Going up! London Welsh win appeal to play in Aviva Premiership as Newcastle go down - Daily Mail
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London Welsh will play in the Aviva Premiership next season after winning their appeal against a Rugby Football Union decision to block their promotion.
The Championship winners were originally denied the right to go up after being told they had failed to meet the minimum standards required of a Premiership club.
London Welsh's appeal was heard yesterday by an independent panel, who spent all of today deliberating over the evidence before finding in favour of the Richmond-based club.
The verdict condemns Newcastle to relegation after they finished bottom of the Premiership.
Going up: London Welsh have won their appeal to be promoted to the Aviva Premiership
London Welsh were initially told they had failed the minimum standards audit on a number of factors but primarily because they did not meet the requirement for primacy of tenure.
In effect, that meant London Welsh were not allowed to share the Kassam Stadium with Oxford United even though three existing Premiership teams co-habit with football clubs.
London Welsh argued the primacy of tenure rule breached UK and European competition law and was therefore void and unenforceable.
The independent panel, which was comprised of QCs James Dingemans, Ian Mill and Tim Ward, agreed.
'We upheld London Welsh's complaint and concluded that the Primacy of Tenure rule gave rise to an unjustified distortion of competition, contrary to UK and EU competition law,' the panel said in a statement.
'While the rule included exemptions for three particular Premiership clubs ('the three club exemption'), there was insufficient justification for the narrowness of that exemption and its restrictive effect on aspirant Championship clubs.
'London Welsh argued and the RFU accepted that the consequence of such a finding was that the provisions that contain the Primacy of Tenure rule in the MSC (minimum standards criteria) are void.'
This is the second time the Premiership's minimum standards criteria have failed to stand up to a challenge.
Rotherham complained to the Office of Fair Trading after their promotion was blocked in 2002, leading to a change in the definition of primacy of tenure.
London 2012: Musicians asked to play for nothing at Olympics - BBC News
Musicians have accused London 2012 organisers of asking acts to play for nothing despite an agreement that professionals would be paid.
Trombonist Steve Haynes said Locog had asked his brass band to play at the Olympic Park for no fee.
He said he thought being asked to play for no money undermined what he does.
Locog said it was not aware of any official approaches made to professional musicians asking them to perform for no payment.
But Mr Haynes, who has played in numerous West End musicals and TV programmes, said: "Initially we were delighted after receiving an email from someone at London 2012, asking us to play.
"But then, actually to find out that it was unpaid, I think this demeans what I've been training to do for 20 years."
In an email to Mr Haynes, Locog wrote: "I realise that no budget isn't ideal but then again it's not every day you get to perform at the Olympic village!"
An agreement between the Musicians Union and 2012 guarantees that all professional performers will be paid unless they are amateurs or headline acts happy to waive their fee.
Music agent JC Caddy said: "They've [Locog] been quite crafty about the way they're going about sourcing acts."
He said it was not right that musicians were not even being offered any travel expenses.
An email to Mr Caddy from Locog said: "They will be fed and watered while on site but I have a feeling we will struggle to get expenses together unfortunately."
'Not earning'BBC London's Olympic correspondent Adrian Warner said: "Organisers want to make the atmosphere of these Games very different and they have ambitious plans for music and entertainment but it looks like they don't want to spend the money to make it all happen."
Horace Trubridge, from the Musicians' Union said: "They have tried all different ways of getting musicians for free which we've had to keep pulling them up on, and their latest one is infuriating.
"They're basically calling on 80 unsigned bands - bands that don't have record deals - to come and play in the park for hundreds of thousands of people over the course of the Games and they've no intention of paying them.
"This isn't a well paid profession. Unless you are a headline act you're not earning a lot of money."
Locog has said it stands by its commitment to the MU that it would not pay volunteers or headline acts but all other professional musicians will be paid.
London Welsh win appeal against Premiership exile - The Guardian
London Welsh have won an appeal against their right to play in the Aviva Premiership next season and Newcastle, the champions in 1998, will be relegated after finishing bottom of the league last month.
Welsh, who won both legs of their play-off final against Cornish Pirates last month, will play their home games at Oxford United's Kassam Stadium.
The appeal against the decision that London Welsh failed to meet the so-called minimum standards criteria, set out by the Professional Game Board, was heard on Friday.
The independent panel comprised the chairman James Dingemans QC, Ian Mill QC and Tim Ward QC. The decision is a huge blow to Newcastle who had appointed Dean Richards as director of rugby.
London Welsh to join Aviva Premiership after winning appeal against decision to deny them promotion - Daily Telegraph
Welsh also pointed they have nominated three other grounds as back-up venues to the Kassam – Brentford, MK Dons and Newbury.
Their nominated second ground, Brentford's Griffin Park, was too far away from their base under the regulations. There was also a concern that Welsh had failed to meet the 31 March deadline to submit their criteria application, one of the "various other factors" cited by the RFU for initially denying the club promotion.
