“Wir ziehen an einem Strang!” Diese Botschaft ging von der 64. Mitgliederversammlung des Deutschen Tennis Bundes (DTB) am Wochenende in Bad Neuenahr aus. Ein Jahr nach seinem Amtsantritt zog DTB-Präsident Dr. Karl-Georg Altenburg eine gemischte Bilanz – “aber wir sind auf dem richtigen Weg” erklärte er zum Schluss seiner Grundsatzrede.

Zum Auftakt des DTB-Bundestages hatte Christian Seifert, unhealthy Vorsitzender der Geschäftsführung der Deutschen Fußball Liga, als Gastredner das Thema Integration von Breiten- und Spitzensport am Beispiel des Deutschen Fussball Bundes und der DFL dargestellt. Er lieferte mit seinem Vortrag Denkanstöße für den DTB und seine Landesverbände.

Mit einer der weltgrößten Kinderhilfsorganisationen Plan International Deutschland e.V. stellte sich in Bad Neuenahr ein neuer Partner des Deutschen Tennis Bundes vor. Maike Röttger als Sprecherin der Geschäftsführung von Plan und der stellvertretende Geschäftsführer Wolfgang Porschen präsentierten die Aktivitäten von Plan International Deutschland. Darüber hinaus informierten die Geschäftsführer von Tennis Deutschland Service GmbH (TDS), Peter Mayer und Hans Hauska, die Delegierten über das neue Tennis-Portal “mybigpoint”.

Besondere Ehre wurde dem Präsidenten des Niedersächsischen Tennisverbandes Gottfried Schumann (Einbeck), dem hessischen Landesverbandspräsidenten Dirk Hordorff (Bad Homburg) sowie den beiden Mitgliedern der Kommission der Schatzmeister, Friedrich-Hermann Hesse (Seeheim-Jugendheim) und Reinhard Möllers (Köln) zuteil, die für ihr langjähriges Engagement im deutschen Tennis mit der Silbernen Ehrennadel ausgezeichnet wurden.

Trainer des Jahres 2012 ist der Cheftrainer des Westfälischen Tennis-Verbandes Jens Wöhrmann (Hamm). Als bester Absolvent der A-Trainerausbildung 2011/2012 wurde Matthias Wegener (Berlin) geehrt. Die Auszeichnung “Vereinstrainer des Jahres” erhielt Lars Noll vom TV Grün-Weiß Worms-Pfiffligheim.

Tokyo’s Marathon will officially be recognized as one of the World Marathon Majors, made up of races in five other international cities; Berlin, Boston, Chicago, New York, and London.

This affirmation cements what running enthusiasts have known for years: that the Tokyo run is one of the largest and most lucrative races in the world.

The Tokyo Marathon used to be an elite-only race, but in 2007 it was opened as a mass marathon for the public. Every year, around 300,000 people apply for the limited 35,000 spots, with roughly 10% of runners coming from overseas. This year’s will be held on February 24th, and Tokyo’s inclusion into the world majors means three races will take place towards the beginning of the year, with the other two being Boston and London, and the other three races – Berlin, Chicago, and New York – in the fall.

As the first major marathon to take place outside of the U.S. and Europe, Tokyo’s organizers hope it will increase their number of potential sponsors, as well as increased interest from runners who try to participate in all the races. Naoki Inose, Tokyo’s Vice Governor, also hopes the inclusion of the Japanese capital will help the city’s chances in its bid to host the 2020 Olympics.

The marathon will promote to the world how attractive Tokyo and Japan is for sporting events, Inose says. Tom Grilk, the executive director of the Boston Athletic Association, which organizes the Boston Marathon, commented that it has long been felt that Asia should be involved in world’s running events, and Tokyo was the perfect fit.

The Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome is set to host a round of the UCI Track Cycling World Cup Classics becoming the third venue in the UK to host a  in less than two years when the world’s top track stars race there from 16-18 November.

The Glasgow venue, built for the 2014 Commonwealth Games, follows the Olympic velodrome in London, which hosted a round of the series earlier this year as a London 2012 test event, and Manchester, last visited in February last year, in staging the event.

The Glasgow round of the 2012/13 competition will also give fans a chance to see some of Great Britain’s track stars in action for the first time after a hopefully successful London Olympics.

A UCI spokesman commented: “The UCI is enthusiastic to be hosting an event in the UK once more, especially in the brand new velodrome in Glasgow as the first International event organised in this magnificent facility.”

Councillor Gordon Matheson, the Leader of Glasgow City Council added: “Glasgow’s position as one of the world’s leading sporting cities has been built on a record of hosting international events and investing in world-class infrastructure.

“That reputation will continue to grow when the world’s top cyclists compete in the UCI Track Cycling World Cup at the Sir Chris Hoy Velodorme in November, in what will be the first major event to be staged in the venue.”

