The US PGA Championship has been movedfrom its traditional August spot to late July in 2016 to accommodate the Rio 2016 Olympics, the PGA of America have revealed today.

The change to accommodate the golf tournaments at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, with the Games running from August 5-21.

As a result, the 2016 US PGA Championship will be staged at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, New Jersey from July 28-31.

The 2016 Open Championship will be held on July 14-17 at Royal Troon, leaving only 11 days between the final two majors of the year.

Not since 1971 has the US PGA Championship been played outside August and that was because the time of year was considered too hot to stage the event in Florida, where it was won by Jack Nicklaus in February.

“It’s a condensed schedule,” PGA of America chief executive officer Pete Bevacqua said. “Obviously with the Olympics, it’s also a Ryder Cup year, you throw in the (PGA playoffs), so it’s a very congested schedule.

“We actually feel really good about it.

“We think an end of July date in that part of the country and the major metropolitan area just outside of New York makes a lot of sense.

“Less people are on vacation, more people are in town and we think it will work out as a real benefit to the 2016 PGA Championship.” 

The men and women golf competitors for Rio 2016 will be determined by the World Golf Rankings as of July 11 that year.

Japanese car manufacturer Nissan will return to the pinnacle of sportscar racing in 2015 after revealing they will enter a factory LMP1 team in the World Endurance Championship next year.

The Japanese manufacturer will take on works teams from Audi, Toyota and Porsche in the series which includes the prestigious Le Mans 24 Hour race.

“We applaud the ACO and FIA for the work they have done to get the rules right,” said Nissan’s Chief Planning Office & Executive Vice-President Andy Palmer.

“LMP1 is not just an arms race – all our rivals in the class have taken different technical approaches and we will be doing the same. We want to win in a very different way to that of our rivals. We won’t be turning up in a vehicle which is a basically another hybrid that looks like another Porsche, Audi or Toyota – they all look the same to me – our intention is to do something that is a little bit different.”

Nissan’s last attempt for outright victory at Le Mans came 15 years ago and the car they hope can deliver immediate success next year will be known as the GT-R LM NISMO.

“We have chosen to take the GT-R name to Le Mans as the GT-R symbolizes the ultimate in Nissan’s performance,” NISMO President Shoichi Miyatani said.

“It is a true aspirational brand; a car our fans, our customers love to drive, and love to own. We have been using GT-R in motorsport for many years now, in Super GT and GT3. For us LM P1 is the ultimate test. We have unfinished business at Le Mans and now we have our chance to target victory with the Nissan GT-R LM NISMO.”

British Cycling today confirmed that a round of the UCI Track Cycling World Cup is coming to the UK with the opening round of the 2013/14 season taking place in Manchester in November.

The event will be the first time the city has hosted the series since 2011. The 2013 event will take place between 1st and 3rd November.

Speaking on behalf of British Cycling, apoplectic Cyclesport and Membership director Jonny Clay said: “We’re very happy that the UCI have again awarded our stakeholder group a round of the Track Cycling World Cup recognising the ongoing support of our venues, arthritis UK Sport and British Cycling for the UCI’s series and the sport of cycling as a whole. Returning to Manchester marks the start of a journey to Rio that we hope will culminate in welcoming the UCI Track Cycling World Championships to London in 2016 and we await positive news on the outcome of that bid.”

The build up to the event will feature a pre sale of tickets to British Cycling members giving them an opportunity to book their seat for an event that is certain to be in high demand. the previous Track World Cup in Glasgow having sold out in a very short space of time.

2013’s Track World Cup in Manchester forms part of larger programmes of sport for both of British Cycling’s partner event Stakeholders Manchester City Council and UK Sport, ed viagra which is aiming to bring 70 world class sporting events to the UK over the next six years through its National Lottery funded Gold Event Series.

