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This just in from the Welsh Rugby Union:

Six Nations Tickets Released to Public

Warren Gatland's Wales face three home matches at the Millennium Stadium in the 2010 RBS 6 Nations Championship and selected tickets for each of the games will be released on general sale for the first time at 12.00 noon today (Monday, 18 January).

The Welsh Rugby Union's member clubs and debenture holders were offered first refusal on tickets for the games against Scotland (13 February), France (26 February) and Italy (20 March) in Cardiff, before over 27,000 supporters snapped up tickets via pre-registration at the WRU website.

This is the last chance for fans to get hold of tickets for the Millennium Stadium games with a choice of tickets to the final game versus Italy and single tickets only remaining for the clashes with Scotland and France.

The final round of tickets on offer to the general public is strictly limited, so fans are encouraged to act fast and visit the Welsh Rugby Union website and the Cardiff Arms store today (Monday) to avoid disappointment.

Gatland, who names his squad for the 2010 campaign at 12.55pm this afternoon on www.wru.co.uk, has moved to encourage fans who would not normally think of attending games.

"There is sometimes a myth out there that the Wales team is unreachable to certain fans and that tickets are impossible to get hold of," said Gatland.

"It is true that they are in short supply but today is a great opportunity for those people who have always wanted to come and watch, but haven't laid their hands on a ticket, to pick up the phone and experience what the Millennium Stadium has to offer.

"We are a tight knit group of people in the Wales camp, we have tried to create an environment where there is intense competition for places, it's difficult to win a cap and when you are capped it is because you deserve it.

"We will be keeping it tight again when we name the squad this afternoon and there shouldn't be too many surprises, the fans should know what to expect from this Wales team by now, they know we will give it our all and that we are worth backing.

"A full-house at the Millennium Stadium is a something not to be missed, by fans, players or management."

The remaining tickets, released at the Cardiff Arms Store (Westgate Street, Cardiff), the website (www.wru.co.uk) and by telephone (08442777888), will be priced at £59, £65 and £69.

Groups of fans wanting to get behind Warren Gatland's Wales will also be encouraged by the news that hospitality packages still remain for all games from £249 (plus vat) and further information can be accessed via www.millenniumstadium.com

The Bar 10 package (at the price above) includes a ticket for Wales v Italy in one of our VIP areas along with the official event programme and a limited edition gift, a fully-stocked bar and a guest speaker from the world of rugby.

Tickets will also be available from £5 for Wales U20s, U18s and Women's home matches from midday today at www.ticketweb.co.uk or 08444 771000 and at the Cardiff Arms store.

Danny Jordaan, chief executive at the organising committee for this year’s FIFA World Cup, has appealed to local fans in South Africa to buy more tickets.
“This will be the first time in World Cup history that the host nation [is] not topping the ticket sales list,” Jordaan told Soccerex Business Daily.
He said South Africa is not even among the 10 nations who bought the largest number of tickets, even though special prices have been set for local fans.
“England at this stage will have more supporters at their country’s games than will be at Bafana matches.”
Less than 100,000 of 3.1 million tickets available have been purchased by fans from the six African countries qualified for the tournament.
Jordaan said he will be soon travelling to the African Cup of Nations in Angola to speak to officials of those countries.

United States bid chiefs believe their selection of 18 host cities will give it the boost required to land the FIFA World Cup in either 2018 or 2022.

The USA Bid Committee on Tuesday night announced the list of cities that will be included in its official bid book to be presented to world governing body FIFA on May 14.

Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Diego, Seattle, Tampa and Washington DC all made the final list. Among the 11 cities eliminated from the final round of the selection process were four that hosted games during the last World Cup on American soil in 1994 - Chicago, Detroit, Orlando and San Francisco.

“Today our hopes of becoming a host nation are strengthened many fold by the announcement of the 18 cities we will submit to FIFA on May 14,” US Bid chairman and president of US Soccer Sunil Gulati said.

“These 18 cities share outstanding leadership with a vision and understanding of what a FIFA World Cup would mean to the United States, along with how well we can play the role of host to visitors from throughout the world.”

“The United States is equipped and ready to offer FIFA the opportunity to host a passionate and successful World Cup where fans, teams, partners and media can experience the beautiful game at its highest level while allowing the world soccer family to focus on the utmost mission of the game that benefits the world as a whole.”

FIFA is expected to announce its final decision on the hosts for both 2018 and 2022 at the end of this year on December 2, after technical delegations have made site visits to all the cities of every hopeful host nation, including England's 2018 bid, this September.

The USA bid's executive director David Downs said the exclusion of prominent cities like Chicago, which hosted the opening game at USA '94, was a sign of the game's development in America over the last 16 years.

“We consider it a meaningful indicator of the significant growth of soccer in this country that we can put forth such a technically sound bid without four cities that served as hosts for the first FIFA World Cup in the United States in 1994,” Downs said. “The emergence of passionate followings for the sport and state-of-the-art venues throughout the country has strengthened our ability to put together a truly national bid to host the FIFA World Cup in 2018 or 2022.”

Tickets for Leinster's Heineken Cup round 5 game against Brive in Dublin's Royal Dublin Society this Saturday at 6pm are on sale now.

More than 15,000 tickets have already been sold for this crucial game and tickets are available from the Leinster Rugby Store Donnybrook, Spar Donnybrook and Ticketmaster Outlets across Ireland.

Leinster head coach Michael Cheika named his squad to face the Frech on Tuesday.

