Fresh from breaking the pole vault world record in Glasgow, 20-year-old superstar Mondo Duplantis will return to the UK this summer to compete at the Müller Anniversary Games in London on Sunday 5^th July 2020 of the Müller Anniversary Games weekend.

One of the biggest young stars in world athletics, Duplantis’ rise to prominence has come on the back of a number of major medal wins and record-breaking feats over the course of the last few years.

Most recently, Duplantis historically revised the pole vault world record twice in the space of one week, first with a clearance at 6.17m in Torun, Poland on February 8 before then going 1cm better at the Müller Indoor Grand Prix Glasgow with 6.18m on February 15.

During his breakthrough as a senior athlete, Duplantis backed up becoming the youngest world finalist for some 34 years at London 2017 – his last outing in the British capital - with European gold in 2018, the winning height a hugely notable one given the mark of 6.05m saw him set a huge personal best as well as revise his own under-20 world record.

World silver followed last October in Doha following a gripping shoot-out for a first global senior gold. Now with the world record his own, Duplantis is targeting an eye-catching performance in London this July as part of his preparation for a debut Olympic Games come Tokyo 2020.

The news follows previous announcements confirming the attendance of Britain’s reigning world champions Katarina Johnson-Thompson (coach: Bertrand Valcin; club: Liverpool Harriers) and Dina Asher-Smith (John Blackie; Blackheath & Bromley) at this year’s event.

World record holder and multi-global medallist, Mondo Duplantis spoke of his excitement ahead of returning to London: “I’m hugely excited to be heading back to the UK to compete at the Müller Anniversary Games this summer. The memories I have of vaulting in the UK – from competing at my first world championships in front of tens of thousands of people to breaking the world record in Glasgow a few weeks ago – are unforgettable, so to have another opportunity to return to the UK is huge for me.”

“Both of my previous performances in London and Glasgow owed so much to the support of the British crowd, and I’ll definitely be looking to feed off that support and produce an amazing performance in London come July.”

Major Events Director for British Athletics, Cherry Alexander OBE said: “We’re incredibly excited to have Mondo heading back to the UK. At just 20, his world-record breaking performance in Glasgow has cemented him as one of the most exciting athletes to watch in the world both at current and for years to come, so the British fans are in for a real treat when he heads to London this summer.

“Having Mondo confirmed on the bill for the Müller Anniversary Games alongside two of our homegrown heroines in Kat and Dina is magnificent news for the event, and is ultimately part of our ambition and commitment to building the best fields in the world, for the best fans in the world.”

The Müller Anniversary Games is the 10^th stop on the 2020 WANDA Diamond League calendar, which also features Gateshead’s Müller Grand Prix on 16 August.

The English Premier League will be inducting its first two Hall of Fame names this month with a shortlist of nominees to be announced for future inclusion, voted for by fans.

It will be separate to the English Football Hall of Fame, which has existed since 2002 at the National Football Museum.

The Premier League version will recognise players of "exceptional skill and talent" from home and worldwide who have played in the game’s top tier since it began in 1992 – with candidates who have retired and whose Premier League career comes into consideration.

Each inductee will receive a personalised medallion, engraved with the year of their induction.

Premier League Chief Executive, Richard Masters, said: "The Premier League Hall of Fame is reserved for the very best in the game and will be an occasion for our fans around the world to look back over the years and help us celebrate some truly exceptional playing careers."

The likes of legends such as former Manchester United star, Ryan Giggs, Arsenal’s Thierry Henry and former Southampton, Blackburn and Newcastle United’s record-breaking striker, Alan Shearer were the first suggested names on the list of world-class players to have graced the Premier League.

Now, the very best of the best will receive a new highly exclusive honour after the Premier League’s announcement of its first Hall of Fame.

Of course, though, the millions of fans of clubs who have graced the Premier League since its inception, in 1992, have their own individual to put forward.

"Membership of the Premier League Hall of Fame will be the highest individual honor awarded to players by the League," it said in a statement.

As a footnote; on what would have been his 59th birthday - former Norwich City, Nottingham Forest and England striker, Justin Fashanu, was inducted into the National Football Museum's Hall of Fame.

• United by Birmingham 2022 is bringing together community projects in support of the Games
• 12 West Midlands organisations have been awarded the United by Birmingham 2022 status
• Gold medal winning, Ama Agbeze, named as the official United by Birmingham 2022 ambassador

4^th March 2020:  TODAY, the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games is launching its new community programme, United by Birmingham 2022. 

The United by Birmingham 2022 programme is bringing together ambitious and innovative West Midlands based community projects that share a common purpose with the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

United by Birmingham 2022 is recognising grass-roots organisations that are having a positive impact on the communities they serve across a diverse range of subjects. This includes, but is not limited to, projects that aim to improve skills, offer training, provide volunteering resources, benefit the environment, encourage participation in sport, or deliver youth engagement activities.