The RFU now look set to under take a review of the minimum standards criteria.
The last team to be denied promotion were Rotherham in 2002. That situation prompted First Division Rugby - the forerunner to the Championship - to lodge a complaint with the Office Of Fair Trading against the RFU and Premiership Rugby.
The OFT ruled that clubs no longer had to be the main tenants at their home stadium but they must be able to stage matches at a venue on dates aspecified in advance by the Premiership.
London 2012 Olympics: Aaron Cook gives up fight for taekwondo place at Games - Daily Telegraph
“The financial implications for me, and, more importantly, for my parents, of doing so are too prohibitive.
“I am really disappointed that the BOA did not agree to my case being heard at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. It is the specialist forum for sports-related matters. The High Court is significantly more expensive, time-consuming and does not have the experience or expertise in dealing with sports-related disputes.
“The World Taekwondo Federation is currently conducting a review of British Taekwondo’s selection process. It has already publicly stated that the selection process has brought the sport into disrepute due to a perceived lack of transparency.
“I welcome this investigation but I am hugely disappointed that the WTF has now indicated that it will not finalise the review and findings in time for London 2012. This is particularly disappointing as the BOA had reserved the right to reconsider its decision to ratify Great Britain Taekwondo’s nomination in light of the WTF’s findings.
“I do hope that the WTF will consider after the Games a new automatic selection criteria for the Top 10 athletes in the World Rankings in each weight category for future Olympics and World Championships.
“I also hope that UK Sport and the BOA act to resolve the long-term issues that have been revealed by my case.
“In the best interests of Team GB, I have decided not to take up the offer to be first reserve for London 2012. Clearly it would be hugely difficult for me to work with their coaches in view of what has happened in the last few weeks. I wish all of the athletes the very best of luck - that includes Lutalo Muhammad.
“I love my country. I love my sport. I don’t think that I could have done any more in terms of my performance. I will sit down with my team though and consider my best way forward in the coming months.
“I have nothing more to say at this stage. I will not be doing any media interviews. The Olympics, and especially a home Olympics, would have been the pinnacle of my career. I feel totally devastated.”
Cook’s decision to prepare for London outside the system was vindicated by results, but that was not enough to persuade the governing body to select him despite his ranking, and his Olympic experience. He finished fifth in the Beijing Games.
The final straw in Cook’s battle came when the British Olympics Association said it would not willingly go to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to have its decision to ratify Muhammad’s selection examined.
Senior figures at the BOA were deeply sceptical of the process and motives of GB Taekwondo’s selection panel and ordered a fresh selection process and a full explanation of how the decision was reached.
Ultimately however the BOA did not feel it could step in and order Cook’s selection, despite the fact that ultimately the team is entered for the Olympics in its name.
Cook’s camp challenged that decision and proposed taking the decision to CAS. The BOA refused, leaving the High Court as the only option, one that Cook has now decided not to pursue.
The decision means that Cook may have competed for the last time in a British team. A successful Games for the selected taekwondo athletes will make it highly unlikely that he is selected again, prematurely ending the international aspirations of one of Britain’s most promising athletes.
The BOA vowed to address the issues raised in the Cook case, describing him as “a champion”.
“It says a great deal about the character of Aaron Cook that, in announcing his decision today, he went out of his way to wish all of the competitors in his sport the very best for success. That’s just one of the reasons why Aaron Cook is, and always will be, a champion,” it said in a statement.
“Aaron has our commitment that the BOA will continue to work with our Athletes’ Commission, the National Governing Bodies and other sport stakeholders to make certain selection procedures across all Olympic sports are fully understood by everyone involved, are applied fairly and consistently, and have the best interests of athletes and their sport at heart.”
London 2012: Michael Phelps is aiming to repeat Beijing haul - BBC News
Michael Phelps, who won eight gold medals at the Beijing Olympics, has confirmed he intends to compete in the same eight events in London.
He has already qualified for three of the five individual events and will be automatic choice in the three relays.
After qualifying in the 400m medley and 200m freestyle, he has now secured his place in the 200m butterfly.
Allison Schmitt has also gained qualification for London 2012 in both the 200m and 400m freestyle.
Phelps, 26, needs just three more medals of any colour in London to surpass the overall record of 18 held by Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina.
He still has the 200m medley and 100m butterfly qualification to secure but is confident of doing so at the qualification event in Omaha.
After a difficult day one, where he was pushed all the way by Ryan Lochte, he eased to victory in the 200m butterfly, finishing well clear of second placed Tyler Clary, with a time of 53.65, the fastest time in the world this year. Clary's frantic finish means he will join Phelps in London.
"Today was the best my stroke has felt throughout the whole meet," Phelps said. "I'm pleased, but I think I need to go faster if I want to win that at the Olympics."
The battle for medals between Phelps and Lochte is set to be one of the most anticipated in the pool. They will go head to head in the 200m and 400m individual medley and the 200m freestyle.