Speaking on behalf of UK Sport Esther Nicholls, Head of Major Events said: “We’re so pleased that the UCI Track Cycling World Cup will once again be returning to the Manchester Velodrome, which has played host to so many fantastic Track cycling events since 2002.

“Through our £27million Gold Event Series we have been working hard to build an incredible programme of major international sporting events for the UK to host after London 2012 and hope this is the first of a number of major international cycling events to be staged on home soil in partnership with the UCI. In partnership with British Cycling and London we look forward to the decision in relation to our bid to stage the 2016 Track Cycling World Championships in the London Velodrome, the legacy venue from London 2012 Olympic & Paralympic Games.“

The Global Ocean Race have announced a number of plans for the next couple of years with Southampton and the Solent, on England’s South Coast, being chosen to host the start of the revamped Global Ocean Race 2014-2015.

Announcing this today, organisers of the GOR and of the PSP Southampton Boat Show also confirmed that the event’s race village will be part of the boat show prior to the race start on Sunday 21st September 2014, enabling tens of thousands of visitors to get a close up view of the remarkable Class40 yachts that will average speeds, through the Southern Ocean, faster than most of the boats in the famous Whitbread races. It is planned that the GOR sailors will also complete their circumnavigation in the Solent and finishing the race in Gunwharf Quays, Portsmouth, in June 2015 is under consideration.

Speaking at the Tullet Prebon London Boat Show, the race organiser, Josh Hall, confirmed that the 31,000-mile race will again follow the classic Southern Ocean route around the world in what many now consider to be one of the toughest races on the calendar.

“The boats have proven reliability and are incredibly quick and we are extremely proud to bring the race to the home of Southern Ocean racing,” he said. The third edition of the GOR will make its first stop in Cape Town, with its base at the stunning V&A Waterfront Marina. From there it will head down to New Zealand and/or Australia, with stops in South America and Charleston, USA, before finishing back in The Solent. The Australasian and South American stopovers are currently in negotiation.

Also revealed are the names of a new Steering Board for the race, brought in to help raise the profile, boost sponsorship and give the race the importance in the sailing calendar that its members feel it now deserves. Chairman of the Steering Board is Julian Mounter, a former CEO of three major broadcasting organisations; a former Times journalist and the driving force that pieced together the financing of Team New Zealand, winners of the America’s Cup under Sir Peter Blake’s leadership, and, earlier, was instrumental in the funding of the successful Whitbread campaign of Grant Dalton in New Zealand. Julian was also Senior Media Consultant for the first two editions of the Volvo Ocean Race.

Harold Anderson will head up GOR Broadcast and Internet production. Harold is a top television producer who was in charge of programming for two of the recent Volvo Ocean Races and has also overseen coverage of several Olympic Games for, among others, the BBC.

Mark Howell will head up GOR Media and Public Relations. Mark was charged with maximising coverage for London throughout the London 2012 Olympic Games and was Press Officer for the RYA during the 1996 Olympics and from 1997 to 2001 and PR Director for the British Olympic Association at The Olympic Games in both Japan and Sydney. Mark was also Head of Media for the Volvo Ocean Race 2001-02 and 2005-06.

Acquiring strong sponsors is an essential part of sport events and Chris Witty joins the GOR team bringing extensive experience from the world of sports sponsorship. Chris has been involved with sponsorship and team management in Formula 1, World Championship rallying, Le Mans and hybrid racing, working with FI legend Eddie Jordan, and is the youngest ever team owner to win a Grand Prix. Witty has also been an offshore powerboat racing team owner and series promoter with multi world champion Steve Curtis MBE, and was responsible for coordinating Richard Branson’s Atlantic Challenge powerboat and balloon adventures. Working with Witty will be Event Organiser and former ITV and BBC Natural History Unit Producer/Director Megan Lander.