To mark today’s launch, over 40 representatives from 12 local charities and social enterprises are coming together in Oozells Square, Brindley Place in Birmingham city centre to take part in a 5km United by Birmingham 2022 run.   The run is being led by Team England gold-medal-winning athlete and United by Birmingham 2022 official ambassador, Ama Agbeze. It is facilitated by GoodGym, a UK-wide community of runners that combines getting fit with doing good deeds.  Together, representatives from the founding 12 United by Birmingham 2022 projects will run along Birmingham’s canals, carrying out a litter pick to ensure that the canal network is clean.  

The United by Birmingham 2022 programme is now open for not-for-profit organisations to apply to. Projects will be awarded the United by Birmingham 2022 status if they can demonstrate how they share a common purpose with Birmingham 2022. The programme will enable projects that align with the ambitions of Birmingham 2022 to be recognised for the work they are doing and use the new community programme logo in their communications and at events to amplify their activity.

The United by Birmingham 2022 programme recognises non-commercial community projects that are aligned with the vision and mission of the Games. These are:

• To bring people together
• Improve health and wellbeing
• Help the region to grow and succeed
• Be a catalyst for change
• Put the region on the map.

The run will conclude at disability charity Sense’s TouchBase Pears centre in Selly Oak where the attendees will take part in a chair yoga session. Those who don’t run will join World Against Single Use Plastic (WASUP) on a litter pick.

The 12 founding projects of United by Birmingham 2022 programme are:

• Goodgym – Group Sessions - During group sessions, GoodGym members run to visit isolated, older people, to provide friendly contact and to help with practical tasks.
• The Prince’s Trust – Youth Summit 2021 – Using the United by Birmingham programme to support the 2021 Youth Summit, which hopes to increase engagement with young people across the region.
• Canal & River Trust – Community Activity and Wellbeing Programme - This programme provides free events and taster sessions in fishing, performing, running, walking, cycling and paddling and works with partners to ensure regular physical activity takes place. 

• EmployabilityUK - Inspiring Young Birmingham programme, which will recruit new volunteers and provide consistent training and online support for young people. 

• Sense, - Connecting communities programme which will help the Sense TouchBase Pears Centre become a centre of excellence for disability arts.
• Jericho Foundation – awarded for their Equiano project which helps raise awareness of their cause and encourages people to support their work
• Sport Birmingham – supporting the Daily Mile Commonwealth Challenge, to amplify their influence and encourage more people to take up this challenge. 
• Acorns Children’s Hospice, - for the Gift of Time programme which helps emphasise the urgency and immediacy of the need for communities to rally together for the greater good. 
• Bringing Hope, has been awarded the United by Birmingham mark for two projects – ‘Food Taste and Talk Pots’ and their ‘Sports and Talk Spot’ events
• Witton Lodge Community Association - has been awarded the United by Birmingham mark for their Perry Common Games events, to improve health, wellbeing and community relations in the local area. 
• World Against Single Use Plastic – Schools Engagement Canal clean-up programme, a project that helps to make the local environment better
• Compass Support -  sporting development programme, to promote and celebrate their intergenerational activities that reduce isolation and encourage an increase in physical activity. 

Nigel Huddleston, Minister for Sport, Tourism and Heritage, said:

"It is fantastic that the United by Birmingham 2022 community programme is launching today. On my visit to Birmingham and Sandwell last week I saw the real enthusiasm and excitement that is building towards 2022. This initiative presents a great opportunity for community organisations from across the West Midlands and beyond to connect with the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games and boost awareness of their projects.

“Improving the health and wellbeing of people of all ages is at the heart of our mission for the Games, so I am delighted that many of the founding projects for United by Birmingham 2022 will help to make this ambition become a reality.”

John Crabtree, Chair of Birmingham 2022, said: “United by Birmingham 2022 is a unique opportunity for us to team up with not-for-profit organisations who are doing amazing things in their communities, through projects that are aligned to our vision and mission for the Games. By working together, we hope to shine a light on each and every one of our United by Birmingham 2022 projects and empower them through the Games.

“Bringing our founding projects together to launch United by Birmingham 2022 shows the wonderful things that can be achieved by working together, and we hope to inspire more organisations to sign up to become a United by Birmingham 2022 project and benefit from the Games.”

Ama Agbeze, Team England athlete and Official United by Birmingham 2022 Ambassador said: “As a local person and proud ambassador for United by Birmingham 2022 I’ve loved being part of the launch and I am excited to spend time with the projects to learn more about what they do and unlock the ways that we can work together to achieve common goals as we prepare for Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.”

The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that will bring athletes, officials, spectators and local people together in a unique celebration of sport, culture and business, creating growth and positive change in Birmingham the wider West Midlands. 

For more information about United by Birmingham 2022 or to submit your project application please visit: www.birmingham2022.com/United

ENDS

For more information about the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, please contact:

Birmingham 2022

Sarah Dickson                         This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.          07494 671802

Children aged 11 and under in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland will no longer be taught to head footballs during training.

This comes as new Football Association guidelines for coaches also puts limits on how much heading older children should do.

The ruling follows Glasgow University research that showed former footballers were three-and-a-half times more likely to die from brain disease.

