Trion:Z has entered the Tennis Industry by signing Ivan Lendl as its official Tennis spokesman. It was one year ago this week that Ivan Lendl received his first Trion:Z bracelet. “I liked it so much, I teamed up with the company,” said Lendl.

Every time I come to write this, a blank white page simply stares back at me as I search, desperately, for the words to describe a month in my life at SGB towers. It’s not that I have nothing to say – quite the opposite – its more a question of “where do I start!”

Good news for sport enthusiasts. Concrete Leisure has now acquired the rights for Speedminton products in the UK. The company has a proven success record with its unique outdoor tennis tables.

Now this young dynamic company, which is a partnership of Ralf Ganza and Andrew Low, is becoming a service provider with workshops and free taster sessions of Speed Badminton available for schools and colleges in the UK.

Elwell comes to Etonic with over 30 years of experience in the footwear and golf industries. As Mizuno USA’s vice president and general manager of the Athletic Division, Elwell is widely credited with having built Mizuno’s technical running business in North and South America to the third highest market share in its category.

Inter Milan forward and Argentinan national player Julio Ricardo Cruz visited Lotto Sport Italia this month, his technical sponsor since 2003.

At the Trevignano headquarters, the Argentine star met Lotto President,Andrea Tomat, and greeted all the employees. But his visit was, above all, a chance to meet the team of the double-lozenge company's Research and Development Centre.

Steven Shaw, founder of the renowned Shaw Method of Swimming and a former competitive swimmer, has become the first participant to swim the full national SWIMATHON distance of 5 km ( 200 lengths ) using the butterfly stroke. As one of over 2,000 swimmers in more than 500 pools across the country who took part in this annual event, Steven supported Marie Curie Cancer Care through his butterfly Swimathon which he completed in less than two hours on 23rd March 2007.

Trans-Global Sports of Oxford is celebrating its success at the UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) awards where it was named New Exporter of the Year for Milton Keynes, Oxfordshire,Buckinghamshire and Berkshire.Trans-global are providers for Sports equipment, particularly protective supports and high performance Sunwise Sports & Fashion Sunglasses.

Squash tour veteran John White is continuing to enjoy a sensational resurgence in his career since taking up the latest Prince racquet in the brand's new O3 series.

A member of the Prince Pro Squash Team for more than ten years,White signed a new two-year agreement with the brand at the beginning of the year - and immediately switched to the new O3 Black racquet.

This year Stamford Bridge played host to the largest Sports Merchandise Exhibition so far,with more visitors and exhibitors than ever before, according to post show reports.

Research from Sports Marketing Surveys after the group stage of the ICC Cricket World Cup, indicates that its global partners are scoring highly for the exposure – almost 9 minutes for every hour of coverage. This exposure is being converted to good awareness levels for LG and Pepsi in both the UK and Australia. Hero Honda also performs well but Hutch is expected to receive higher recall in India.

1000 Mile Sportswear is moving to larger premises in Watford, to accomodate its growing portfolio of brands. Latest additions include Piz Buin Mountain suncare range and Daktarin Aktiv, both of which will be launched at Outdoor Preview in Harrogate.

Swim kit specialist Aqua Sphere has been chosen as the official aquatic brand for Premiership football club, Blackburn Rovers FC. It is supplying the club with a range of products including Kaiman goggles, kick boards, zip fins and fitness swim gloves which will be used by all players, including members of the first team, at the club’s impressive indoor training pool.

TRION:Z has officially launched its new ionic/magnetic bracelets. Paul Hendry, managing director of Sales Marketing Solutions, the UK distributor said: “Though the product is new to the UK , it has been highly successful in Japan, where it has been sold for six years and experienced more than 500% growth last year.We are excited about the prospects for the brand in the UK.”

Winmau has announced that it has signed a contract with one of the best and long standing professionals in Darts, Dennis Priestley. Currently 2nd in the Holsten Premier League Championship, 3rd in the PDC World Ranking, it has definitely been a fantastic return to form from the 1993 World Champion.

PUMA and the Italian Football Association (FIGC) have announced the continuation of their successful partnership beyond the 2014 World Cup and therewith reconfirm the contract signed in 2003 and renewed in November 2005.

England Squash has appointed Jim Lord to the position of director of development & competitions. The 39-year-old from Thurlstone in South Yorkshire took up his appointment on 10th April.

Lord is said to bring unique qualities to the key role at England Squash where he will manage the area managers and administrators, plus the Competitions and Events department.

The Amateur Swimming Association (ASA) has strengthened its business team with the appointment of Alan Green in the South West region.

