Kentucky-based Bionic Gloves and PowerBilt Golf have agreed to sponsor professional golf in their home state by becoming platinum partners of the Kentucky PGA for 2013.

As platinum partners, both Bionic and PowerBilt will have major presences at KPGA tournaments and events throughout the year. PowerBilt is the title sponsor of the 18th Annual Kaiser Cup, hosted April 1-2. The Kaiser Cup is a Pro vs. Assistant Pro tournament at Belterra Golf Club, drawing in the top qualifying Pro’s and Assistant Pro’s from all over the state. It is named after the late Bill Kaiser, a three-time Kentucky Open champion and renowned GM of PowerBilt, which, like Bionic, is a division of the Hillerich and Bradsby Co.

Bionic is a title sponsor, along with Monterey Club and Bette & Court, of the Pro-Pro Championship at Audubon Country Club on May 28. Bionic and PowerBilt will co-sponsor the Mega Pro-Am Championship Tournament at Wildwood Country Club on June 10.

“We are very proud to partner with the Kentucky PGA, because we are neighbors here in the Derby City,” said Larry Edlin, Vice President of Global Sales. “This is the first year we have been a platinum partner, and we’re honored to support such a prominent local organization that brings great prestige to Kentucky golf.”

Polaris Industries Inc has joined General Tire and a host of dedicated sponsors in support of “The Great American Off-Road Race” – The 2013 General Tire Mint 400 Presented by Polaris.

Polaris is a global sales leader in off-road vehicles, and its RZR line is the leader in innovation in sport UTV design worldwide. Based in Medina, Minnesota, Polaris has been manufacturing vehicles for nearly 60 years and is the preferred UTV platform for desert off-road racing. 

“We are thrilled to have Polaris as the presenting sponsor for the 2013 Mint 400,” said Mint 400 CEO Matt Martelli . “The UTV Class has exploded in growth over the past few years because they are affordable to campaign and virtually race-ready from the showroom floor. You can literally go buy a Polaris RZR from a dealer – and with a few modifications be out racing the next weekend! It’s really exciting to watch people get into these vehicles and then become die-hard off-road race fans!”

“The Mint 400 is a legendary race. I raced it myself last year as a co-pilot and it was brutal! I can’t wait to tackle it this year as a driver. We are not just employees at Polaris, we are enthusiasts. After getting introduced to off-road racing through our relationship with the Jagged X Team, I was hooked,” commented Craig Scanlon , general manager, Recreational Off-Road Vehicles for Polaris.

To help capitalize on the newly-formed partnership with Polaris, The Mint 400 has named UTV Underground.com as the official Mint 400 UTV Class media outlet. They will provide daily updates of the Mint 400 UTV festivities and racing, including expansive coverage of all Polaris racing teams. Photo galleries and articles, as well as post-race video clips will be shared with UTV enthusiasts across The Mint 400 and UTV Underground social media networks.

British wetsuit manufacturer Huub has announced that Olympic gold medallist Alistair Brownlee, and and ITU World Champion Jonathan Brownlee, view will be wearing their wetsuits for the next four years.

Alistair and Jonny recently signed a deal to wear Huub wetsuits for the next four years through to the 2016 Games in Rio, ambulance Brazil.

Both Alistair and Jonny will be wearing Huub’s top of the range Archimedes 4:4 wetsuit designed by swim scientist Huub Toussaint, wetsuit guru Dean Jackson and Swim Smooth’s Adam Young and Paul Newsome. Alistair will make his first appearance in Huub colours at the Abu Dhabi International Triathlon on March 2 and is expected to wear Huub’s SKN-1 swimskin because of the warm water temperatures.

American Ethanol announced its plans to enhance its partnership with Richard Childress Racing and driver Austin Dillon for the 2013 NASCAR season.

Dillon will race the No. 33 American Ethanol Chevrolet in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Michigan International Speedway on June 16 and will drive a RCR-fielded entry in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series at Eldora Speedway on July 24 with an American Ethanol paint scheme.

