19-20/2013 On the way home straight?
Dear readers,
The year seems to have only just started, with the European spring apparently still undecided about whether it wants to assume its role of ushering in the new this year, but for many of us the season is already coming to a close again – the sport season, that is. American football’s Super Bowl XLVII was held in February, Australian cricket’s Sheffield Shield final in March, and May brings us to the closing stages of most of the European football leagues as well as to the final of the Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket tournament.
July will then see Japan’s baseball champion being crowned in the final between the victors of the Central and Pacific leagues. You’d be forgiven for thinking that summer brings a natural break to everyday business. But that’s an illusion. Just as there’s no respite in today’s business world, there’s also never a time when sportsmen all across the globe are enjoying their post-season drink. The Brazilian football season starts in January for some teams, in May for others, and continues right through to December. Where is the famous Brazilian laissezfaire in that? The Formula 1 world racing championship runs from March to November. And after all that? Why, shortly after the season finishes – preseason training starts!
My conclusion from all this is that in our age of globalisation, sport – just as they say about New York – never sleeps. The same applies to the transport and logistics industry’s heavylift and project cargo segment. You’ll once again find a plethora of interesting analyses and case studies from the sector in our special supplement. If you want to get into the subject in even more depth than the 72 pages in our Special provide, then why not meet up with us at Breakbulk Europe in Antwerp (13–16 May)?
We’d enjoy having a chat with you there,
Christian Doepgen
Editor-in-chief