British Cycling, in partnership with Manchester City Council and the UK Sport Gold Event Series, announced today that the first round of the UCI BMX Supercross World Cup will come to Manchester this April. 

Tickets go on sale for general release Thursday 7th February, 2013.

The event will take place at the National Cycling Centre in Manchester, a complex which boasts the largest indoor BMX track in Europe and will span two days (19 – 20 April). Featuring five events on three continents, with the fastest and bravest riders in the world taking the gate at the race and accelerating around the professional indoor course, the BMXSupercross World Cup is BMX racing at its best.

Following the popularity of the European Supercross Series and BMX World Champs being held in Birmingham in 2012 – and with top UK Olympian talent Shanaze Reade and Liam Phillips taking to the track – fans are encouraged to book early to avoid disappointment as each race has a 1,800 ticket capacity.

Jonny Clay, British Cycling Cycle Sport and Membership Director, said of the event: “The National Cycling Centre defines Manchester as the heart of British cycling and so it makes perfect sense to host this high octane event in the city. The BMX track is central to Manchester’s world-class facilities and is a base for all cyclists from grassroots development through to Olympic and Paralympic medal winners.”

“Manchester is leading the way in making cycling an accessible sport to people of all ages and abilities across the city and beyond. Through a dedicated schools’ programme and with tickets from as little as £13, anyone interested in BMX can watch pro-riders in action at the Supercross event this April.”

Esther Nicholls, Head of Major Events at UK Sport, added: “Following the success of the 2012 BMX World Championships in Birmingham, we are delighted to bring another BMX event to the UK.

“This is a fantastic addition to UK Sport’s Gold Event Series – which aims to bring over 70 of the world’s most prestigious events to the UK – and we look forward to working closely with British Cycling and Manchester City Council to deliver a truly memorable event.”

PrimeSport, the Official Ticket & Hospitality Provider of the NCAA, today announced the launch of the Official NCAA Ticket Exchange for the 2013 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship.

The popularity of NCAA March Madness grows every year and fans excitedly seek tickets to support their teams and follow all the great moments of the Championship. On Sunday, March 17th, 68 teams from across the country will be selected to compete in the historic 75th celebration of the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship with hopes of making it all the way to Atlanta for a chance to compete in the 2013 NCAA Men’s Final Four.

The Official NCAA Ticket Exchange allows college basketball fans to buy and sell tickets online for every round of the 2013 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship in a convenient, safe, and guaranteed environment. Ticket holders who are unable to attend their games or find their team eliminated prior to the final rounds of the championship, have a place to safely sell their tickets. Buyers can be assured that the tickets are authentic and guaranteed, even if the game is sold-out.

“Our priority is always to ensure our fans have the best experience possible as they root for their teams,” said Josh Logan, director of ticketing at the NCAA. “Our partnership with PrimeSport has provided our fans with a safe, dependable and fully authorized method for securing tickets and hospitality packages throughout the championship – from the very first round all the way through the NCAA Men’s Final Four.”

PrimeSport also manages The NCAA Experience program that offers official ticket packages for every round of the championship. Ticket packages can either include official pre-game hospitality with cash bar and refreshments or a NCAA gift card redeemable for official NCAA merchandise at the game. As fans look to secure a spot to watch their team compete, PrimeSport is the only place where you can get guaranteed seat locations, official pre-game hospitality and the assurance of buying directly from the NCAA’s only approved ticket and hospitality package provider.

“We are looking forward to another great year of great college basketball and a historic 75th celebration of this special event,” said Sam Soni, President of PrimeSport. “Through our relationship with the NCAA, we are excited to be able to offer fans The NCAA Experience with official tickets, VIP experiences, and travel packages.”

The best sailors in the world will return to Naples, arthritis Italy from April 16-21 for the first America’s Cup World Series event of 2013. 

Naples originally hosted the America’s Cup World Series in April 2012, rx drawing over 500, viagra 40mg 000 spectators on site, with the racing on the water highlighted by a spectacular debut from the Italian Luna Rossa Challenge team, who won the fleet racing and finished in second place in the match racing. 

“We are very happy to be returning to Naples for our only event in Europe in 2013,” said Stephen Barclay, the CEO of the 34th America’s Cup. “The people of Naples turned out in force to celebrate the America’s Cup and the Luna Rossa team in 2012 and we anticipate even more enthusiasm for the 2013 edition.” 

