Shorts: England Golf, Sheffield Wednesday, London Marathon

England Golf, the governing body for amateur golf in England, has teamed up with Newcastle United Women to encourage and empower women and girls to get involved in the sport of golf.

To launch the new collaboration, last week England Golf hosted members of Newcastle United Women for a golf taster day at Close House. The saw members of Newcastle United Women try the sport in a comfortable and fun environment via a driving workshop and par 3 competition.

Lauren Spray, Women and Girls Manager at England Golf, said, “We are incredibly excited to be joining forces with Newcastle United Women’s Football Club. This collaboration symbolizes our commitment to making golf a sport for everyone and reaching out to women and girls who may not have considered golf as a recreational choice before, including professionals from other crossover sports. It was great to see so many of the Newcastle United W.F.C willingly getting involved in the sport, and in return, reaping both the mental and physical benefits.”

Grace Donnelly, Club Captain of Newcastle United Women, added, “The team were proud to be part of this important initiative with England Golf and everybody had a great time learning new skills. We know how powerful sport can be to bring people together and the team bonding through golf was brilliant. A lot of the team had never played golf before but absolutely loved it. Most people get into sport at a young age but we learnt that you can start golf at any age and I think a few of the team will be back to give it another go soon!”

Sheffield Wednesday’s Chief Operating Officer Liam Dooley has left Hillsborough to take up the position of Chief Executive Officer with League One Shrewsbury Town.

Liam joined the Owls in April 2019 and has been in the role of COO since May 2021.

General Manager Alastair Wilson, who has worked side by side at Hillsborough with Liam throughout his tenure, now assumes sole leadership of the commercial and operational arm of the club.

Liam Dooley, Chief Executive Officer of Shrewsbury Town, said, “It has been an honour and a privilege to represent the club and I would like to thank the chairman, the staff and fans for all their fantastic support throughout.

“I am excited to take up my new challenge as CEO with Shrewsbury and wish everyone at Sheffield Wednesday all the very best.”

London Marathon Events has contracted carbon removals experts CUR8 to remove 280 tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in 2023.

As a signatory to the UN Sport for Climate Action Framework, London Marathon Events has committed to achieving Net Zero by 2040 but is looking to accelerate that target to 2030.

Kate Chapman, Head of Sustainability for London Marathon Events, said, “We are committed to both inspiring activity and also innovation in mass participation event sustainability, a cause important to both our participants and our aims as a company. As a part of our commitment to sustainability, we have reached this landmark moment of partnering with CUR8 and for the first time will now be able to remove some of the carbon dioxide emissions from our events, with an aim of increasing the amount we remove in 2024. This work is critical in achieving our Net Zero goals.”

Bristol Bears has announced Granger Reis as its women’s matchday sponsor for the 2023/24 Allianz Premiership Women’s Rugby and Cup campaigns. 

The doubled sponsorship of the 2023/24 season will see the international executive search firm support home games for Dave Ward’s side, with increased visibility around the team’s home ground and the development of collaborative content that examines at how team dynamics support success. 

Sarah Farrar, Chief Commercial Officer of Bristol Sport, said, “Bears Women’s team is made up of a wealth of talent and different skillset that blend together to achieve success, mirroring the role Granger Reis plays in sourcing the very best talent for their clients to drive influential change in the world of business.

“Granger Reis’ continued support both on and off the field is invaluable and we look forward to working closely with them throughout the season.”

Jamie Page, Managing Partner at Granger Reis, added, “The Bears came so close in the Allianz Premier 15s last season, and we were all extremely impressed with their professionalism and commitment. 

“It is an exciting time for the women’s game, and we will be cheering the Bears on wholeheartedly for the 2023/24 stretch – we know they’ve got what it takes to lift that trophy.” 

The Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) has announced Machineseeker as the title sponsor of the 2023 European championship for the first time.

Previously Machineseeker has been a co-sponsor of the European Championship and shirt sponsor of three-time World Champion Michael Van Gerwen

Matt Porter, Chief Executive of PDC commented, “We are delighted to announce the new sponsorship with Machineseeker who have had an involvement with darts in the past and we look forward to working together on this exciting new partnership to help the brand further connect with our engaged audience of fans right across Europe.”

Sven Schmidt, CMO of the Machineseeker Group, added, “The European Championship is the second most important darts event globally after the World Darts Championship. We are honoured to become the title sponsor. With Machineseeker, Maschinensucher, Werktuigen and TruckScout24 all our core brands will be featured.”

The Machineseeker European Championship will see the top 32 players from the 2023 European Tour Order of Merit competing for £500,000 in prize money.

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