Sport Group Appoints Alejandro Pena as the new CEO

April 11, 2025

Alejandro has more than 25 years of experience leading high-performance organizations and driving transformational growth across the consumer products and building materials sectors.

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He joins Sport Group following his successful tenure as CEO of Keter Group, a global leader in durable consumer lifestyle solutions. Under his leadership, Keter achieved significant earnings growth while accelerating innovation, digital transformation, and sustainability across its portfolio.

Prior to Keter, Alejandro held senior executive roles at Newell Brands and Jarden Corporation, where he built a track record of scaling global businesses, optimizing operations, and fostering winning cultures. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from Universidad de Los Andes in Colombia and an MBA from the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas.

"I'm honored to join Sport Group at such an exciting moment in its journey," said Mr. Pena. "The Company's iconic brands - including AstroTurf, SYNLawn, Polytan, Rekortan, and Laykold - have shaped the sports and recreational landscape for decades. I look forward to working closely with our talented global team of more than 2,600 associates to build on this strong foundation, delivering exceptional value to our customers through quality, innovation, and service."

Sport Group extends its thanks to outgoing CEO Christoph von Nitzsch for his leadership and contributions to the Company.

About Sport Group
Sport Group is the global leader in artificial turf systems and polyurethane-based sports and recreational surface solutions. With a portfolio of pioneering brands and a presence in over 70 countries, Sport Group delivers high-performance, sustainable surfaces for professional sports venues, schools, parks, and residential applications. Its brands include AstroTurf, SYNLawn, Polytan, Rekortan, and Laykold.

About KPS Capital Partners, LP

KPS, through its affiliated management entities, is the manager of the KPS Special Situations Funds, a family of investment funds with approximately $19.7 billion of assets under management (as of December 31, 2024). For over three decades, the Partners of KPS have worked exclusively to realize significant capital appreciation by making controlling equity investments in manufacturing and industrial companies across a diverse array of industries, including basic materials, branded consumer, healthcare and luxury products, automotive parts, capital equipment and general manufacturing. KPS creates value for its investors by working constructively with talented management teams to make businesses better, and generates investment returns by structurally improving the strategic position, competitiveness and profitability of its portfolio companies, rather than primarily relying on financial leverage. The KPS Funds' portfolio companies currently generate aggregate annual revenues of approximately $22.2 billion, operate 222 manufacturing facilities in 30 countries, and have approximately 58,000 employees, directly and through joint ventures worldwide (as of December 31, 2024, pro forma for recent acquisitions). The KPS investment strategy and portfolio companies are described in detail at www.kpsfund.com.

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Discover exciting updates about modern artificial turf systems, track surfaces, groundbreaking technologies, and general information about Polytan. Beyond the news, we also share in-depth insights on our blog about sports field construction, sustainability in sports surfaces, and other topics.

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EuroHockey 2025 in Mönchengladbach

September 18, 2025

France’s Top Track Stars Set to Shine in Talence on Rekortan PUR Surface

September 18, 2025

Sport Group Appoints Alejandro Pena as the new CEO

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April 22, 2025
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Alejandro has more than 25 years of experience leading high-performance organizations and driving transformational growth across the consumer products and building materials sectors.

Das Stade Pierre-Paul Bernard bereitet sich auf die Championnats de France Elite vom 1. bis 3. August 2025 vor

Zum ersten Mal seit über vier Jahrzehnten kehrt Frankreichs bedeutendster Leichtathletikwettbewerb, die Championnat de France Elite, nach Talence zurück. Vom 1. bis 3. August 2025 treten die besten Athletinnen und Athleten des Landes im Stade Pierre-Paul Bernard an – ausgestattet mit einer hochmodernen Polytan Rekortan PUR-Laufbahn, die im Zuge der Stadionmodernisierung auf internationale Standards gebracht wurde.

Eine historische Rückkehr in die Gironde

Diese Ausgabe der Championnats de France Elite ist die erste seit 42 Jahren, bei der die nationalen Freiluftmeisterschaften im Département Gironde stattfinden. Talence, seit Langem als Austragungsort des renommierten Décastar-Mehrkampfes bekannt, rückt damit ins nationale Rampenlicht und empfängt die gesamte französische Leichtathletikelite – ein Ereignis mit Meilenstein-Charakter.

