London Welsh turn up the heat on RFU - espnscrum.com
London Welsh chairman Bleddyn Phillips has increased the pressure on the Rugby Football Union by labelling their decision to block their possible promotion to the Premiership as "inequitable, unreasonable and unfair".
The Exiles were dealt the hammer blow on the eve of their 37-21 victory over Cornish Pirates in the first leg of the Championship final on Wednesday night that put them on course for the second tier title. The Richmond-based club had hoped that an aggregate victory following next week's return clash at the Kassam Stadium in Oxford would lead to their promotion to the top flight but as things stand they will not make the step up and Newcastle Falcons, who finished bottom of the Premiership, will be safe.
The RFU, who are yet to offer clarification of their decision, ruled that London Welsh's application failed on a number of counts with the primary issue the fact that the club did not hold primacy of tenure at the 12,500-capacity Kassam Stadium that they intend to make their home should they be promoted. However, London Welsh insist they have an agreement in place with Oxford United FC, the owners of the stadium, that would give them the freedom to meet the crucial 'minimum standards criteria'.
The Daily Telegraph reports that London Welsh will launch an appeal - despite the fact they are yet to receive the full details of the RFU's decision - and Phillips, also a partner with the law firm Clifford Chance, has also hinted that the club may take legal action. "If we win our match against the Cornish Pirates in Oxford next week, given the fact that we have a legally-binding agreement to use a top-notch stadium and that other clubs appear to be allowed to groundshare with other Football Association clubs, to my mind I would think it highly inequitable, unreasonable and unfair if we are told that we can't go up," Phillips told the newspaper.
"That would to my mind, and I think to other impartial observers, appear harsh. I would hope that if we can demonstrate that we have a legally-binding agreement to use a top rugby venue, that would be enough to persuade the RFU that they should allow us entry to the top flight.
"We have had a lot of support from neutral and impartial observers. Our best hope however is to persuade the RFU, if we win, that it is in the interests of the game and in the interests of the spirit of the game that London Welsh should be allowed to go up rather than have this legal argument, which nobody really wants, but if necessary we will follow up."
His sentiments were echoed by former Wales and British & Irish Lions international John Taylor, who is also the club's managing director. "This is a massive issue; it's about the professional game in England," said Taylor. "You cannot have a situation where the movement between the Premiership Rugby and the Championship is suddenly prohibited, it just doesn't work on any level. I don't really see how the RFU can be happy with that."
Coach Lyn Jones has also questioned the validity of the RFU decision. "The players feel it's a negative move for English rugby," Jones told The Guardian. "That channel to promotion needs to be open at all times for all sides. It's just a shame the union has complicated that. There's a big buzz in Oxford about the possibility of Premiership rugby being played there. We've had a huge amount of positive feedback regarding the potential of us at the Kassam. We're developing a new product and we just need to be supported in that regard. The type of rugby we're producing is good enough to go up another league."
London 2012: Beijing medallists named in Paralympic squads - BBC News
Paralympic archery champions Dani Brown and John Stubbs will both have the chance to defend their titles after being selected for London 2012.
The pair head a 13-strong squad announced on Thursday in Manchester.
Matt Skelhon will also be bidding to make it back-to-back Paralympic titles after he was chosen in the 12-person shooting squad.
The women's goalball team, who return to the Paralympic fold after a 12-year break, has also been named.
Shropshire's Brown, who won gold for England in a non-disabled event at the Commonwealth Games in Delhi in 2010, was beaten at the recent test event in Woolwich but is relishing the chance to defend her compound title later this summer.
"I'm delighted to have secured my place at the Paralympic Games, and am really excited to be taking part in what will be a fantastic summer of sport," said Brown, who moved from Yorkshire to Telford last year.
"I will be going to the Games as the defending champion, but the competition gets tougher every year, and the standards are rising all the time, which means I have to work harder to make sure I keep ahead of the chasing pack.