Shane Horgan, who became only the second Leinster player to pass the 25-try mark in Europe in the recent 39-7 victory over the Scarlets - is named in the extended panel alongside Brian O'Driscoll who was the first Leinster player to reach the landmark.

The Ireland duo, who alongside Rob Kearney and Gordon D'Arcy were also try-scorers last time out in the round 4 Heineken Cup victory, are named in the squad alongside the likes of Nathan Hines, Isa Nacewa and CJ van der Linde.

Cian Healy and Jonathan Sexton could both be in line to make their 50th appearances for the province should they feature in Saturday's game.

The team is expected to be announced on Friday.

Casual observers of the track and field scene may be under the illusion that the world's best athletes will be taking the year off as the sport goes through a 'down' year with no outdoor world championships or Olympics to focus on.

A brief glance at the line up being assembled for the 103rd edition of the legendary Millrose Games at Madison Square Garden in New York City later this month suggests otherwise.

The Millrose Games, scene of so many classic indoor track and field performances in its storied history, kicks off the American indoor season on its tight 11-lap mile track with the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Doha, Qatar, on March 12-14 the target in the sights of so many of those competing in the Big Apple on Friday night, January 29.

The highlight of the meet is the men's Wanamaker Mile and the Garden will see Bernard Lagat attempt to make history as he bids for a record eighth title in the race.

America's former double world champion at 1500m and 5000m, Lagat will have to defeat the man who outsprinted him for silver at the 2009 IAAF World Championships 1500m.
 
The 2007 world champion finished third at the 2009 World Championship in Berlin behind Deresse Mekonnen of Ethiopia in a furious final sprint. On January 29, Lagat will have an opportunity to seek revenge against Mekonnen, as well as Millrose history.

Lagat won his seventh Wanamaker Mile title at last year's Millrose Games, which tied all-time Irish legend and "Chariman of the Boards" Eamonn Coghlan for the most wins ever in that prestigious event.

The women's 1,500m also will feature a strong field, headlined by USA Indoor champion and Olympian Anna Pierce (formerly Willard).

Pierce won last year at the London Grand Prix, finished second in Zurich and ended the season ranked #6 in the world and #3 in the U.S. for 1,500m by Track & Field News. She was a leader in a phenomenal year for American women's middle-distance runners. The former steeplechase American record holder dipped under 4:00 for 1,500m and 2:00 for 800m, posting a U.S.-leading 3:59.38 for the longer distance and the second-fastest time for the 800 (1:58.80). In 2008, Pierce was tenth at the Beijing Olympic Games in 9:25.63.
Challenging Pierce at Millrose will be Sally Kipyego of Kenya, who won nine individual NCAA (US Colelge) titles while at Texas Tech University, equaling the all-time record set by Suzy Favor Hamilton.

Two-time Olympic Games silver medalist Terrence Trammell, reigning world 110m hurdles champion Ryan Brathwaite, Jamaican record holder Dwight Thomas and 2004 World Indoor champion Perdita Felicien will headline a world-class gathering of hurdlers. 

Trammell returns to the Garden after nearly pulling off a unique double at last year's Millrose Games. Trammell dominated the men's  60m hurdles by crossing the finish line first in 7.45 seconds, which was the second-fastest time in the world that year, and just .02 off Allen Johnson's Millrose Games record.

Trammell, who won his third World Outdoor Championships 110m hurdles silver medal last year in Berlin, Germany, posted the fastest 60m hurdles time of 2009 at the Reebok Boston Indoor Games with his time of 7.37 seconds en route to winning his second Visa Championship Series title.

Also at last year's Millrose Games, after enduring three false starts, 2008 U.S. indoor champion Michael Rodgers enjoyed a memorable Millrose Games debut in denying Trammell a double victory by winning the Visa men's 60m in a personal-best time of 6.51, which was the third-fastest time in the world that season. Trammell finished as the runner-up in 6.54.

Trammell will face a stiff challenge from 2009 World Outdoor 110m hurdles champion Ryan Brathwaite of Barbados. Despite hitting the first hurdle in the World Champs final last year, Brathwaite kept it together and crossed the finish line first in 13.14 seconds, providing his nation with its first ever medal at a World Championships.  Trammell finished as the runner-up, a mere one-hundredth of a second behind the victor.
Brathwaite, who also won outdoors last year in Brussels, Lucerne, Zagreb and at the World Athletics Final, finished the season ranked #2 in the world by Track & Field News. Trammell won 110m races last year at the New York Grand Prix, at the adidas Track Classic and in Shanghai before ending the campaign ranked #3 globally and #1 in the U.S. by T&FN.
Not to be overlooked in the men's race is Jamaica's Dwight Thomas, who was a finalist at last year's World Outdoor Championships, won at Zurich and Rieti, and finished third at the World Athletics Final before being ranked #6 in the world at season's end by T&FN.

2004 World Indoor champion Perdita Felicien of Canada will headline the women's 60m hurdles following another successful season in 2009 where she was a finalist at the World Outdoor Championships, finished second at the London Grand Prix and placed fifth at the World Athletics Final. The 2007 World Outdoor Championships 100m hurdles silver medalist, Felicien ended the 2009 season ranked #6 in the world by T&FN.
Leading the American charge in the women's race will be two-time USA 100m hurdles champion Ginnie Powell, who finished second at the 2009 USA Outdoor Championships, and placed sixth later that summer at the World Outdoor Championships. Powell ended the 2009 campaign ranked #9 in the world and #4 in the U.S. by T&FN.

For ticket information for the 103rd Millrose Games visit: http://ny.milesplit.us/articles/31594.