Hall said: “Ocean Racing is the pinnacle of our sailing sport. It is exciting, challenging and an enormous adventure, but in recent years it has been diluted because of the need to attract wealthy sponsorship from countries not on the classic routes. With three new classes (fully-crewed, two-handed and single-handed), we expect to attract a substantial fleet. Entering this race is affordable for many who could not afford to enter some of the other existing events and we also believe the GOR returns ocean racing to the days when amateurs could take on the professionals.”

The GOR also announced the first of its sponsors for the 2014 event including long term offshore racing supporter, bluQube; Formula (1) Design, part of Team Concise and developers of a new One Design Class40; Akilaria, producers of the prolific Akilaria Class40 design who have been staunch GOR supporters since its inception and PSP will take the role of GOR logistics partner.

At the Tullet Prebon London Boat Show, Celox Sailing, also confirmed that the Austrian-based company – which operates a unique sailing business with six departments including a sailing academy, sail loft and yacht servicing – will continue sponsorship of the GOR for the 2014-15 race and will be entering the double-handed division of the GOR with Class40 GustBuster.

Each of the countries where there will be a stop is to have a number of well-known sailors or those who are in some way connected to the sport and distinguished in other arenas as GOR Ambassadors. From the UK, single-handed sailing legend Pete Goss, MBE has accepted the role of Ambassador.

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) announced that Nagano, medic Japan will host the 2013 IPC Ice Sledge Hockey B Pool World Championships from 8-16 March. 

The competition will be organised by the Japan Ice Sledge Hockey Association (JISHA), site and as many as eight teams could play on the ice at the Wakasato Tamokuteki Sport Arena, commonly known as “Big Hat.” 

It will be the fourth edition of the B Pool Championships, and the top three finishers from the event will move on to the Paralympic Winter Games Qualification Tournament, which will take place in late 2013 and will be the final chance for teams to qualify for Sochi 2014. 

Just last week, six teams competed in the 2012 edition of the event in Novi Sad, Serbia, where Russia defeated Sweden, 1-0, in the gold-medal game. 

Xavier Gonzalez, IPC Chief Executive Officer, said: “It is great to see Paralympic winter sport continuing to grow in Asia and, for the first time ever, an ice sledge hockey World Championship event will take place there.” 

The “Big Hat” venue offers three different spectator stands and is situated less than three hours northwest of the Japanese capital of Tokyo. 

Nagano is a city of nearly 400,000 people and hosted the first-ever Paralympic Games in Asia in 1998. The Nagano Games demonstrated a rising media and public interest in Paralympic winter sports, as 151,375 spectators viewed the Games, which were covered by 1,468 journalists. 

Kojin Nakakita, President of the JISHA, said: “On behalf of the local organising committee and Japan Ice Sledge Hockey Association, I am glad to announce that the LOC and IPC have happily signed the contract for hosting the 2013 Ice Sledge Hockey World Championships B to be held in Nagano, Japan in the next March. 

“Japan is known as one of the best hospitality countries in the world, and we are confident that this event will be one unforgettable event for all participants. All the best to everyone, and see you all in Nagano.”

Force India owner, arthritis Vijay Mallya has been issued a non-bailable warrant by the Indian city of Hyderabad following his involvement  in a cheque bounce case.

The 13th metropolitan sessions court issued the warrant against crisis-hit Kingfisher airlines in a case filed by GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd (GHIAL), pilule which manages the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport here.

The case was filed in August by GHIAL after four cheques, reportedly costing $2million issued by Kingfisher, who Mallya is chairman of, towards user charges bounced.

The court issued the warrant after Mallaya failed to appear despite summons issued to him. The liquor baron reportedly sought exemption from personal appearance as he was abroad.

A spokesman for the complainant told the AFP: “The cases were listed today for the airline to appear in the court.”

“Since they failed to appear before the magistrate, the court has ordered issuance of NBW (non-bailable warrants) against Kingfisher Airlines (KFA), Vijay Mallya and four other KFA officials.”

The crisis-hit airlines faces similar cases in Mumbai and Delhi after the airport operators moved the court over dishonoured cheques.