Asia

The Chinese city of Qingdao has signed an agreement to continue as a host port and team partner of the biennial Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.

Chinese financial services company Everbright Securities has said its investment arm will form the country’s first sports-focused public-private partnership fund in an effort to capitalise on China’s push to develop its sports market.

Professional and financial services company Deloitte has launched a Southeast Asian division of its sports business practice in Singapore.

A working group met for the first time today (Tuesday) to put forward venue options for a number of sports in a bid to cut costs for Tokyo’s staging of the 2020 summer Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The potential relocation of rowing and canoeing events at the 2020 summer Olympic Games to a different venue in Japan has been called into question after the Tokyo metropolitan government stated that the redevelopment of the proposed site in Miyagi Prefecture might not be completed in time.

Malaysia’s Sepang International Circuit (SIC) will continue to stage a MotoGP event until at least 2021 after a new five-year agreement was reached between local organisers and Dorna Sports, the motorcycle-racing series’ commercial rights-holder.

The PGA Tour golf organisation has furthered its commitment to bolstering its presence in the Asian market by opening a new office in Tokyo, while the body has also confirmed that the 2018 edition of the AT&T Byron Nelson tournament will now be played at Trinity Forest Golf Club in Dallas, Texas.

WME-IMG has appointed Michael Ma, a former executive of the NBA basketball league, as chief executive of its China subsidiary, as part of an effort to drive the agency’s growth in the country.

Port Adelaide has claimed a piece of history for the Australian Football League (AFL) with the announcement that it will stage a Premiership game against the Gold Coast Suns in Shanghai, China next year.

The Infront Sports & Media agency has partnered with the Asian Athletics Association to establish a preparatory committee for a new continental marathon competition.

The Ladies Professional Golf Association has signed a 10-year deal with Alisports that will result in the division of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba owning an LPGA tournament held annually in mainland China.

World Rugby has today (Wednesday) revealed details of a major 10-year investment programme worth $100m (€90.9m) with the Alisports division of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba which aims to propel China into a significant player in the global rugby union market.

Will the China Horse Club succeed where other ventures have failed and take the sport into the mainstream in China? Ryan Herman reports.

Malaysia is considering ending the hosting of its annual Formula One grand prix after its contract ends in 2018 due to falling ticket sales and TV viewership.

World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) president Craig Reedie has called on Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to step up the country’s financial contribution to the fight against doping ahead of Tokyo’s staging of the 2020 summer Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The PGA Tour golf organisation has partnered with global lifestyle company the CJ Corporation to launch a new event in South Korea.