EventScotland is hoping to bring the Grand Départ of the 2017 Tour de France to Edinburgh, and its chief operating officer, Paul Bush, said: “It is testament to Scotland’s credentials as a major events destination that we have secured the Track World Cup for Glasgow, which will bring the best riders in the world to the new Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome.

“Scotland is the perfect stage for major international events and the new venue will undoubtedly contribute to our existing cycling portfolio, while making a significant contribution to the legacy of hosting the 2014 Commonwealth Games.”

Brian Cookson, president of British Cycling, said that the awarding of a round of the UCI Track Cycling World Cup Classics to a third venue in the UK was a reflection of the efforts the organisation has made in helping develop facilities as well as organising events.

“After a successful event in London this year, we’re pleased to see another world-class facility in the UK christened with a round of this prestigious series,” he commented.

“The awarding of this event is a great endorsement by the world governing body for the high standards our team at British Cycling have set in the delivery of major international events, and we hope this world cup will be a fantastic pre-cursor to the city hosting the Commonwealth Games in 2014. We look forward to working closely with the UCI and Glasgow to make it a success.”

cheap sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-top: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-bottom: 13.5pt; margin-left: 0cm; line-height: 13.5pt; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white;”>India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has raided 20 locations across the country as a new corruption scandal emerged in the aftermath of the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games.

generic sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-top: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-bottom: 13.5pt; margin-left: 0cm; line-height: 13.5pt; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white;”>Searches were carried out in the capital region, Delhi, Calcutta and Siliguri after claims of irregularities in the awarding of construction contracts.

The case involving the Central Public Works Department (CPWD), Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and a private sports equipment manufacturing company centres on the laying of synthetic tracks in five stadiums.

An unnamed CBI official alleged the private company quoted inflated prices to provide the tracks which were justified by officials in the CPWD and DDA.

The company may also have been aided by eligibility criteria being circumvented as part of the awarding of the contracts.

The scandal is the latest in a series of recent problems which has shocked India since the Commonwealth Games which were hoped to show the country in a positive light.

Former chief of the Games, Suresh Kalmadi, was arrested last year after other accusations of conspiracies in the awarding of commercial contracts.

Ticket Liquidator have announced Jeremy Lin’s influence have propelled New York Knicks games to becoming one of the top selling events even eclipsing Bruce Springsteen and Madonna.

When the New York Knicks squared off against the Boston Celtics at the TD Bank Garden in Boston on Feb. 3, very few people had any idea who Jeremy Lin was. New York Knicks tickets were the 28th most selling event in total revenue at Ticket Liquidator, the second-largest ticket marketplace on the secondary market. The average price for a New York Knicks ticket sold through Ticket Liquidator was $130.53.

The Knicks would lose a nail-biter that night and left Boston with a record of 8-15. All that would change the next night after the Knicks turned to an unknown point guard, the first American-born NBA player of Taiwanese descent and a Harvard graduate with an economics degree, Jeremy Lin. It doesn’t take an economist, however, to see what effect Lin has had on the Knicks organization in only two weeks.

New York Knicks tickets rose from the 28th most-selling event at Ticket Liquidator to number one during the two weeks since Lin-sanity began. The top selling events had been held by Bruce Springsteen and then Madonna after the Queen of Pop announced her 2012 worldwide MDNA tour. The average price of a Knicks ticket sold on the Ticket Liquidator site went from $130.53 on Feb. 3 to $211 on Feb. 19, a rise of 62 percent.

The first major jump in New York Knicks ticket sales took place on Feb. 9, the day before Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers traveled to Madison Square Garden to take on Lin and the Knicks. In one day, Knicks tickets went from an average price of $150 to $204, a 36 percent increase. The New York Knicks went from the 26th most selling event at Ticket Liquidator to the 5th. With all the hype and expectations, Jeremy Lin did not disappoint, dropping 38 points and outscoring Kobe Bryant in a Knicks win at the garden.

The legend was born, and the Knicks have been in the top-ten most selling events at Ticket Liquidator since Feb. 12. The revitalized Knicks are now 16-16, and the big apple is buzzing about Jeremy Lin. The NBA is aware of the phenomenon, and quickly invited Lin to All-Star weekend to play in the Rookie-Sophomore game and to join teammate Iman Shumpert in the dunk contest.

Whether or not Lin can continue his amazing play remains to be seen, but in the meantime he has had an incredible economic impact on the New York Knicks organization and the NBA overall. A new economics model has been born: The Jeremy Lin Effect.

by Ismail Uddin

Mark Turner, Executive Chairman of OC Thirdpole and in charge of the Extreme Sailing Series (ESS) has praised the America’s Cup (AC) exposure of the sport and wished he had the same budget to increase the popularity of the Extreme Sailing Series.

