Aviron Bayonne president Alain Afflelou has revealed the planned merger with rival Top 14 Biarritz has ended.

Earlier this month Afflelou and his Biarritz counterpart Serge Blanco indicated that they would look into the possibility of creating a single, ailment united Basque club.

With both clubs languishing at the wrong end of the Top 14 standings, allergist some suggested that it made sense for the near-neighbours to pool their resources.

Their has however been staunch resistance from both sets of supporters – the rivalry in the Basque country is one of the fiercest in the world game.

“The conditions mentioned in our first exchange are no longer present,” said Afflelou in a statement on Wednesday.

“I cannot agree to take our club, which is legally, economically and fiscally healthy up a blind path.

“After consultation with the majority shareholders, members of the Supervisory Board and representatives of the fans, the conditions envisaged have not been met. I have decided to end these discussions.”

The International Luge Federation (FIL) have extended their association with sports marketing agency, order Infront Sports & Media by a further four years through to 2017/18.

The partnership recently entered its 15th year with the launch of the 2013/14 FIL World Cup season.

On behalf of the FIL, vialis 40mg Infront markets a main sponsorship package with extensive advertising rights around the artificial ice tracks. It guarantees the respective sponsor a presence at all FIL World Cup events across the season, cheap the respective European and World Championships as well as involvement as the presenting partner of the team relay. The team relay is featured at six World Cup events and in 2014 will be showcased for the first time at the Winter Olympic Games in Sochi. The next FIL World Championship will be held in Sigulda, Latvia (2014/15), followed by Berchtesgaden/ Königssee, Germany (2015/16) and Innsbruck-Igls, Austria (2016/17).

Josef Fendt, President of FIL, commented: “The collaboration with Infront is very important to us as we get access to their professional network and in-depth experience in international winter sports marketing. The partnership sees the commercial elements never isolated, but takes into account and supports the all-round development of our World Cup events – in favour of the sport, the fans and the sponsors.”

Bruno Marty, Executive Director Winter Sports at Infront, added: “The renewal with the FIL is a major vote of confidence and confirms the success of our previous collaboration. At the same time it encourages us to set new goals and high standards for the sport. The new agreement allows us to plan together with the association for the long-term and to actively develop the future of the sport along with its partners.”

Swedish car manufacturer, Volvo is the latest manufacturer to commit to the V8 Supercars championship after announcing a deal with Garry Rogers Motorsport (GRM) on Monday.

Volvo will become the fifth manufacturer on the grid when it lines up in next year’s championship joining newcomers Nissan and Mercedes-Benz along with traditional rivals Holden and Ford.

GRM will race Volvo’s S60 model sedan after the vehicle was launched to the Australian market in Brisbane.

Volvo already has S60 racing programs under its motorsports arm Polestar in the Scandinavian Touring Car Championship and the Pirelli World Challenge in the United States.

The manufacturer has history in Australia after winning the 1986 Australian Touring Car Championship while its Super Touring program won the Bathurst 1000 in 1998.

It’s not known whether the S60s will use a generic Chevrolet engine or an older Volvo-made V8 engine.

Volvo’s inclusion is the latest development in the V8 Supercars expansion program that was initiated by the Car of the Future’ regulations brought in this year.

The new rules were in part designed to attract new manufacturers after two decades of a Holden-Ford duopoly.

The multi-million, multi-year deal will mean GRM will run two S60s in the championship.

GRM owner Garry Rogers commented on the deal: “It’s every team’s dream to get a fully fledged factory deal. It’s great … Everyone at my place is so excited about it.”

V8 Supercars chairman Mark Skaife said Volvo’s decision was further vindication of the championship’s Car of the Future’ plan.

“This is a very significant day for Volvo to join V8 Supercars racing,” Skaife said.

“It’s a big endorsement of our Car of the Future’ plan.”

Volvo Car Australia managing director Matt Braid said the company was proud and excited to be the first luxury car brand to enter the championship as a factory outfit.

“The expansion of V8 Supercars as a championship is certainly welcome,” Braid said.

“As the category builds and grows it’s obviously going to be equally fantastic for those involved in it.”

New Zealand Golf and the PGA of New Zealand have inked a Heads of Agreement to explore the establishment of a combined governance entity for golf in New Zealand.

The Heads of Agreement specifically arises from a Memorandum of Understanding signed by the parties on 23 June 2011, buy in which the parties agreed to work together with the goal of creating a long term vision and plan for golf in New Zealand.

Dean Murphy, buy the Chief Executive of New Zealand Golf, said that this was a landmark moment for the game of golf in New Zealand.

