Tag: worlds

Posted on by

Extreme Headlines Connectivity at World’s Largest Music and Motocross Event

Extreme Headlines Connectivity at World’s Largest Music and Motocross Event

LICHTENVOORDE, Netherlands–()–ZWARTE CROSS FESTIVAL — Extreme Networks, Inc. (Nasdaq: EXTR), a leader in cloud networking, today announced it will play a significant role in powering the wired and wireless connectivity for the world-famous music, arts and motocross festival, Zwarte Cross, taking place from July 14th -17th 2022 in the Netherlands. The event features more than 250 bands and 34 stages spread across 165 hectares, making it the largest motocross event in the world.

Extreme is working alongside Indicium B.V. and Palo Alto Networks to deliver a highly secure, highly connected experience for both festival organizers and attendees. Extreme’s Wi-Fi 6 access points will provide high-bandwidth connectivity to applications and services, including the 2022 Zwarte Cross festival app. Event organizers will manage the entire network through ExtremeCloud™ IQ, making it simple to proactively pinpoint and troubleshoot network issues. Additionally, using ExtremeAnalytics™, Zwarte Cross will gain better insights into operational efficiencies and attendee preferences, which will help to better customize and improve the festival experience.

Extreme Fabric Connect™, Fabric Attach and ExtremeControl™ will allow the operational teams at the festival to securely connect all of their staff, IoT devices and services. Fabric Connect provides a scalable, resilient network to deploy and operate the 100 IP surveillance cameras across the festival.

Executive Perspectives

Ronnie Degen, Co-founder at Feestfabriek AKG BV at Zwarte Cross

“The network is the invisible headline act of the Zwarte Cross festival – it has to perform in order to provide an optimal experience for our attendees, performers and staff. Festival attendees expect fluid Wi-Fi to capture, share and engage content while at our event. Our IT staff needs to feel confident that the network is secure, functional and that they have real-time visibility into performance. That is why we chose Extreme, Palo Alto and Indicium B.V to partner with us to ensure this event was equipped in a way that made the experience engaging, secure and memorable.”

Patrick DeJong, SE Manager, Palo Alto Networks Netherlands

“Zwarte Cross is one of the most unique festivals in the world, combining music, sport and theatre. We’ve partnered with Extreme to ensure secure wired and wireless connectivity across the entire festival. With more than 220,000 visitors expected over the several days, it’s critical that both festivalgoers and organizers can embrace technology with confidence without concern of breaches and other security issues.”

Henk Bretveld, BENELUX Country Manager at Extreme Networks

“Zwarte Cross is one of the most dynamic events of the year, and because of the magnitude of the event and the number of attendees, connectivity and network performance are paramount to the overall experience. Extreme excels at providing consistent, scalable and secure experiences in high density environments. We’re working closely with the tech team at Zwarte Cross to ensure that we are pushing the boundaries of what is possible, looking at new ways to leverage the network to improve the fan experience and making it easy to access and act upon analytics to optimize operations.”

Hans Nolen, Director at Indicium B.V.

“As one of the world’s leading festivals, Zwarte Cross is always looking to improve experiences. Indicium B.V., Extreme Networks and Zwarte Cross have worked closely to improve networking across the festival for the past seven years, and thanks to the new implementations, 2022 is set to be the most advanced event so far.”

About Extreme Networks

Extreme Networks, Inc. (EXTR) creates effortless networking experiences that enable all of us to advance. We push the boundaries of technology leveraging the powers of machine learning, artificial intelligence, analytics, and automation. Over 50,000 customers globally trust our end-to-end, cloud-driven networking solutions and rely on our top-rated services and support to accelerate their digital transformation efforts and deliver progress like never before. For more information, visit Extreme’s website at https://www.extremenetworks.com/ or follow us on LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.

Extreme Networks, ExtremeAnalytics, ExtremeCloud, Extreme Fabric Connect and the Extreme Networks logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Extreme Networks, Inc. in the United States and other countries. Other trademarks shown herein are the property of their respective owners.

Posted on by

Anita Alvarez to miss out of team event after fainting at worlds

Anita Alvarez to miss out of team event after fainting at worlds

TORONTO –


Team USA synchronized swimmer Anita Alvarez will not compete at the team free event as she recovers after fainting and sinking to the bottom of the pool during a solo routine, the International swimming federation (FINA) announced Friday.