Neue Bahn, olympische Ambitionen

Im Rahmen der umfassenden Renovierung im Jahr 2022 erhielt das Stadion eine achtspurige Rekortan PUR-Bahn von Polytan – ein Hochleistungssystem, das maximale Griffigkeit, Elastizität und Geschwindigkeit für Wettkämpfe auf Top-Niveau bietet. Die Modernisierung umfasste zudem erweiterte Sprung- und Wurfbereiche, wodurch die Anlage zu einem der modernsten Leichtathletikstandorte des Landes wurde.

Auf dem Weg zur Weltbühne

Erwartet werden Top-Athlet:innen wie Gabriel Tual, Marie-Julie Bonnin, Alice Finot und Cyréna Samba-Mayela – viele von ihnen nutzen die Meisterschaften als Vorbereitung auf die Leichtathletik-Weltmeisterschaften in Tokio, die Ende 2025 stattfinden.

Talance im Moment

Mit zahlreichen französischen Olympia- und WM-Hoffnungen am Start ist das dreitägige Event mehr als nur eine nationale Meisterschaft – es könnte maßgeblich die Zusammensetzung des Teams für Tokio beeinflussen. Das Zusammenspiel aus sportlichem Erbe und modernisierter Infrastruktur macht das Stade Pierre-Paul Bernard bereit für seinen bislang größten Auftritt.

Polytan ist stolz, diesen Meilenstein in der französischen Leichtathletik mit einer Bahn zu unterstützen, die für Höchstleistungen in Geschwindigkeit, Kraft und Präzision entwickelt wurde. Auf unvergessliche Momente in Talence!

He joins Sport Group following his successful tenure as CEO of Keter Group, a global leader in durable consumer lifestyle solutions. Under his leadership, Keter achieved significant earnings growth while accelerating innovation, digital transformation, and sustainability across its portfolio.

Prior to Keter, Alejandro held senior executive roles at Newell Brands and Jarden Corporation, where he built a track record of scaling global businesses, optimizing operations, and fostering winning cultures. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from Universidad de Los Andes in Colombia and an MBA from the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas.

"I'm honored to join Sport Group at such an exciting moment in its journey," said Mr. Pena. "The Company's iconic brands - including AstroTurf, SYNLawn, Polytan, Rekortan, and Laykold - have shaped the sports and recreational landscape for decades. I look forward to working closely with our talented global team of more than 2,600 associates to build on this strong foundation, delivering exceptional value to our customers through quality, innovation, and service."

Sport Group extends its thanks to outgoing CEO Christoph von Nitzsch for his leadership and contributions to the Company.

About Sport Group
Sport Group is the global leader in artificial turf systems and polyurethane-based sports and recreational surface solutions. With a portfolio of pioneering brands and a presence in over 70 countries, Sport Group delivers high-performance, sustainable surfaces for professional sports venues, schools, parks, and residential applications. Its brands include AstroTurf, SYNLawn, Polytan, Rekortan, and Laykold.

About KPS Capital Partners, LP

KPS, through its affiliated management entities, is the manager of the KPS Special Situations Funds, a family of investment funds with approximately $19.7 billion of assets under management (as of December 31, 2024). For over three decades, the Partners of KPS have worked exclusively to realize significant capital appreciation by making controlling equity investments in manufacturing and industrial companies across a diverse array of industries, including basic materials, branded consumer, healthcare and luxury products, automotive parts, capital equipment and general manufacturing. KPS creates value for its investors by working constructively with talented management teams to make businesses better, and generates investment returns by structurally improving the strategic position, competitiveness and profitability of its portfolio companies, rather than primarily relying on financial leverage. The KPS Funds' portfolio companies currently generate aggregate annual revenues of approximately $22.2 billion, operate 222 manufacturing facilities in 30 countries, and have approximately 58,000 employees, directly and through joint ventures worldwide (as of December 31, 2024, pro forma for recent acquisitions). The KPS investment strategy and portfolio companies are described in detail at www.kpsfund.com.

Weitere
News

Entdecken Sie spannende Neuigkeiten rund um moderne Kunstrasensysteme, Laufbahnbeläge, zukunftsweisende Technologien und allgemeine Informationen über Polytan. Abseits der News informieren wir Sie auch in unserem Blog mit Hintergrundinformationen zum Sportplatzbau, zur Nachhaltigkeit bei Sportböden und zu anderen Themen.

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EuroHockey 2025 in Mönchengladbach

September 18, 2025

France’s Top Track Stars Set to Shine in Talence on Rekortan PUR Surface

September 18, 2025

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