“We have worked hard alongside our partners to ensure the city will host the America’s Cup World Series again,” said Mario Hubler, the CEO of ACN, the administrative body charged with securing and running the event. “Now we have to roll up our sleeves and, in collaboration with the America’s Cup organizers, ensure that the races of 2013 will be an even greater success than those of last April.” 

The America’s Cup World Series features up to 11 of the top sailing teams in the world, racing on cutting-edge, wingsail catamarans that demand the best from the crews. The competition takes place extremely close to shore, on short, confined racecourses, making for dramatic race action for spectators and sailors alike.

ISS Hockey (International Scouting Services) has been acquired by Siegel Enterprises.

Siegel Enterprises founder Stu Siegel will spearhead the growth of ISS as its new CEO.

ISS Hockey is the leading independent scouting and information provider on hockey player prospects aged 14 to 19. Founded in 2002, and ISS scouts, clinic evaluates, shop analyzes and ranks players internationally on behalf of its many clients, which include (among others): NHL Teams, Hockey Canada, Major Junior Leagues and Teams (CHL, QMJHL, OHL, WHL, USHL), NCAA Teams, TSN, THN-The Hockey News, Sports Agencies and Hockey’s Future.

The ISS annual NHL Draft Guide has become the de facto draft reference guide for NHL scouts, fans and sports media. All ISS products are widely utilized in the hockey world, building an industry leading reputation for the best and most comprehensive scouting information.

Stu Siegel is the former managing partner, CEO and NHL Governor of the Florida Panthers NHL hockey club. A serial entrepreneur in the information and technology space, he has served as the CEO and principal of several tech businesses, including most recently FreeCreditReport.com and eNeighborhoods.

“ISS Hockey has an incredible reputation in the hockey industry”, says Siegel. “Every young hockey player with the desire to advance in the sport aspires to be scouted and ranked by ISS Hockey. We hope to expand our coverage and the information that we compile on these prospects to continually enhance our industry leading products on behalf of our customers.”

The key to the success of ISS is its incredible worldwide network of ISS Hockey scouts. ISS scouts are within reach of every young hockey player in the world, and attend every major hockey tournament, in addition to thousands of league games. Game and player reports are input into ISS’s state-of-the-art systems and evaluated to assure reliability and consistency. All players that are profiled and ranked by ISS will have been seen and evaluated many times by several ISS scouts.

Italy’s federal prosecutor has launched an appeal against the acquittals of Juventus players Simone Pepe and Leonardo Bonucci in the Italian football match-fixing trial.

Juventus players Bonucci and Pepe, members of last season’s title-winning squad, were cleared of any involvement, as were Salvatore Masiello, Daniel Padelli, Giuseppe Vives, Nicola Belmonte and Montreal Impact striker Marco Di Vaio.

Testimony by former Bari defender Andrea Masiello was dismissed on the grounds that it was too inconsistent, meaning the charges against the Juventus pair were dropped.

As a result, the alleged fixing of the Bari-Udinese, Bari-Bologna and Bari-Lecce matches was not considered, meaning Bonucci, Pepe, Daniele Padelli, Giuseppe Vives, Nicola Belmonte, Salvatore Masiello and Montreal Impact striker Marco Di Vaio were all cleared.

Now reports in the Italian press say Stefano Palazzi believes Masiello’s evidence can be used, and has filed a formal appeal with the Federal Court of Justice that covers all three games and also Albinoleffe-Siena – a match Juventus coach Conte, then at Siena, was ruled to have had knowledge that fixing was happening in.

The seven players, as well as Udinese, will have seven days to again prepare their legal teams before the court begins to consider the appeal on August 20.

Last week, Conte was banned for ten months in the aftermath of the match-fixing scandal. His deputy, Angelo Alessio, was banned for eight.

The FIGC confirmed that it had banned Conte for failing to report unsporting behaviour in relation to a match-fixing investigation. The charges related to his time at Siena in 2010-11.

Charges of direct involvement in match-fixing levelled against Conte were dismissed in July, but the FIGC ruled that it was satisfied he was aware it was happening during his time with Siena.

