Formula One sponsor LG has said it is confident the Korean Grand Prix will go ahead as planned in October, despite problems over the construction of the circuit.

Executive vice-president and chief marketing officer at LG – which is based in South Korea, Dermot Boden, has said everything is being done to ensure the race goes ahead.

He said: “I live in Korea – I’ve been living there for two-and-a-half years – and this race is going to occur.

“The Koreans are passionate, driven and committed. They are very focused on delivering on their Key Performance Indicators and I want to be clear – we will have a race in Korea.

“I strongly believe that and I don’t have any reason to doubt that. The Koreans will want to deliver not jst a race but an outstanding race – and I think they will do that.”

 

Canadian company Rogers Communications has replaced General Motors (GM) as the title sponsor of the Vancouver Canuck’s ice hockey arena.

The arena has now become Rogers Arena, after a 20-year deal between GM Canada and Canucks Sports and Entertainment ended five years earlier than originally intended. Rogers Communications has agreed a ten-year naming rights deal for the arena.

Chief operating officer at Canucks Sport and Entertainment, Victor de Bonis, said: “General Motors has been an integral part of our business for many years. We are excited about our continuing sponsor partnership that will align with General Motors’ new business priorities. Our home arena has hosted some of the biggest events in the history of our country and we are fortunate that General Motors has been a loyal partner for so long.”

Rogers Communications president and CEO, Nadir Mohamed, said: “It’s not just the branding aspect, but also extending it into the community and leveraging our technologies. One of the things we believe in is taking the game to the fans wherever they might be.”

Rogers also owns Major League Baseball’s Toronto Blue Jays and the team’s home, Rogers Centre.

The International Triathlon Union (ITU) have announced that Abu Dhabi will debut on the 2015 ITU World Triathlon Series (WTS) calendar for the first race of a five-year partnership between the Abu Dhabi Sports Council (ADSC) and ITU. The United Arab Emirates capital city will kick off the WTS season on March 6-7.

“This is a partnership which represents a meeting of like minds in terms of ambitions,” said Marisol Casado, ITU President & IOC Member. “Abu Dhabi is a world class city and offers a fantastic combination of beautiful water and superb road infrastructure that is entirely suitable for a WTS event. 

“In our talks leading up to the partnership it became apparent that Abu Dhabi wants to take its triathlon to the next level and expand the sport’s reach in much the same way as ITU is determined to progress the sport internationally.”  

ITU also confirmed that the dates for the World Triathlon London are officially set for May 30-31 and will again offer a sprint distance course. The Hamburg and Edmonton stops on the Series will also feature the fast and furious sprint races. 

Abu Dhabi is the only new stop on the 2015 calendar, while Gold Coast returns for the first time since 2009 for a Series that will feature a total of 10 cities. 

“The World Triathlon Series represents the ‘best of the best’ – like Abu Dhabi – with the sports elite competing in a 10-city circuit, all striving to become World Champion and qualify for the Olympic Games,” said His Excellency Aref Al Awani, General Secretary, ADSC. 

“We envisage a host of benefits emerging from this partnership. These include further positioning of Abu Dhabi as a destination for world-class sporting events, additional destination exposure among an influential client base, encouragement of our own youth to join in one of the world’s fastest-growing Olympic sports and the promotion among our own community of the benefits of healthy lifestyles.

The Women’s Rugby World Cup is set to be broadcast to more homes and countries than ever before, the International Rugby Board has revealed.

With just one week before the tournament kicks off in Paris, fans in 138 territories around the globe will be able to watch the pinnacle of the women’s fifteens game from France.

The competition, which runs from August 1-17, will be beamed to a potential 289 million homes across the globe, with 306 hours of live Rugby broadcast, more than any previous Women’s Rugby World Cup.

The pool stages will be played at FFR headquarters in Marcoussis, with the semi-finals and final to be played at the newly re-developed Stade Jean Bouin in central Paris. New Zealand’s Black Ferns are out to retain their crown after beating England to win the coveted trophy in London in 2010.

Fifteen matches will be broadcast to a global audience by host broadcasters France TV and Eurosport over the five match days in the French capital, including all matches from pitch one in Marcoussis and all matches from Stade Jean Bouin.