"I had a bit of a wake-up call at the test event and though I was disappointed with myself for losing it actually did me a favour, because it has now inspired me to work even harder to make sure that doesn't happen."
While Brown will defend her title, Shropshire's two other archery hopefuls, Kay Lucas and Peter Higgins missed out. But the disappointment for Lucas will be tempered by the fact that her husband Kim will be in London - as he is Dani Brown's coach.
Also included are Athens gold medallist John Cavanagh and 63-year-old Kate Murray, who was born in Woolwich, where the tournament will take place, and who looks likely to be the oldest British competitor in London.
Among the shooting team will be Di Coates, 58, who will be competing in her eighth Games, having made her debut in 1984 in Stoke Mandeville.
"I am very honoured to have been selected for my eighth Paralympic Games," said the Sydney gold medallist and former world record holder.
"To compete at a Paralympic Games is the pinnacle of any athlete's career and I am so pleased to have achieved this once again. If anyone had told me all those years ago that I would be preparing to compete in my eighth Paralympics, I'd have laughed, but here I am and I cannot wait to get out there again.
"The Games has changed so much in the last 30 years and competing again on home soil will be very special."
The women's goalball team secured the host nation place earlier this year and the five-strong squad recently competed in an international tournament in Malmo, finishing fifth.
Louise Simpson is the only member of the squad with previous Paralympic experience but performance director Dawn Newbery has praised the development that the squad has made.
"Goalball is the only team sport for women who are visually impaired and the team are now fitter and stronger and scoring more goals in open play," she said. "We also have a greater strength in depth across the squad and London 2012 provides a wonderful opportunity to showcase what an exciting sport it is with its blend of strategy and power."
Archery: John Stubbs, Richard Hennahane, Danielle Brown, Mel Clarke, Pippa Britton, Phil Bottomley, Kenny Allen, Murray Elliot, Paul Brown, Sharon Vennard, Leigh Walmlsey, John Cavanagh, Kate Murray
Goalball (Women): Georgina Bullen, Jessica Luke, Amy Ottaway, Louise Simpson, Anna Sharkey
Shooting: James Bevis, Adrian Bunclark, Ryan Cockbill, Richard Davies, Adam Fontain, Ben Jesson, Nathan Milgate, Matt Skelhon, Karen Butler, Georgina Callingham, Di Coates, Mandy Pankhurst.
London Olympics 2012: Ennis' Coach Dismisses UKA Fat Jibe - ibtimes.co.uk
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"I get emails, phone calls, text messages and voicemails giving me advice on what I should be doing with Jessica Ennis that's going to make a difference. It's a lot of background noise that you can get easily distracted by.
"I always read it and have a look and think maybe there is something there. Yes, it might be a great idea, but it's not a great idea for today, it's a great idea for next year. I've never had any issue with her weight or shape. There are times I've wished she was taller, but that's it."
Since winning Heptathlon gold at the 2009 World Championships, Ennis has been thrust into the limelight in the lead up to the London Olympics, where she is expected to spearhead a record Team GB medal haul.
The media circus surrounding the Sheffield-born athlete means she's among the most hyped competitors at this year's Games, and it is that new found fame that her coach believes could present a considerable challenge to Ennis.
"The difference is that she's now a 'personality'," said Minichiello. "If she walks into the dining room, people will go 'Ooh, that's Jessica Ennis from athletics.'
"Equally, she'd turn round and go 'Wow, that's David Beckham on the Great Britain football team.' So there's lots of distractions."
Ennis was involved in further controversy last weekend after running a personal best in the 100m hurdles, only for the time to be ruled invalid after officials at the Manchester CityGames set out the wrong number of hurdles.
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London 2012 Olympics: Saudi Arabia Refuse to Lift Ban on Female Athletes - ibtimes.co.uk
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Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Brunei are the only countries that have never fielded women on their Olympic teams. While Qatar and Brunei have announced plans to take female athletes to London, the Saudis have yet to do so.
According to Rogge, discussions with the Saudis are continuing.
