| News
- Junary - June 2002
Barry Bonds ties Mark McGwire for fifth place on
all-time home
run list
(May 24) Barry Bonds went deep for the 583rd
time in his career on Wednesday night to tie Mark McGwire
for fifth place on the all-time home run list. He now stands
just four homers away from reaching Frank Robinson’s
586 and is 77 away from tying his godfather, Willie Mays.
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EPDTour and EuroPro to cooperate
(May 23) The EPDTour and the EuroPro Tour
based in England have agreed to a cooperation between the
two PGA European Tour 3rd level tours. This relationship further
develops the opportunities that both tours offer young, ambitious
pros in gaining valuable competitive experience. Through the
new partnership qualified EPDTour players will receive automatic
entry into selected events throughout the EuroPro 2002 season.
As an immediate effect of the relationship, the EPDTour's
current top ranked player Richard Porter of Germany along
with Anthony Grenier of France and Anders Rasmussen of Denmark
are competing in the Quinta da Marinha Oitavos Golfe Open
in Lisbon, Portugal this week. The event is being televised
in 64 different countries. Plans for future combined tournaments
are currently in progress to further expand both developmental
tours.
The Europro Tour offers total prize money of 1.5 million Euros
and consists of eighteen professional golf events, culminating
with the Tour Championship Final at Parque da Floresta on
the Western Algarve, Portugal in October 2002.
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Major League Baseball U.S. television viewership is up
(May 16) More than 52 million viewers watched
Major League Baseball national telecasts in April 2002 –
a 31% percent increase from April 2001. Via its national telecast
partners – ESPN, ESPN2 and TBS – 52,950,000 viewers
watched Major League Baseball games in April 2002, almost
13 million more viewers than April 2001 (40,520,000). Additionally,
in the 12-17 teen demographic, national Major League Baseball
telecasts in April 2002 posted a 14% increase in viewership
(2,102,000 in 2002 vs. 1,846,000 in 2001).
Having almost 13 million more viewers watch Major League
Baseball on national television demonstrates that baseball’s
fan base is strong and growing stronger.
Figures are from Universal McCann analysis of Nielsen Media
Research data, representing aggregate game-by-game delivery
of national cable for April 2002 versus April 2001.
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ITMS Sports signs Burger King as new partner for MLB
(May 1) ITMS Sports and Burger King have agreed to
a sponsorship deal for Major League Baseball (MLB) and its
programs in Germany. The cooperation focuses on the promotion
of the "Play Ball!" programs, a grassroots initiative
of Major League Baseball in Germany. Various promotional campaigns
and integrated communication activities surrounding Play Ball!
and its three youth initiatives the "Play Ball! School
program", the "Play Ball! Roadshow", and the
"Play Ball! League" will be part of the cooperation.
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German MLB school traumatized by horrifying event
(April 27) Major League Baseball (MLB) and the German
Baseball and Softball Federation (DBV) expressed their condolences
for the victims of the shooting at the Gutenberg Gymnasium
in Erfurt last week. "We were devastated by the news
from Erfurt. The Gutenberg Gymnasium has been an active partner
in our youth initiatives for many years and our thoughts are
with them at this moment," said Stephanie Vogel, ITMS
Sports' Account Manager for MLB's Youth Development Programs.
The Gutenberg Gymnasium has been part of MLB's grassroots
programs in Germany for three years and one of its students,
Marco Faustmann, was the National Champion of the Pitch, Hit
& Run Competition in the year 2000.
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MLB re-positions its Youth Programs in Germany
(April 22) Starting this season, Major League Baseball
(MLB) will present its grassroots programs under the new,
comprehensive term "Play Ball!". The renaming process
coincides with a re-structuring of the program elements. The
program will emphasize fun instead of competition and make
the playing aspect the primary focus of the grassroots initiatives.
The Play Ball! program includes the "Play Ball! School
program" (formerly known as Pitch, Hit & Run), the
"Play Ball! Roadshow" and the "Play Ball! League!".
These initiatives are organized and managed by ITMS Sports
for MLB in cooperation with the German Baseball and Softball
Federation (DBV).
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EPDTour High Flyer of the Month Award
(April 15) Each month, the most successful member achieving
the highest winnings, through regular EPDTour events in that
specific month, will be named the EPDTour's High Flyer of
the Month, presented by US Airways. US Airways will reward
the 'High Flyer of the Month' with one transatlantic round-trip
ticket to any one if its 205 worldwide destinations (travel
restrictions apply).
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Smashnova is back
(January 13) Jon Wertheim who covers tennis
for Sports Illustrated took note of the Israeli player’s
new hyphenated name by noting the following in his weekly
column: “Speaking of comebacks -- either this was a
typo or the prayers of many have been answered -- it appears
that "Smashnova" is back. According to my sports
section, Anna Smashnova-Pistolesi is playing in this week’s
adidas International in Sydney. Sure it's a mouthful but it's
terrific that the best name in tennis (at least now that Sabine
Hack has retired) graces us again.”
Smashnova-Pistolesi beat Myriam Casanova 6-3, 6-3 to advance
to the second round on Tuesday.
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