Schmitt , who trains with the same team as Phelps in North Baltimore, will also be on the plane to London after she swam the fastest times in the world since synthetic suits were banned at the end of 2009, meaning she will be one of the favourites this summer.
"I was just going for it and trying to hold on," she told reporters after winning the 200m final on Thursday.
"I'm surprised, but I've been having a great training year, and I've been preparing for this. I still have another race, the 100m free, then I'm ready for London."
By winning the 200m, the 22-year-old, who won relay bronze medal in Beijing, automatically booked herself a spot in the 4x200m relay and could add the 4x100m relay if she finishes in the top six.
Limited-run Corsa has a potent new engine - This is Derbyshire
VAUXHALL'S new limited-run Black Edition Corsa adds a new engine to the range in a punchy 1.4-litre turbocharged power plant that makes it one of the most powerful examples of the supermini on the market.
The new engine produces 120PS and maximum torque of 175Nm, starting at 1,750rpm, giving the latest addition to the Corsa range a top speed of 121mph with 60mph reached from rest in 9.7 seconds.
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Vauxhall Corsa Black Edition gains a raft of sporty styling features, including body-coloured front and rear spoilers.
Fuel consumption is 51.4mpg and CO2 emissions are as low as 129g/km thanks to a stop/start system.
Initially, production of the model is being limited to 500 examples with these coming in both three and five-door form.
The Black Edition is based on the Corsa Limited Edition and along with the 120PS engine gains a black logo bar and new 17-inch diamond-cut alloy wheels.
The car attracts attention thanks to a raft of sporty styling features, including body-coloured front and rear spoilers, side sills, and a rear lower skirt that turn it into one of the sleekest Corsas yet.
Its looks are enhanced further with front fog lights, dark style headlights and tail lights, plus dark-tinted rearside windows.
Inside, sports seats, a leather-covered steering wheel, sports pedals, silver interior seat stitching and matt chrome air vent surrounds set the Black Edition apart from all other Corsas.
For those who wish to go even more upmarket, Vauxhall is offering a broad range of innovative extras not offered by competitors, including a Touch and Connect infotainment system, climate control and adaptive forward lighting.
The Black Edition is on sale now priced at £15,995 for the three-door version and £16,425 for the five-door model.
Pentagon Vauxhall represents the brand in Derby and Burton. Its Derby showroom is at Pentagon Island.
London 2012 Festival events to run throughout the summer - Yahoo! Eurosport
The evening of Thursday 21st June saw five major events taking place across the UK as the London 2012 Festival got underway.
Cultural extravaganzas in Birmingham, Cumbria, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales saw international artists and local communities come together to kick off the twelve-week, nationwide programme of festivals and arts events coinciding with the London 2012 Olympics.
The London 2012 Festival comprises events involving over 25,000 artists from each of the 204 Olympic nations, and will reach every corner of the UK. It is hoped that 10 million people will take part in the 12,000 planned events, contributing to the once-in-a-generation cultural celebration.
The opening night saw some typically fierce British weather hamper some of the outdoor events, but the festival goers braved the elements in their raincoats, umbrellas and wellington boots.
At Scotland’s stunning Stirling Castle the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra visiting from Venezuela were joined by hundreds of children from the nearby estate of Raploch, to perform a concert overseen by world-renowned conductor Gustavo Dudamel.
In Cumbria, a spectacular fireworks display lit up the stormy skies above Lake Windermere, as French arts company Les Commandos Percu put on their ‘On the Night Shift’ pyrotechnic and percussion show. The event coincided with the arrival of the Olympic Torch in the northern country.
Meanwhile, at the National Botanic Garden of Wales, in Carmarthen, artist Jeremy Deller started his 12 week tour with his amazing ‘bouncy castle’ style inflatable Stonehenge sculpture. The life size replica of Wiltshire’s prehistoric monument proved a popular hit with the locals who took the unusual opportunity to bounce off the inflatable stones.
In Northern Ireland, a star-studded concert hosted by actor Jude Law saw Pixie Lott, Imelda May, Newton Faulkner and the Guillemots, performing at Ebrington Square, marking the countdown to Global Truce on Peace Day this September.
Unfortunately, in Birmingham, a free outdoor spectacle in Victoria Square with acrobats, professional dancers and live music onboard the giant ship The Voyage was cancelled due to heavy rain. Nonetheless, Birmingham’s Symphony Orchestra performed the UK premiere of Jonathan Harvey's choral work Weltethos, in the Midlands city’s Symphony Hall.
Other events over the summer of the Olympics will see artist Martin Creed mark the opening of the Games on 27 July by encouraging mass participation in a three minute bell ring from 8:12 am, a performance by comedian and musician Tim Minchin at Cornwall’s Eden Project in Cornwall and a Tate Britain exhibition of Olympic and Paralympic posters.
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Congratulations - even though the play-offs are a complete joke. A disgruntled Bristol supporter.
- cheri, Bristol, 29/6/2012 19:31
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