Police and Military to ensure security at Moscow's Youth Games

Some ten thousand police, military school students and soldiers will provide security for the International youth games between the CIS member-countries, the Baltic and the Russian regions which will be held in Moscow in June 15-23.

Special headquarters, charged with organization and coordination of the actions of all services and divisions have been set up in Moscow,

During the games venues will be inspected and monitored and spectators vehicles and luggage checked.

The Mayor of Moscow, Yuri Luzhkov, has invited IOC President Jacques Rogge, and former IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch to the games.

Mayor Luzhkov has said that the success of these games is very important for the future of sports in Moscow and Russia. Moscow is considering applying to bid for the 2012 Olympic Games.

Vladivostok to host regional Youth Games

The 9th Youth Games of the Sea of Japan will be held in in July in Vladivostok.

The Games will include badminton, football and judo for youth athletes from Japan, China, South Korea and Russia.

The Youth Games have been held annually since 1994.

Dominican Athletes may skip CAC Games

Andres Polimar, the president of the Track and Field Federation of the Dominican Republic, is frustrated and angry at the state of facilities in country and has threatened to skip this years Central American and Caribbean Games in El Salvador in November.

The track at Juan Pablo Duarte Olympic Center track has been under repair for years now, and not available for use. A grass track has been provided next to the stadium. Polimar has said, ""We need a synthetic track, we are not interested in the grass."

Some $1.2 million (Dominican) was promised by the Dominican Olympic Committee to allow Dominican athletes to train in Puerto Rico and Guatemala for up to two months, but the Track and Field Federation has not yet seen the money.

Polimar has stated that without the chance to prepare the Dominican Republic track and field athletes will not compete in the Central American Games.

Most of the support for sport in the Dominican Republic is currently going towards preparations for the 2003 Pan American Games.

Melbourne Commonwealth Games Committee at odd with Unions?

A brief report in Australia's Sunday Mail newspaper states that the Committee responsible for organizing the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne has said that building union demands for higher pay may make it impossible to pay for the games, and may add as much as $25 million AUS, to the cost of the village alone.

Representatives from the union have stated that the union's demands are reasonable given the circumstances.

Afghanistan Invited back to Asian Games

Afghanistan has been invited back by the Olympic Council of Asia to participate in the Asian Games in South Korea this year. Afghanistan last participated in the Asian Games in Hiroshima in 1994 and was suspended from participating in the Olympic Games in 2000 by the IOC because the country did not have a recognized Olympic Committee.

Jung Chung Il, deputy secretary general of the Asian Games organizing committee said Afghanistan would have until August 31 to submit entries for the games.

Cathy Freeman withdraws from Commonwealth Games

Australian 400 meter star Cathy Freeman will not be able to run in the Manchester Commonwealth Games this summer, choosing to spend time with her husband who is ill with cancer.

A Commonwealth Games medallist in 1994, and multiple world and Olympic medallist, Freeman took a well deserved year-long rest after winning the gold medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games.

Her planned comeback has been slowed by leg injuries. She was selected for Australia's 1600 meter relay team, and would have run the open 400 meter only if her health improved.

Meanwhile, British supports for the games and ticket sales within Britain have been brisk. With two months to go, 80 percent of the tickets for sale in Britain have been sold.    

Hamilton Commonwealth 2010 bid

Hamilton, Ontario, Canada has announced it will be pursuing the 2010 Commonwealth Games, with consultants and a committee looking into financing and the application process.

Hamilton was the very first host of the games in 1930, known then as the British Empire Games. In 1930, Bobby Robinson, the sports editor of Hamilton's newspaper, the Spectator, was a strong catalyst for having the games begun in Hamilton. The Hamilton Spectator newspaper is strongly behind the 2010 bid, with publisher Jagoda Pike named to lead the bid group.  

Pan American Sports Organization meetings

PASO, the Pan American Sports Organization held meetings in May in Kuala Lumpur as part of the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) meetings.

The 42 NOCs from North and South America talked about an ongoing series of coaching courses, in 28 sports, that are currently being held to improve the level of coaching expertise in the region. 30 courses have been held with some 130 more on the schedule up until the 2003 Pan American Games.

PASO NOCs representatives also discussed progress and plans for the Pan-American Games to be held in the Dominican Republic, and received presentations from Rio de Janeiro and San Antonio who are bidding for the 2007 Pan-American Games. 

Federation du Africaine Sport Universitaire

Abuja, Nigeria hosted the meetings of FASU, the Federation du Africaine Sport Universitaire, May 19-23. 

The meetings were held with the hopes of reenergizing African University Sport. Several decisions were made, including moving the headquarters of the organization to Abuja, electing new Executive Committee member and Algeria's Hassan Chikh as new President, and adopting new statutes for the organization.

The Nigerians also proposed that the next African University Games be held in Abuja in 2004.

Nigerian organizers implore private sector for support. 

The 8th All Africa Games Organizing Committee -COJA - has challenged the private sector to help with programs that would enhance youth and sports development in Nigeria. 

Executive Director, Dr. Amos Adamu, said private sector sponsorship of such projects would have direct bearing on the educational development and the enhancement of sporting potentials of the youths. 

Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has said that Nigeria's Government wants to privatize the new Abuja National Stadium and five existing Federal Government owned stadia in Nigeria. 

over the years government has been running the stadia at a great loss. Abubakar wants to let the private sector to have a shot at making the stadiums, "at least self-sustaining, if not profit making."

The other stadia are, Liberty Stadium, Ibadan; Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu; Ahmadu Bello Stadium, Kaduna; Tafawa Balewa Stadium, Bauchi and the National Stadium, Lagos. 

Meanwhile the Alliance for Democracy (AD) wants the national stadium now under construction in Abuja to be named after the late sports minister, Mr. Ishaya Aku. Mr. Aku died in an airliner crash early May in Kano. 

2003 Arab Games

The organizing committee of the 2003 Arab Games has set up a scientific commission that will organize seminars, colloquiums and round tables  on anti-doping sport medicine, the preparation of high level athletes and the use of new technologies of communication in sport. This commission will also study anthropometric profiles of Arab athletes in several sports.

ESPN to create yet another event: X Games Global Championship

ESPN, has announced the creation of another competition, the X Games Global Championship. The Games will be an annual event, held for teams based on six regions. (U.S., Europe, Canada, South America, Asia and Australia.) Summer and winter events, will be combined with separate sites for the seasonal sports linked by TV. Results from both venues will be combined for an overall team score. 

Sites under consideration are Atlanta's Georgia Dome, Orlando's Citrus Bowl and San Antonio's Alamo Dome for summer events, possible winter sites are Mammoth Mountain (Mammoth, Calif.) and Whistler Blackcomb (British Columbia, Canada). 

Site selections are expected to be finalized by the end of June, with proposed dates for the first competition in May, 2003.