He ruled out the possibility of Saudi woman competing in London under the Olympic flag, rather than as members of the Saudi team.
The IOC has come under pressure from human rights groups for not imposing sanctions against Saudi Arabia for not sending female athletes.
Human Rights Watch Middle East director Sarah Leah Witson said: "Saudi Arabia is the last holdout denying women and girls the ability to take part in sports.
"The clock is running out for Saudi women to join the games and for the international community to insist that the Saudi government allow women to participate."
Although Saudi Arabia may not have women who meet Olympic qualifying standards, the IOC is prepared to offer them special conditions or look for other solutions.
As recently as the Atlanta 1996 Olympics, 26 national teams did not include women.
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London 2012 security guards told to smile - Today's Zaman
The opening day of a major event can be tense, as the start of the Olympic torch relay demonstrated this week when a police security team escorting the runners grabbed a spectator they thought was trying to reach the torchbearer and pushed him into a hedge.
Mark Hamilton, the man leading G4S's Olympic security team which will operate airport-style searches and screening at venues, said guards were being encouraged to engage with spectators.
"I think it is very relevant not to over-react to situations that arise on the first day - to make sure they are properly assessed and that the communications process is working in the way it should so that the decisions are made at the right time and people act in the right way," the managing director told reporters.
He said guards had to be thorough but it should not be an "onerous experience" for fans.
He suggested guards may have acted over-the-top when stopping photographers taking pictures from a public path of a vehicle checking area in the Olympic Park.
"There's no doubt that's a lesson learnt, not to overly criticise the workforce and the guards involved because they are operating under a regime where hostile reconnaissance is something they have to be aware of," he said.
"How they handle that, and how they manage it and how they report it is obviously something we've learnt a lesson from."
G4S guards can also check vehicles, such as buses, travelling through the Olympic Park in east London.
More than 100,000 people applied for one of the 10,400 temporary jobs in what G4S describes as one of the biggest paid recruitment drives in Britain this century.
G4S will recruit, train and coordinate the guards, in addition to managing 3,300 students and 3,000 volunteers.
As well as screening at entry, guards will be responsible for queue management and protecting the perimeters and equipment.
The London Olympic organising committee (LOCOG) was forced to renegotiate its contract with G4S at the end of last year after the committee more than doubled the number of people needed from an early estimate of 10,000 to 23,700.
The cost went up from 86 million pounds ($135.15 million) to 284 million pounds, leading to criticism in a UK parliamentary spending watchdog report.
London 2012: Jessica Ennis Labelled 'Fat' By UK Athletics Official, Says Coach - huffingtonpost.co.uk
Jessica Ennis was labelled "fat" by a senior official at UK Athletics, according to her coach Toni Minichiello.
A "high-ranking person" at the governing body said the 26-year-old poster goal of the London 2012 Olympics is "fat and she's got too much weight", according to Minichiello.
The 45-year-old has coached the heptathlete since she was 11, and poured scorn on the criticism, clarifying Ennis' weight hadn't fluctuated.
"The things you can't deal with are what we've dubbed 'silver bullets'," the 45-year-old told The Guardian. "And other people. You can't deal with the expectations and pressures that are on other people, like the BOA's [British Olympic Association] team management."
Born in Sheffield, like Ellis, Minichiello suggested the distractions in the build-up to the Games stemmed from "people in fairly high positions, who should know better".
Commercial activities have been ramped up with just over two months to go until the Olympics begin, and Minichiello bemoaned the "advice" he has personally received, claiming it is easy to get "distracted by" the "background noise".
The former civil servant however conceded Ennis' image has elevated as London 2012 looms, but stressed she remained humble.
"The difference is that she's now a 'personality'. If she walks into the dining room, people will go 'Ooh, that's Jessica Ennis from athletics.'
"Equally, she'd turn round and go 'Wow, that's David Beckham on the Great Britain football team.' So there's lots of distractions."
UK Athletics have declined to comment.
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