The English Football Association of Wales said its guidance for coaches on children heading the ball was currently under review with the findings being made available later this year.

In a joint announcement from the FA, Scottish FA and Irish FA, coaches were advised that there should be "no heading in training in the foundation phase" - which covers primary school children, or under-11 teams and below.

There are also new rules for age ranges up until 18, with headers being kept a "low priority" and gradually becoming more frequent in training until the age of 16.

There will be no changes to heading in youth matches, where the FA said headers are rare.

FA chief executive Mark Bullingham said: "This guidance is an evolution of our current guidelines and will help coaches and teachers to reduce and remove repetitive and unnecessary heading from youth football.

"It is a responsible development to our grassroots coaching without impacting the enjoyment that children of all ages take from playing the game."

An inquest into the death – in 2002 - of ex-West Bromwich Albion and England striker Jeff Astle found heading heavy leather footballs repeatedly contributed to trauma to his brain.

His daughter, Dawn Astle, who has campaigned for changes in rules over headers, said she was "pleased" with the ruling and that it was "sensible" following the research.

Published in October last year, the University of Glasgow study found that former professional footballers were more likely to die of degenerative brain disease - and five times more likely to die from Parkinson's disease.

There was no evidence in the study that linked incidences of the disease with heading the ball, but the FA said the new guidance had been issued to "mitigate against any potential risks".

Ms Astle added that there should now be guidelines for training for footballers aged 18 and over.

Wolverhampton Grand Theatre has announced that football legend, Paul Gascoigne, has joined the line-up of ‘A Tribute To Italia 90’, an evening of stories from the players of one of England’s most dramatic World Cup tournaments.

The evening will raise money for the Grand Theatre and The Steve Bull Foundation. 

Steve ‘Bully’ Bull will appear as part of the line up alongside Peter Shilton, Paul Parker, Dave Beasant and the newly announced Paul ‘Gazza’ Gascoigne. The evening will be hosted by Sky Sports’ Johnny Phillips.

Steve Bull said; “I love coming to the Grand Theatre, the shows they have on are absolutely unbelievable and I recommend anybody to come down.

“We are going to be reliving the 1990 World Cup, 30 years on! We might have a few more names to add yet, just wait and see! We’ll tell you loads of stories, see you there!”

From David Platt’s goal against Belgium, the extra time win against Cameroon, Gazza’s tears and that dramatic semi-final penalty shootout against West Germany.

Come Monday May 18, they surely will be discussing it all.

Qatar Airways have announce that it is the new Premium Partner and Official Airline Partner of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), France’s most successful football club, for the next three seasons.

The multi-Ligue 1 champion joins in the exclusive group of top global football clubs proudly supported by the world’s number one airline, including Italy’s AS Roma, Boca Juniors in Argentina and German club FC Bayern München.

Qatar Airways Senior Vice President Marketing and Corporate Communications, Ms. Salam Al Shawa, said: “We are thrilled to welcome the famous French club to our extensive sport sponsorship portfolio, and look forward to having them on board. In Paris Saint-Germain we have found a partner that shares our passion for innovation and we will work together to develop many exciting activities to engage with supporters and our global audience.”

PSG Chief Partnerships Officer, Marc Armstrong, added: “We are delighted to welcome Qatar Airways into the Paris Saint-Germain family as the Official Airline Partner of the club.

“This is another example of our strong desire to develop innovative partnerships with leading global brands and Qatar Airways is a natural choice for us as it shares our commitment to creating powerful connections with fans all over the world.”

The PSG partnership will also see Qatar Airways become Official Partner of the PSG handball and women’s football teams until 2022.

Qatar Airways have developed a wide range of global sports sponsorships, supporting top-level sporting events and some of the world’s biggest football clubs.

As official FIFA partner, Qatar Airways recently sponsored the FIFA Club World Cup Qatar 2019 and will sponsor the FIFA Club World Cup 2020 edition ahead of the FIFA World Cup

Qatar 2022.

Qatar Airways - the first Gulf carrier to join global airline alliance oneworld, - is also partner of CONMEBOL, the governing body for football in South America.

A multiple award-winning airline, Qatar Airways was named ‘World’s Best Airline’ by the 2019 World Airline Awards, managed by international air transport rating organisation Skytrax. It was also named ‘Best Airline in the Middle East’, ‘World’s Best Business Class’ and ‘Best Business Class Seat’, in recognition of its ground-breaking Business Class experience, Qsuite.

The world’s fastest-growing airline added several new destinations to its network last year, including Rabat, Morocco; Izmir, Turkey; Malta; Davao, Philippines; Lisbon, Portugal; Mogadishu, Somalia; Langkawi, Malaysia; and Gaborone, Botswana. The airline will add Santorini, Greece; Dubrovnik, Croatia; Osaka, Japan; Nur-Sultan and Almaty, Kazakhstan; Cebu, Philippines; Accra, Ghana; Trabzon, Turkey; Lyon, France; Luanda, Angola; and Siem Reap, Cambodia, to its extensive route network in 2020.