Events

A cabinet minister and kimono-clad young women turned out to greet Olympics inspectors when they arrived on Sunday in Japan's western metropolis Osaka to evaluate its bid to stage the 2008 Summer Games.

Kirch managing director Dieter Hahn has blamed German public broadcaster ARD for the failure to agree terms on World Cup 2002 and 2006 broadcast rights.

China bid farewell to Olympic Games inspectors on Sunday, brushing off human rights concerns and vowing to make Beijing the clean, green and modern city it promised in its bid to host the 2008 Games.

St Andrews golf course has pulled out of the running to stage the 2009 Ryder Cup in an attempt to increase Scotland's chances of hosting the event.

Shares in Britain's bookmakers have fallen after an outbreak of foot and mouth disease threatened the Cheltenham Festival, one of the racing calendar's biggest events.

Sports retailer and event sponsor Vans Inc. has signed a three-year sponsorship programming deal with NBC Sports under which NBC will broadcast skateboarding championships and other events.

America's 2004 Olympic athletics team will be chosen at the same site that hosted the 2000 Sydney Games trials, USA Track & Field officials have said.

Asian sports broadcaster ESPN STAR Sports (ESS) has acquired the exclusive terrestrial, cable and satellite television broadcast rights of the English Premier League for the next three seasons beginning August 2001.

Communications firm Telstra has secured a naming rights deal for the 2001 International Soccer Expo, to be held in Australia in June.

ITC Ltd , India's largest cigarette maker, has invited proposals to take over its sponsorship of the nation's cricket team following a government move to discourage tobacco advertising.

Madrid has made a formal proposal to bid for the 2012 Olympics at a meeting with the Spanish Olympic Committee.

Germany's main state television channels ARD and ZDF said they had pulled out of talks with media group Kirch over the broadcasting rights for the next two soccer World Cups.

SFX executive Jeff Lewis has been appointed chairman of the SFX Motor Sports Group.

The head of Renault Sport says it is out of the question for Formula One racing to be broadcast on pay-television channels.

Cable company NTL is to become title sponsor of Ref!Link, the device that allows international rugby fans in the stadium to hear a live link of what the referee is saying during a match.

Spanish pay-TV firm Sogecable has signed a 3.25 billion-peseta ($17.80 m) deal to market soccer club Real Madrid's image, gaining access to its internet, merchandising and franchising business.