International Rugby Board Chairman Bernard Lapasset said: “The fact that millions of Rugby fans in almost 140 countries can watch Women’s Rugby World Cup is testament to how well the women’s Game has been developed in recent years.”

“It’s also fantastic that so many fans can access the matches on irb.com. We’re really looking forward to kick-off this time next week, as I believe this tournament will really raise the bar for women’s Rugby, and we have some classic matches in store.”

USA Triathlon have announced today the National Governing Body has acquired its current office building and will remain in Colorado Springs for the foreseeable future. The transaction was due in part to a generous donation from Nor’wood Development Group.

The organization moved to 5825 Delmonico Drive on the northwest side of the city in September 2010, cialis and nearly 50 of USA Triathlon’s 57 full-time employees work on-site. Founded in 1982, cialis USA Triathlon has been headquartered in Colorado Springs since fall 1988. The donation from Nor’wood allows USA Triathlon the flexibility for expansion, drugs and available space in the building may be offered for lease to other tenants including U.S. National Governing Bodies in the coming months.

“This investment in our national office headquarters is a testament to the growth of the sport and the success of our organization,” said Rob Urbach, USA Triathlon CEO. “This transaction not only enhances our balance sheet but also enables us to expand in size and scope while better serving our constituents. We are also proud to represent the Olympic Movement here in Colorado Springs alongside the U.S. Olympic Committee and a number of other National Governing Bodies.”

“USA Triathlon has made significant contributions to the community over the last 25 years, and this donation has allowed USA Triathlon to make the commitment to stay here in Colorado Springs for the long-term,” said Chris Jenkins, President of Nor’wood Development Group. “This is the third National Governing Body we’ve worked with, and we’re passionate about the future of Colorado Springs becoming America’s Olympic city.”

The PGA of America, the sanctioning governing body for Golf in the United States, has revealed they are considering staging the US PGA Championship outside the America some time after 2019.

A report in Golf Digest has revealed that a committee is studying the impact of holding the major championship around the world, with the earliest possible date in 2020.

The 2019 US PGA Championship was awarded to Bethpage Black last month.

“This is an exercise we are going through, an analysis,” PGA of America chief executive officer Pete Bevacqua told the magazine.

“It is far from a fait accompli that we are going to take the PGA Championship international.

“When we sat down to map our strategic plan to service our members and grow the game the question arose as to what impact it would have to take the PGA Championship to an international location once or twice a decade.

“It would be something we would only do if we had the co-operation of quite a few groups. It would need to work for the PGA Tour and it would need to work for the PGA Tour players.

“Another would be the PGA in the particular area we would consider. We would want the international PGAs to be a part of this and share in this. Many pieces would have to fall in place.

“We need to push ourselves to think outside the box. What I have said internally is, ‘Shame on us if we don’t consider it and go through the exercise’.”

England Basketball, the national governing body for Basketball in England, has agreed a partnership with the British Basketball League (BBL) to capitalize on the surge of interest in the sport, following the London Olympics. 

This past season has seen basketball’s three domestic finals at Birmingham’s NIA, Glasgow’s Emirates Arena, and at Wembley Arena attract over 20,000 spectators, and like for like attendances at the top clubs are up 27% for the recently completed 2012/13 season.

A new franchise will be in Birmingham in the new season, and London Lions are moving to the Copper Box Arena. BBL have also announced a five year sponsorship deal with Spalding, and further commercial sponsorships will be announced shortly. In addition, grass roots activities by England Basketball and the BBL Foundation are expanding significantly, particularly around the 3on3 form of the game, and basketball has seen the greatest increase in participation in England amongst all team sports, and is now ranked third in team sports for regular participation, behind only football and cricket. 

England Basketball Chairman Jan Hagen said: “I am excited about the tremendous potential in the sport, following my recent appointment as Chairman, and I believe we have a great opportunity to drive participation in the sport by working with the BBL, the top Clubs, and other partners. The BBLclubs are committed to their work in the communities and in youth development and we want to leverage even further the synergies between the organizations.England Basketball will be actively looking to work with other basketball specific and multi-sport partners as part of its new strategy and more collaboration projects will follow in due course.” 

Ed Percival, Chairman of BBL added: “We are delighted to support this focus and drive on basketball participation, and particularly in our inner cities. Working with the governing body even more closely will undoubtedly enhance our delivery programmes and drive long term interest in the sport.”