“The health and safety of athletes must always come first,” the swimming federation said in a statement on Friday.


“While FINA understands why this decision will have been disappointing to the athlete, it was a decision that was made with her best interests in mind.”


Her coach Andrea Fuentes is being praised for her quick thinking in rescuing Alvarez, after the Olympian was spotted sinking during her routine on Wednesday.


“It was her best performance ever, she just pushed through her limits and she found them,” Fuentes said in an Instagram post; adding that the 26-year-old swimmer was told by doctors she would be fine.

 


Alvarez has reposted a story made by her coach showing footage of her having dinner with her teammates with the caption “nothing but love for my team this week and always.”


The decision to bar the athlete from competing was made alongside the Team USA doctor, team leader and President of the USA Artistic Swimming.


“FINA is delighted that Anita Alvarez has already made such a strong recovery, and looks forward to seeing her in competition again soon,” the statement read. 

Posted on by

UCI confirms gravel worlds in Italy in October, four new events on Women’s WorldTour

UCI confirms gravel worlds in Italy in October, four new events on Women's WorldTour

“], “filter”: { “nextExceptions”: “img, blockquote, div”, “nextContainsExceptions”: “img, blockquote”} }”>

Don’t miss a moment from Paris-Roubaix and Unbound Gravel, to the Giro d’Italia, Tour de France, Vuelta a España, and everything in between when you
>”,”name”:”in-content-cta”,”type”:”link”}}”>join Outside+.

The first UCI-sanctioned world championship for the rainbow stripes in gravel will be in Italy in October.

The UCI confirmed Thursday the Veneto region in the northeast Italy will host the first UCI gravel worlds October 8-9.

Italy will also host the UCI’s gravel worlds in 2023. The host cities will be announced later, officials said.

Four new events on Women’s WorldTour

The UCI also confirmed four new events on the Women’s WorldTour.

Four new events will join in 2023: The Women’s Santos Tour Down Under, which had UCI ProSeries status in 2020 then was cancelled in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the UAE Tour, a new event which joins the existing men’s competition, the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, which moves from UCI ProSeries status to UCI Women’s WorldTour status, and the Tour de Suisse, also moving from UCI ProSeries status to UCI Women’s WorldTour status.

Gree-Tour of Guangxi canceled

Races at the Gree-Tour of Guangxi in October are canceled for 2022.

The race was scheduled for October 13-18, and it marks the third year in a row the event is canceled due to the world pandemic. A women’s race is also canceled.

That means the final UCI’s final men’s WorldTour event will be Il Lombardia. The 2022 UCI Women’s WorldTour will end on 15 October, the last day of the Tour of Chongming Island, China, which is still on the schedule.

The UCI Management Committee also confirmed that the date of the end of the 2022 road season remains 18 October. This is the date of the last day of the Tour de Langkawi (UCI ProSeries), which will take place in Malaysia from October 11-18.

With the men’s WorldTour licenses up for grabs, the Langkawi tour could see a stellar field of teams desperate to chase points.

RideLondon Classique put on notice

The UCI put organizers of the RideLondon Classique (Great Britain) on notice after not providing required live TV coverage of each stage, but only of the last stage.

This constitutes a breach of the UCI Regulations and of the specifications that every organizer of the UCI Women’s WorldTour is required to respect, the UCI said Thursday.

The event’s place on the 2023 calendar is conditional to the presentation of firm commitments concerning the live TV broadcasting of all the stages.

In the meantime, the Management Committee has taken the decision to register the RideLondon Classique in the UCI ProSeries class for the 2023 season.

For the UCI, daily live TV coverage of the UCI Women’s WorldTour events “is fundamental to ensure its continued international development,” a statement read. A final decision on the status of this race will be taken at the UCI Management Committee meeting in September.

