.  The court position and seating bowl were already fixed, so a great deal of work was undertaken in planning the building, particularly the re-planning of circulation networks for spectators and back of house staff. 

The project sets a new benchmark with its sustainability initiatives. It is aiming to be the first LEED accredited sports venue in Australia, so that it can be compared with other similar global venues for ESD measures. Water consumption has been carefully considered and sustainable strategies adopted to reduce potable water consumption.  Enabling works have provided the infrastructure for rainwater harvesting and treatment facilities which include a 4.5mL storm water retention tank to capture rainwater from the new roof. Preliminary calculations demonstrate an overall reduction of 45% in water use against conventional arena design water efficiency measures.  The Arena’s proximity to alternative public transportation minimizes the need for onsite parking and sets aside more space for natural areas thereby serving to reinforce the precinct’s unique park setting. 

When the Margaret Court Arena opens in 2015, it will create an innovative, covered boutique sports arena that will achieve a significant step in the realization of the Melbourne and Olympic Parks precinct masterplan.

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Richard Breslin is a Senior Principal at Populous and a Director of the Asian/Pacific office headquartered in Brisbane. Richard also sits on the worldwide strategic Board of Populous. Richard is responsible for all of the firm’s projects in New Zealand and Australia.

In 1997, Richard commenced work with the team on the design of Stadium Australia (now ANZ Stadium), the main venue for the Sydney 2000 Olympic and Paralympic Games. At this time, he also worked on the event overlay for the Games, reviewing initial designs for Homebush Olympic Park.

Following the successful delivery of the 2000 Summer Games, Richard worked on the design of the 90,000 seat Wembley Stadium, before leading the design team for two stadia constructed in Portugal (Estadio da Luz in Lisbon and Estadio Algarve in Faro) in preparation for the UEFA Euro 2004 soccer competition.

In 2006, he was Project Leader for the design of the Soccer CIty Stadium in Johannesburg, South Africa, for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He was also appointed project leader for Populous’ successful master plan for the London 2012 Olympic Park. Populous designed the main stadium for the London Olympics and was part of the Overlay team for the Olympic Park.

In 2007, Richard emigrated to New Zealand, where he led the teams on the design of the 60,000 seat Eden Park redevelopment in Auckland and the 30,000 seat Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin, the first fully covered fixed roof stadium with a natural grass pitch. Both were venues for the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Richard is now working on a range of projects in Australia and New Zealand, including the sports hub which is part of the blueprint for the rebuilding of Christchurch, following the earthquakes.

Richard Breslin’s 

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About NH Architecture: NH Architecture is a leading Australian design studio founded on the principles of collaboration and open debate, where architects and designers are united by a commitment to creating outstanding contemporary architecture. The practice has extensive expertise in urban design, masterplanning, architecture, interiors, and graphic design. NH Architecture is renowned for its work in the public realm, mixed-programme developments, and in retail architecture and is leading the thinking towards architecture capable of engaging with the complexities of the contemporary Australian city. 

Other Popolous Expert Columns:

A Sporting Renaissance in Russia – Richard Breslin & Damon Lavelle

The Emergence of the Intelligent Venue – Richard Breslin & Greg Sherlock

Fostering Innovation: why it remains at the heart of stadium design – Richard Breslin & Jon Knight

France’s New Home of Rugby is Much More Than A Stadium – Richard Breslin & Ben Vickery

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