Lisbon’s historic Patio de Gale has been selected to host the third edition of the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Star Awards on 9 December 2015. 

The 2015 ITTF Star Awards, which will recognize and celebrate table tennis star players and coaches, will be held immediately before ITTF World Tour Grand Finals, sponsored by GAC Group.

"The ITTF Star Awards has grown into a yearly event with great stature and an important date on the calendar for all of the world's top table tennis players,” said Steve Dainton, ITTF Marketing Director. 

“This year, we head to the beautiful city of Lisbon, in conjunction with the World Tour Grand Finals, to recognize the Stars of our sport for what will be a classical and elegant evening."

Interest in the sport is high in Portugal, with the national team having won gold medals at the TMS 2014 European Team Table Tennis Championships in Lisbon and the 2015 European Games in Baku.

Eight ITTF Star Awards will be handed out in Lisbon, with the ITTF Star Breakthrough being a new award for 2015, in addition to awards for: Male Table Tennis Star; Female Table Tennis Star (presented by Nittaku); Para Male Table Tennis Star (presented by Tinsue); Para Female Table Tennis Star (presented by Stag International); Table Tennis Star Point (presented by DHS); Table Tennis Star Coach (presented by Butterfly); Table Tennis Breakthrough Star; and Fair Play Star.

The Plasticity Forum will hold its fourth annual conference on 8 and 9 June in Cascais, on the outskirts of Lisbon, Portugal. The forum will bring together approximately 200 business leaders and experts to discuss innovative solutions to the growing plastic pollution problem facing land and marine environments.

A global event, The Plasticity Forum was launched in Rio de Janeiro, and has since been held in Hong Kong and New York, with the upcoming conference marking its first European event. 

The venue for this year's event will be the Pousada de Cascais - Cidadela Historic Hotel, an old fort facing the Atlantic Ocean that has been converted into a boutique resort. The event will also include a dinner for all attendees at The Presidential Palace in Cascais.

A recent study from the University of Georgia's College of Engineering found between 4.8 and 12.7 million metric tons of plastic entered the ocean in 2010 from people living within 50 kilometers of the coastline. That year, a total of 275 million metric tons of plastic waste was generated in those 192 coastal countries. Globally, some 280 million tons of plastic is produced annually, yet estimates suggest that only 10 percent is actually recycled. 

Capturing this waste stream presents a significant and untapped business opportunity, as does the redesign of packaging and the thought process around waste creation. The Plasticity Forum presents ideas and opens up discussions on how to harness this material in new ways.

"Companies are beginning to realize that environmental sustainability has a positive impact not only on the communities they serve, but also their own bottom line," said Doug Woodring, founder of Plasticity. “Managing the plastic ecosystem through recycling, reuse and closed-loop methods can make our planet healthier while also creating efficiency in corporate supply chains.”

[Source: SIGA] The Sport Integrity Global Alliance (SIGA) today announced a stellar line-up of global sport experts for the upcoming SIGA Sport Integrity Forum in Lisbon, Portugal on 26 July.

The second edition of the Forum will bring together more than 100 leaders from the world of sport, government, finance, business and civil society to address the most pressing governance and integrity issues facing the sports industry.

Following the huge success of the first ever Sport Integrity Forum in London earlier this year, this edition will feature lively, interactive and highly-informed panel discussions from the following influencers and experts:

Cindy McCain - Founder, the McCain Institute

Michael Robichaud - Senior Vice President, Global Sponsorships, MasterCard

David Luna - Senior Director, US State Department / Chairman, OECD Task Force on Countering Illicit Trade

Hans Erik Tuijt - Director, Global Sponsorships, Heineken

Michael Hershman - Group CEO, ICSS

AG Burnett - Chairman, Nevada Gaming Authority

Brian Lewis - President, Caribbean Association of National Olympic Committees (CANOC)

Pedro Machado - Partner, PwC

Joao Paulo Almeida - Director General, National Olympic Committee of Portugal

Densign White - CEO, International Mix Martial Arts Federation (IMMAF)

Ian Smith - Commissioner, eSports Integrity Coalition (ESIC)

The SIGA Council said:

“Following our first ever Forum earlier this year, it is clear that urgent reform and collaboration is needed more than ever to tackle the serious governance and integrity issues facing sport. There is a huge amount of work to be done. And it is for this very reason that we are again bringing together high-profile, leading experts to collaborate and share intelligence, new innovations and solutions to benefit the entire global sports movement.”

Additional panellists and keynote speakers will be added to the highly influential line-up that will highlight the issues and challenges ahead, sparking lively cutting-edge discussions on the following five big themes:

Good Governance in Sport: From Rhetoric to Effective Reforms;

Following the Money! The Pathway into Financial Integrity in Sport;

Sports Betting Integrity: Global Solutions to Global Threats;

Youth Development and Protection of Minors in Sport; and

Sports Business, Brand Value and Reputation.

The SIGA General Assembly will take place the day after the Forum at Palácio Foz, Lisbon, Portugal on 27 July.