Posted on by

Lancaster’s MacKinnon preparing for heavy events worlds in Moncton

A 28-pound weight for distance event practice throw. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network

Publishing date:

May 30, 2022  •  18 minutes ago  •  3 minute read  •  Join the conversation

Lee MacKinnon with his 17-pound practice stone, found on a beach in Nova Scotia during a vacation. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network
Lee MacKinnon with his 17-pound practice stone, found on a beach in Nova Scotia during a vacation. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network Photo by Todd Hambleton /Todd Hambleton/Standard-Freeholder

MAXVILLE — The tossing of the caber, the hammer throw and all of those other Scottish heavy events are coming up soon.

Very soon, for Lancaster’s Lee MacKinnon.

The long-time competitor at the Glengarry Highland Games each mid-summer has also been a regular on the world stage, and in 2022 the event comes early, June 17-19 in New Brunswick.

MacKinnon, 59, will compete for the seventh time, at the Masters World Championships, this year part of the Greater Moncton Highland Games and Scottish Festival.

“This is the earliest in the year I’ve ever been,” said MacKinnon, who’s attended previous events in some places that would be considered a bit more exotic than Moncton, including Hafnarfjörður in Iceland, twice in Inverness, Scotland, Stuttgart, Germany, and, well, not-quite glamorous Buffalo, N.Y.

MacKinnon first qualified for the worlds in 2009, and the last time he attended was quite a while ago, in November of 2019, at an event held in Tucson, Ariz.

You only need one guess as to why it’s been so long between competitions, the 2020 masters in Ireland being cancelled, the 2021 games in Moncton postponed a year. With no Highland Games events to attend in Maxville the last two years – or anywhere in Canada for that matter – MacKinnon, like so many of his fellow competitors, is on the comeback trail.

And that trail started at the recently-shuttered Physical Limits gym in Cornwall, where MacKinnon this past winter hit the weights and cardio rooms most mornings.

“Those workouts in the gym will help,” MacKinnon said, looking ahead to the test of strength and technique in Atlantic Canada that’s now just a couple of weeks away.

  1. Heading back to the trig for the next throw. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network

    Heading back to the trig for the next throw. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network Photo by Todd Hambleton /Todd Hambleton/Standard-Freeholder

  2. Lee MacKinnon getting into proper position at the wooden trig. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network

    Lee MacKinnon getting into proper position at the wooden trig. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network Photo by Todd Hambleton /Todd Hambleton/Standard-Freeholder

  3. Some of the tools of the trade, including hammer boots that ensure good footing for the throw. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network

    Some of the tools of the trade, including hammer boots that ensure good footing for the throw. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network Photo by Todd Hambleton /Todd Hambleton/Standard-Freeholder

  4. Lee MacKinnon with his 17-pound practice stone, found on a beach in Nova Scotia during a vacation. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network

    Lee MacKinnon with his 17-pound practice stone, found on a beach in Nova Scotia during a vacation. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network Photo by Todd Hambleton /Todd Hambleton/Standard-Freeholder

  5. The practice stone that Lee MacKinnon says is the perfect size and shape, takes flight. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network

    The practice stone that Lee MacKinnon says is the perfect size and shape, takes flight. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network Photo by Todd Hambleton /Todd Hambleton/Standard-Freeholder

  6. Lee MacKinnon getting into the Scottish heavy events swing of things at a training session in Maxville. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network

    Lee MacKinnon getting into the Scottish heavy events swing of things at a training session in Maxville. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network Photo by Todd Hambleton /Todd Hambleton/Standard-Freeholder

  7. The start of a 28-pound weight for distance event practice throw. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network

    The start of a 28-pound weight for distance event practice throw. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network Photo by Todd Hambleton /Todd Hambleton/Standard-Freeholder

  8. A 28-pound weight for distance event practice throw. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network

    A 28-pound weight for distance event practice throw. Photo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network Photo by Todd Hambleton /Todd Hambleton/Standard-Freeholder

When conditions allowed for outdoor training in early May, MacKinnon, a retired school teacher, began his throwing all over the place, including with some local competitors, and at his dad’s farm north of Alexandria, and in Maxville on the infield at the home of what will be the 73rd Glengarry Highland Games, July 29-30.

“All I need is 100 feet of cut grass – nothing I throw is going to go any further than that,” MacKinnon said with a smile.

Twice a week, somewhere in Glengarry, he sets up his wooden trig, and does several dozen throws, for about two hours. One day he sticks to four of the heavy events, the other day MacKinnon focuses on the other four.