Juve said they would stand by their coach and put Massimo Carrero, a member of his staff, in charge during games. They issued a statement which said: “Juventus Football Club warmly welcomes the acquittal of its players Leonardo Bonucci and Simone Pepe, and reiterates its full support for Antonio Conte and Angelo Alessio in the hope the next stage of the process [an appeal] will finally prove their innocence.

“A group of legal professionals have been appointed by the individuals concerned and, with the full support of the club, is already working to prepare grounds for an appeal.”

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Former Arizona Diamondbacks CEO Jeff Moorad is on the edge of taking over Major League Baseball (MLB) team the San Diego Padres.

Moorad, a former sports agent and previous part owner and chief executive of the Diamondbacks, has been buying stakes in the Padres from majority owner John Moores.

MLB.com and the Padres’ official website have reported a deal for Moorad to own 100 percent of the baseball franchise is almost complete, and will be sent to other baseball owners for approval at their next meeting.

MLB.com puts the Padres sale to Moorad at $530 million but may be closer to $480m according to Forbes. Moores has owned the team since 1995. Moorad is now its vice chairman and CEO.

Moorad has plenty of other former Diamondbacks with him at Petco Park in San Diego.

Former D-backs General Manager Josh Byrnes is now GM of the Padres. Former D-backs Manager A.J. Hinch is a team vice president and assistant GM. Byrnes and Hinch were fired from the D-backs in 2010.

Padres President and Chief Operating Officer Tom Garfinkel was the D-backs’ COO before making the move to San Diego with Moorad. The Padres connduct their spring training in Peoria.

Moorad fired Kevin Towers as Padres general manager in 2009. Towers became the D-backs’ GM last year.

Moorad was previously a sports agent, with clients including Steve Young, Manny Ramirez,Troy Aikman, Thurman Thomas, Warren Moon and Ivan Rodriguez.

 

German soccer federation (DFB) chief Theo Zwanziger will run for a FIFA Executive Committee spot that will be left vacant when Franz Beckenbauer steps downs in March 2011, the DFB said.

Beckenbauer said earlier this month he wanted to spend more time with his family, paving the way for Zwanziger to seek election as the European soccer’s (UEFA) representative on the FIFA board at the UEFA congress on March 22 in Paris.

The 65-year-old, who took the helm of the DFB in 2004 alongside Gerhard Meyer-Vorfelder before leading it alone since 2006, was re-elected unopposed to the post for another three-year term in October.

“Franz Beckenbauer is a highly regarded representative of German football around the world who did his job in an outstanding manner the past few years,” Zwanziger said of the World Cup winning captain and coach.

“It is the aim of the DFB to support our interests in committees of world soccer and that is why I run for this post.”

He said he had already informed European soccer chief Michel Platini and FIFA boss Sepp Blatter of his decision.

“I am happy that he has decided to run for the post despite the difficulties this job brings with it,” Beckenbauer said in a statement.

“Theo Zwanziger is the best solution for German soccer.”

Ross Brawn, owner of the Brawn Formula One team, has ruled himself out of the running to become the new chairman of the Formula One Teams’ Association (FOTA) later this year.

McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh is the current chairman of FOTA, and took over from Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo in December.

Brawn said: “I have enjoyed my two years as head of the technical group and I think that is enough for anyone.”

Under rules of the chairmanship, candidates can only come from teams that have previously won a championship title.

This means that potential successors to Whitmarsh could be Mercedes GP’s Brawn, Renault’s Eric Boullier or Williams’ Adam Parr or Frank Williams.

 

Prozone, the company which has pioneered the use of performance analysis in football, has re-signed as a major partner of the Leaders in Performance conference.

The conference, which is dedicated to the identification, development and management of sporting talent, is taking place on 7 October at Chelsea FC.

75 per cent of football clubs from the English Premier League now work with Prozone, and in total, over 100 clubs, leagues and federations world wide now benefit from the company.

Marketing and business development manager of Prozone, Simon Edgar said: “Prozone have an unrivalled passion and knowledge of the performance analysis industry and our partnership with ‘Leaders in Performance’ is a perfect alignment of two businesses that are focused on providing world class services to the professional football industry.”

CEO of Leaders in Performance James Worrall added: “We are delighted to be partnering with Prozone. Analysis has become a vital part of sport, all top athletes are using analysis to improve and also get an edge on their opponents, so we feel there is a natural fit with what Leaders in Performance is looking to achieve.”