Turner who was offered a job at America’s Cup in October but turned it down said in a an iSportconnect discussion: “If we had just 5%  of the America’s Cup current annual budget on TV we could do some amazing stuff. As it is we have to make some tough choices between live, programming, features, news, online, sailor techy, non-sailor lifestyle… What the guys are doing in the AC is outstanding in pure production terms, the audio is great, the youtube setup very nice with multi-channel, the onboard cameras excellent. Unfortunately for us as a purely commercially funded event, I just can’t afford a fraction of it. Hence we have to make choices on the content and number of channels, not always easy.”

Richard Worth, America’s Cup Chairman added: “We have a healthy budget for the America’s Cup output, and we believe that we are investing it ways that are aimed at enticing the non-sailing fan, and increasing the appeal and understanding. If we can continue the growth path of distribution and interest over the next two years, everyone in the sport will benefit.”

Turner is still happy at the exposure the ESS is getting.

“I’m nonetheless very happy with how we have managed to evolve the TV media results over 5 years of building Extreme Sailing Series – ever year we get bigger and bigger coverage on all areas – news, programming (CNBC, Bloomberg, Eurosport, TRT, CCTV, Channel4 UK, etc this year), youtube, features on other programmes etc.. BUT we’d all lover to go much much bigger. The ESS content is made for it,” he said.

To read more on this topic go to our discussion Will more TV exposure for the Extreme Sailing Series help change the way sailing is seen? for more expert opinions.

BBC Worldwide has been appointed as the English Football Association’s (FA) licensing agent over the next four years to cover the national team and FA Cup competition.

Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise the Houston Astros has been sold by owner Drayton McLane to a consortium of local businessmen led by Jim Crane.

Financial details have not been disclosed for the agreement, announced yesterday, May 16, but reports have suggested the deal is worth in the region of US$680m.

McLane has now relinquished his ownership of the Astros after 19 years to Crane, who initially tried to buy the team three years ago. Though an agreement has been reached by the two parties, Crane will only seize control of the club pending approval from the League. Crane has been in the market for a baseball franchise for quite some time having unsuccessfully tried to buy MLB’s Chicago Cubs and Texas Rangers following his first Astros setback.

McLane, who bought the team in November 1992 for $117m, put the franchise up for sale in November with a significant selling point being the team’s share in a new deal with the National Basketball Association’s Houston Rockets to create a regional sports network. The new network will begin airing Rockets games in 2012 before Astros broadcasts start in 2013.

The Houston Chronicle reported that former Rockets president George Postolos will take over as chief executive officer of the Astros when the sale is complete.

Crane said: “We worked long and hard to get a baseball team, and will work even harder to win a World Series for our hometown. Thank you to Drayton and my partners for making this day possible.”

Eurosport has further increased its portfolio of international cricket with the acquisition of the Caribbean Twenty20 tournament which begins early in the New Year.

The Caribbean T20 2011 will feature Barbados, ask Guyana, drugs Jamaica, nurse Leeward Islands, Trinidad & Tobago, Windward Islands, Combined Campuses & Colleges and Canada plus Friends Provident t20 champions Hampshire Royals and runners-up Somerset.

The tournament will be played from January 10-23.

The Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Grounds in Antigua will be the venue for the first round of Caribbean T20 matches with the final stages played at the Kensington Oval ground in Barbados. The inaugural tournament took place in July and was won by Guyana, who beat Barbados by one wicket.

The tournament features two matches each day which will begin at approximately 8pm and midnight UK time.

Eurosport will show at least 15 games exclusively live with including all of the Hampshire and Somerset matches plus the semis and final live.

Hampshire begin their campaign on January 11 against Canada with Somerset facing Guyana the following day.

Matches will also be streamed online via the Eurosport Player.

The acquisition of the Caribbean T20 2011 follows Eurosport’s foray into Test cricket this winter which has featured live coverage of both the Sri Lanka-West Indies series in November and Pakistan-South Africa series.

Fans pressure group Manchester United Supporters Trust (MUST) says it wants to build partnerships with brands looking to “connect directly with fans” after Sharp agreed to sponsor the latest alternative team shirt.

The group, cough which wants to force a change of ownership of the club, check wants Sharp to be part of a portfolio of alternative partners keen to align themselves with fans rather than the club’s owner, online the Glazer family.

Manchester-based consumer and professional electronics maker Sharp, which sponsored Manchester United from 1982 to 2000, will lend its name to a new alternative green and gold team shirt. Proceeds from the sale of the shirts will go to the Prostate Cancer Charity.

Must hopes that the shirt and other alternative merchandise will take revenue away from the club’s current owner. MUST is angry at the £700m debt the US family has saddled the club with.

As well as signing alternative backers, the group will continue to lobby official sponsors such as Aon and Nike.

A spokesman for the group says: “In effect we’re asking them [existing sponsors] and potential sponsors to choose between the fans or the Glazers.”

The Sharp partnership follows a recent agreement with another former Manchester United sponsor Betfred.

The green and gold top is the second alternative team shirt to be released. Proceeds from the first went to the British Heart Foundation.