He’s a big, strong guy at 230 pounds, but that’s considered undersized in this sport, where some of his competitors weigh as much as 290 pounds – or more. So in a competition where technique is a big part of success, technique is critical for MacKinnon.

“It’s not just about brute strength,” he said. “I have to have the technique down pat.”

His roots in strength sports go back to the late-1980s, and what would be 10 years of powerlifting competitions that included a Canadian bronze medal win in 1994. In 1997, he switched over to Scottish heavy events, which was about the same time that amateurs could compete with the pros at Highland Games meets, and MacKinnon vividly remembers his first competition being in Haliburton, Ont.

MacKinnon enjoyed it, and had success as an amateur, in 2000 in Maxville breaking the sheaf toss world record of 27 feet with a heave that soared 32 feet.

He’d often compete in a dozen games across North America each year, and when he becoming a dad in 1999, MacKinnon decided to turn pro and slow down a bit on all the travel. That was the plan at least, but that first year he still attended 10 different competitions – “but at least I was bringing home a paycheque,” MacKinnon said.

When MacKinnon turned 40, the master class was being developed, and he’d turn his attention to that category, and ultimately become a world traveller in it. His best result at the worlds came in Buffalo, when he finished fifth out of 10 athletes in his age category.

“I’d love to be on the podium (with a top-three result),” MacKinnon said, but he knows that’ll be a tall order in Moncton, being 59 and in the 55-60 age class.

But MacKinnon plans on staying in the game as long as he can, and has designs on qualifying for the 2023 worlds in the Netherlands, when he’ll be 60.

“I’d like to get to 10 (worlds) – if I can stay (physically) intact,” he said, adding with a laugh, “I guess that eventually it’s not who can throw the farthest, it’s who’s left to throw.”

thambleton@postmedia.com

twitter.com/FreeholderTodd

Comments

Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion and encourage all readers to share their views on our articles. Comments may take up to an hour for moderation before appearing on the site. We ask you to keep your comments relevant and respectful. We have enabled email notifications—you will now receive an email if you receive a reply to your comment, there is an update to a comment thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information and details on how to adjust your email settings.

Posted on by

Saudi league contacts world’s top amateurs to play in events

Saudi league contacts world’s top amateurs to play in events

After its efforts to lure the top professionals in the world backfired, the new Saudi-funded startup league is going after the world’s best amateurs.

According to a Telegraph report, the top six players in the World Amateur Golf Ranking have been extended one-year invites to compete in all eight events of this year’s inaugural LIV Golf Invitational Series, which begins next month in London. It is unclear when the invitations were sent out and which players were in the top six at the time.

“We did invite several amateurs as part of our mission to develop the next generation of golf talent,” a LIV spokesperson told the Telegraph. “They can stay amateur or turn pro.”

GolfChannel.com has confirmed that at least two of the current top six amateurs have been contacted by LIV Golf, but further details could not be disclosed.

The report adds that such amateurs would have the opportunity to earn guaranteed paydays of $840,000 total for the first seven events, the equivalent of finishing last in each, and the chance to compete for $4 million winner’s checks and percentages of the $90 million team prize pool.

However, the report also mentions that amateurs cannot earn prize money in PGA Tour and DP World Tour events because of those tours’ specific policies, which is not completely accurate. Even new rules regarding name, image and likeness, as well as the USGA’s rules of amateur status, stipulate that amateurs cannot earn prize money. And currently, there are NCAA-eligibility hurdles for international players in obtaining NIL deals, which would be one way for LIV Golf to financially compensate current amateurs.


BY Ryan Lavner


 — 

Lee Westwood confirmed he has asked the PGA and DP World tours for a conflicting-event release to play in the first LIV event next month.

Of the six players in the latest WAGR, updated Wednesday morning, four of them play college golf and only one is expected to turn professional after the NCAA Championship this June. So, it’s assumed that any acceptance of prize money at these LIV events would cause such player to forfeit his amateur status and, in some cases, his NCAA eligibility.

The report also notes that a spokesperson said the league “would allow amateurs quickly to change their status and earn unprecedented sums to kick-start their careers,” and the amateurs would also be extended Asian Tour membership.