Auckland and Melbourne share major honours at Ultimate Sports Cities Awards

While London retained its title as 'Ultimate Sport City', Auckland and Melbourne have gained significant recognition at the Ultimate Sports Cities Awards with Auckland winning in four categories and Melbourne in three.

Auckland was a top performer at the awards, winning four awards. The New Zealand city picked up Best (medium population) Sports City, Best Legacy, Best Security and Best Homegrown Event for the Auckland NRL Nines rugby league competition.

Melbourne also picked up honours for Best (large population) Sports City, Best Venues and Best Event Strategy at a ceremony at the SportAccord International Convention in Belek, Turkey.

While London received the top prize, the 2012 Olympic Games host city also received titles in hosting, public sports interest and marketing and branding categories.

The SportBusiness International Ultimate Sports Cities Awards are the internationally recognised and longest established rankings of the world’s top sports hosts. They have been held every two years since 2006.

The full list of this morning's winners is:

Ultimate Sports City (overall winner) - LONDON

Best Sports City (extra large population) – NEW YORK

Best Sports City (large population) - MELBOURNE

Best Sports City (medium population) - AUCKLAND

Best Sports City (small population) - CALGARY

Best Hosting - LONDON

Best Venues - MELBOURNE

Best Transportation - BERLIN

Best Accommodation - ISTANBUL

Best Event Strategy - MELBOURNE

Best Legacy - AUCKLAND

Best Quality of Life - VANCOUVER

Best Public Sports Interest - LONDON

Best Security - AUCKLAND

Best Marketing and Branding - LONDON

Best Home-Grown Event - AUCKLAND NRL NINES

Best Newcomer – KAZAN

26th March 2014 - AUCKLAND AND MELBOURNE AMONG FIVE CITIES SHORTLISTED FOR ULTIMATE SPORTS CITY AWARD