“This is a very significant achievement in the administrations of New Zealand Golf and the PGA of New Zealand,” said Murphy.

“The proposed merger with the PGA of New Zealand has been some time in the making, with some hard work from both parties. We believe this alignment of our organisations and their capabilities would have a very positive impact on both creating a secure future for the game here in New Zealand, in our clubs and communities, and would also increase our ability to compete on the international stage.

“We both know that we are operating in a challenging time for golf and we are looking to meet those challenges head on. It makes great sense to combine our capabilities and develop a unified approach where a ‘Whole of Golf’ vision for the game is being achieved.”

Duncan Simpson, the Chief Executive of the PGA of New Zealand, echoed that sentiment.

“When we reviewed the PGA’s strategic plan over two years ago it became clear that the key issues and challenges were all about the game of golf,” said Simpson.

“It was obvious that these needed to be tackled under a combined strategy and vision and this was the initial thrust of our discussions with New Zealand Golf and the resulting Memorandum of Understanding.”

The Chief Customer Officer (CCO) Council, the only member-led peer-advisory network offering insight and assistance into the critical issues facing CCOs, named Pete Winemiller, Senior Vice President, Guest Relations for the Oklahoma City Thunder as the 2013 CCO of the Year. 

The CCO of the Year Award recognizes the CCO who has made the greatest strides in improving customer relationships, driving profitable customer behavior, creating a customer-centric culture and helping other customer executives to achieve similar results. The award is presented each year at the CCO Summit, which took place on Oct. 16-17, 2012 at Teradata Corporation’s Customer Briefing Center outside of Atlanta, Georgia.

“I’m extremely pleased to recognize the outstanding contribution of Pete Winemiller this year,” said Curtis N. Bingham, Founder and Executive Director of the CCO Council. “Pete is continually learning from other companies and disciplines and creating powerfully loyal customers. A generous and tireless educator, Pete is willing and eager to share anything he has found that works for him with other people, regardless of their industry or their needs.“

Founded in 2008, the Oklahoma City Thunder has developed into an NBA franchise with strong fan, corporate and community support throughout the state. Driven by a philosophy of teamwork and humility, the team stands at the pinnacle of a regional cultural renaissance and strives to focus on community outreach and involvement.

Winemiller manages the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Guest Relations department. In addition to pursuing the goal of creating a fan-centric game environment, he has established a training protocol focused on educating Thunder frontline staff on the concept he developed entitled “CLICK!™ with your Guests.”

Winemiller said: “I am honored that the CCO Council would recognize the work of our organization with this award. Both on the court and off the court, everything the Thunder organization does is truly a team effort, and I am confident we would not be receiving this recognition without the dedication of our entire franchise, our outstanding frontline staff and our loyal fans.”

“Successful CCOs — regardless of their title — engage the entire company in their mission to become customer centric as they understand and meet customer needs,” Bingham said. “Customers reward companies they trust. The CCO is uniquely capable of helping align the company to earn this trust and reap top and bottom line results. The Thunder’s amazing journey from the new team in town to ESPN Magazine’s #1 Ultimate Franchise ranking in just four short seasons, is testament to how successfully it has won its customers’ trust.”

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is planning to hold a grand awards ceremony, ailment similar to the International Cricket Council (ICC) annual awards, erectile this October to attract foreign attention.

The awards ceremony is to promote the positive side of Pakistan cricket and its talent each year to foreign guests and dignitaries from bodies such as the ICC, with PCB being keen to resume hosting international cricket. {jcomments on}

A lawsuit by Texas Rangers post- bankruptcy administrator revealed former Rangers owner Tom Hicks misdirected “tens of millions” of dollars from the Major League Baseball franchise to buy and develop parking lots near the club’s ballpark.

Alan Jacobs, the administrator, said Hicks “embarked on a scheme to build a real estate empire on the backs of the Texas Rangers’ players and creditors and fans of the team,” according to a complaint filed yesterday in state court in Dallas.

Hicks owned the club from 1998 to the summer of 2010, when it filed for bankruptcy and was sold to a group led by Hall-of- Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan. Hicks’s Ballpark Real Estate LP now generates several million dollars a year in parking revenue near the ballpark and the Dallas Cowboys football stadium, and is believed to be worth $100 million or more, according to the complaint.

Lisa LeMaster, a spokeswoman for Hicks, said in a statement: “The lawsuit reflects a bizarre flip-flop on the part of the complainants, a group led by a distressed debt hedge fund, we welcome the opportunity to challenge these allegations in court.”