UK Sport Reveals Rio Funding; New Taekwondo Grand Prix; 2014 Judo World Champs

Rio Funding from UK Sport

British athletes are expected to win more medals at the Rio 2016 Olympics than they did in London, as the country’s high-performance sport agency announced $560 million in funding for the next four years.

Basketball, handball, table tennis and wrestling were the hard-luck losers receiving no funding from UK Sport, while volleyball’s 400,000 British Pounds goes exclusively to women’s beach volleyball.

Sports such as athletics, cycling, equestrian and rowing where British athletes had strong showings at the Games received funding boosts.

A statement from UK Sport says "42 summer Olympic and Paralympic sports with credible medal potential in 2016 or 2020 will receive funding for the Rio cycle."

The amount available is an 11 percent increase from the period leading up to the London Olympics. According to UK Sport, the goal is to be the first country to surpass its medal haul following the Games hosted on home soil.

"We're very confident we're supporting every creditable medal shot for 2016," UK Sport CEO Liz Nicholl said.

"It has not been easy making the decisions or sharing them with sports today. I think some of these sports have got to concentrate on increasing participation base, improving their talent in the UK, improving their competition structure before they can compete with confidence for medals at a world level.

"London 2012 was just the beginning, not the end, for Olympic and Paralympic sport in this country," added Sue Campbell, UK Sport chair. "We plan to continue to make this funding work as hard as it can to help our best athletes achieve medal success at the highest level; to make this nation as proud as they did this summer and to inspire the next generation."

Taekwondo Launches Grand Prix Series

President Chungwon Choue says the World Taekwondo Federation’s Grand Prix Series will satisfy a "real appetite" for the sport worldwide.

WTF unveiled plans Tuesday for the four-stage, four-continent competition, which will launch in 2014 with 256 athletes taking part. The top eight men and women will qualify for an annual Grand Prix Final.

"The Olympic Games in London triggered a surge in international interest in taekwondo," says Choue.

"The WTF World Taekwondo Grand Prix Series is an excellent opportunity for athletes to take part in an international competition of this magnitude in between Olympic Games and World Championships."

WTF Secretary General Jean-Marie Ayer adds: "We see it as a virtuous circle: higher quality, higher profile competitions will help us deliver better return on investment for existing sponsors and attract new ones; more sponsorship revenue will help us to continue raising the quality and profile of our competitions, and so on. This is a very exciting moment for the global taekwondo family."

Test events for the Grand Prix Series will begin in 2013 following ratification at a recent meeting of the WTF Council in Aruba.

Chelyabinsk to Host 2014 Judo World Champs

Chelyabinsk, Russia, the capital of South Ural, will host the 2014 Judo World Championships.

Marius Vizer, president of the IJF, signed an agreement with local organizers on Monday securing the arrangement. Russia last hosted a judo world championship in 1983. Chelyabinsk hosted the 2012 European Judo Championships.

"Russia is not only one of the leading countries of the world but it is also one of the leading countries in judo," Vizer said on Monday.

Chelyabinsk governor Mikhail Yurevich said the announcement builds on the city’s sporting reputation.

"Chelyabinsk is already acquainted to many athletes and the city will welcome them as old friends," he said. "WC-2014 would fix the status of Chelyabinsk as the capital of Russian judo."

On hand for the ceremony was Russian gold medalist Mansur Isaev, who was given an award by Vizer for his performance in London.

Austrian Olympic Official Cleared of Wrongdoing

Austrian ski federation president Peter Schröcksnadel was reelected as vice president of the Austrian Olympic Committee (OOC) in November, continuing a string of good news as he was cleared of wrongdoing in a doping case from the 2006 Olympics.

Schröcksnadel and Austrian Ski Federation (OSV) sport director Markus Gandler were found not guilty in an Italian court over charges that the cross-country and biathlon teams had blood-doping supplies in their accommodations during the Turin Games.

"The ÖSV has acted responsibly and correctly ever since," Schröcksnadel said in a statement in response to judge Alessandra Danieli’s decision. "Our conscience is clear. The ski federation has always been very committed to fighting doping."

Gandler added: "It took some time but we could prove that no criminal offenses were committed."

According to the statement, Schröcksnadel is looking forward to the 2014 Olympics and upcoming skiing world championships in Schladming "with a laid back attitude."

Lance Loses Another Title

The ignominy for Lance Armstrong continues to grow as he was stripped of his 2003 BBC Overseas Sport Personality of the Year Award on Monday.

He was not listed in the previous winners section of Sunday’s award ceremony, and the BBC was quoted as saying in a statement to The Associated Press the decision was made "following the UCI's decision to strip Lance Armstrong of his Tour de France titles."

Olympics Boost Britain

A survey conducted by the British Council finds the Olympics boosted foreign opinion of Britain.

The findings from 8,000 adults in 11 key overseas economies, including the U.S., China, India and Russia found that respondents overwhelmingly thought more of Britain as a result of the Games.

Sixty-four percent said the U.K. did a good job organizing the Olympics (compared with only 6 percent who disagree), with 44 percent believing that the U.K. has a greater influence over world affairs as a result and only 3 percent disagreeing.

One-third of those polled, 34 percent, said they are "more likely" to consider visiting the U.K. due the Games.

"These results show just what we can do when Team GB pulls together," said James Worne, British Council director of strategy.

"The challenge now is to stay on top of the world in 2013. Without a huge global event like the Olympics next year, we need to keep on finding smart new ways to share our soft power assets: English, our education system, our vibrant arts scene and our entrepreneurial spirit to name but a few."

The British Council promotes relationships between the U.K. and foreign countries.

Written by Ed Hula III and Matthew Grayson.

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