Green has taken up the role of ASA business manager for the south west to help improve the quality of swimming delivery across the region.

Wilson, has unveiled its new interactive website – www.wilsontennis.com - allowing fans to discover more about their favourite players, including exclusive footage of the world’s best player, Roger Federer.

Johnson purchases Seemann Sub

After about ten years, Robert Stoß has sold the diving-supplier Seemann Sub. The German company has been purchased by the North American sporting goods company Johnson Outdoors. Johnson, former owner of outdoor-supplier Jack Wolfskin, already controls the diving brand’s Scubapro and Uwatec. The distribution of both brands should be integrated in the distribution of Seemann Sub in Wendelstein/Germany. Robert will remain General Manager.

The brand has an interesting history doesn’t it?

It certainly does. As a shoe manufacturer, Saucony has been around since 1898. Even our running shoe pedigree goes back several decades. More recently,we’ve merged with the Stride Rite Corporation, which brings together brands such as Keds, Pro Keds and Sperry Topsider.

The amount of training you do is key to determining your risk of injury. Intensive training can produce tired muscles, which may not be able to withstand the vigour of further activity. Tired muscles are less able to protect associated connective tissues, which increases the risk of damage to bones, cartilage, tendons, and ligaments. So watch out!

Do base layers have as much market value in the summer as in the winter?

The market value is currently lower through the summer, however as we have seen with more and more manufacturers entering the underwear market, the public is becoming increasingly aware of the benefits of technically good performance underwear particularly in the colder months.

SURELY ‘TRADE TALK’is about trade, not fashion, I thought, when Editor Becci asked me to highlight fashion in the sports trade and fashion is not my scene. For long I have been referring to the real or ‘bona fide’ sports retailer and have shunned what may simply look good in favour of what is good, or as it is currently said:‘fit for purpose’.

ispo china winter 07, which was held for the first time in its new Beijing location from March 14th to 17th, 2007, registered a total of 12,059 visitors (ispo china 06 in Shanghai reported a total visitor number of 11,098) mainly from the complete Asia-Pacific Region. 300 brands from 20 countries presented their products and brand philosophies at the National Agricultural Exhibition Center in Beijing, across 16,500 square meters of floor space.

At the start of the Nike CONSIDERED initiative, the Nike design team wondered what would happen if they paid as much attention to the journey as the destination? What if they designed shoes to reduce the impact on the environment as well as the impact on the foot? How could they minimize materials and reduce waste? And how could they avoid the potentially harmful effects caused from solvents used in primers and adhesives? The Nike Considered range of shoes has evolved as a direct consequence of these questions.

The Dozer (SRP £55.00) offers a perfect compromise between sandal and shoe offering full foot protection, as well as ventilation to keep feet feeling cool and comfortable. Perfect for all-terrain trekking and comfortable in and out of the water, the Dozer is ready for adventure however grand that may be.

Sports eyewear brand Sinner is said to be celebrating exceptional growth in the UK market, driven by its combination of designer quality with serious commercial value.

Sinner products are exclusive, contemporary and technologically advanced.

When training, racing and boat chartering specialist Wetstuff was looking for a solution to its personalised drinking bottle dilemma. Gloucestershire based Howard Plastics provided the answer.

Keeping hydrated is vital when sailing, but with up to ten people working together aboard a yacht in close quarters, labelling and identifying individual bottles is not an easy task.

Regatta has enhanced its sunglasses collection for 2007 with the introduction of several new sports and fashion-led styles. Following on from its successful launch last year, the spring / summer 2007 sunglasses range features nine sporty new styles and an additional six new fashion designs to boost the current selection and reflect seasonal trends.

New for Autumn/Winter 2007 the Complete Magnetist is the testimony shoe in PUMA's stable cushioning category and is designed for the mild overpronator. The Magnetist has superb engineering and also uses the most up to date materials with innovations such as the TEXCARE bamboo sockliner, which creates a healthier shoe environment. From the moment you land until the second you take off it's naturally smooth sailing.

When it comes to having the right footwear for the job, nothing is more important than having something that fits well and can endure the longest and hardest of runs.

New from The North Face are the Arnuva 50 Boa endurance running shoes, ideal for the ultra distant runner whose countless miles include trails, dirt paths and even road.

Somewhere between my writing last month’s article and it coming to the printed page of the magazine a decimal point got slipped into 301% (yes, I really did mean three hundred and one per cent!) equivalent per annum interest charged when a credit card payment reached Dick Turpin Banking 24 hours “late”.