“American Ethanol is extremely pleased to once again partner with Austin Dillon, Richard Childress and the entire RCR team to help promote a sustainable homegrown American fuel that is better for our environment, reduces our dependence on foreign oil and creates jobs right here in the U.S., while revitalizing rural economies across America,” said Tom Buis, CEO of Growth Energy.

“We want to show the people coast-to-coast there is a great alternative to imported oil and our association with NASCAR and RCR is doing that extremely well,” said Jon Holzfaster, a Paxton, NE farmer and chairman of the National Corn Growers Association’s NASCAR Advisory Committee. “Ethanol is also responsible for bringing a rural renaissance from Main Street to the family farm.”

American Ethanol will also serve as an associate sponsor for Dillon’s No. 3 Chevrolet for the full 2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series season and as an associate sponsor for Dillon’s limited 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule.

“It feels good to be able to help spread the news about American Ethanol and encourage every American to run the fuel of the future, American Ethanol, in their personal vehicles,” said Dillon. “If American Ethanol can withstand the rigors of NASCAR, it can withstand everyday driving. Homegrown biofuels like American Ethanol have stepped up to help our nation’s economy, and are proving to be a better fuel. I am proud to wear the American Ethanol colors in NASCAR and I hope I can bring them to Victory Lane in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in 2013.”

Global business advisory, FTI Consulting has extended its sponsorship of the Professional Cricketers’ Association’s Most Valuable Player Rankings.

FTI has put pen to paper on a six-figure deal for the next two years following a successful partnership with the PCA and ECB.

The FTI MVPs is a ranking system which analyses the performances of England internationals and their counterparts in county cricket on a like-for-like basis.

The new deal follows a recent collaboration between FTI Consulting and the ECB at the National Cricket Performance Centre in Loughborough.

Consultants from the company worked closely with Michael Bourne, the ECB’s Head of Science and Medicine, to analyse the data produced by the FTI MVP rankings.

This provided insights which the Performance Analysis team could build into their overall knowledge database to support various England teams across the game’s different formats.

PCA assistant chief executive Jason Ratcliffe said: “We’re delighted that FTI Consulting has renewed their partnership with us for another two years and very much look forward to working with them again.

“There are some exciting changes to the format in the pipeline which will make the FTI MVPs even more relevant to players and coaches in both the international and county game.”

John Waples, UK head of strategic communications for FTI Consulting, said: “We are pleased with the partnership we have developed with the PCA and ECB over the last few years.

“The rankings are now well established in the game and have really gained traction with the England team and the county professionals. The banter on Twitter shows how seriously the players and the supporters take the rankings.

“We are delighted to have been able to lend our expertise to the ECB’s Performance Analysis team in assisting to make the various England cricket teams the best prepared in the world game.”

USA Swimming has announced a four-year partnership agreement with TYR Sport, a global swimming brand.

The deal between TYR and USA Swimming marks the first ever partnership of its kind. 

TYR will serve as an official sponsor of USA Swimming through 2016 in the categories of technical products (ex. swimsuits, swim caps and goggles) and performance apparel (ex. polo shirts, sweat suits, jackets, etc.). 

“This is an exciting new day to be involved with TYR and we welcome them to our partner family,” said Matt Farrell, the Chief Marketing Officer of USA Swimming. “In getting to know the team at TYR we both share the same excitement for promoting and growing the sport of swimming in the coming years.”

Matt DiLorenzo, the Chief Executive Officer of TYR expressed, “We are very excited to be partnering with USA Swimming.  As a United States based company, it is fitting that we work together to elevate swimming’s profile in our home country. USA Swimming has some very innovative ideas and we are enthusiastic to contribute in a meaningful way.”

“TYR has been an amazing partner for me in my swimming career. They’ve helped me reach my goals and achieve success.” praised 4x OLYMPIC Gold Medalist and TYR Athlete Matt Grevers. “The greatest swim team in the world just got better.”