CHICAGO, IL - The manufacturer of the college March Madness basketball courts and other specialty wood flooring and surfaces has been acquired. The news of Connor Sport Court International's acquisition by the global resilient flooring group Gerflor was announced Nov. 5.

“The acquisition of Connor Sport Court International is an extremely exciting development for Gerflor, as it brings a world class organization into the Gerflor family to strengthen our position as a world leader in sports surfaces. It is also a major step to strengthen our group sales footprint in North America,” said Bertrand Chammas, CEO of the Gerflor Group.

Gerflor also owns Taraflex sports flooring, as well as the Mipolam and Tarabus brands. The addition of the Connor Sports Flooring and Sport Court brands to the company's portfolio makes it the largest indoor sports flooring manufacturer in the world.

“We look forward to being part of the Gerflor Group,” adds Ron Cerny, CEO of Connor Sport Court International, “It provides the unique opportunity to further expand our sales throughout the world and provide truly complementary solutions to our customers. This really is a great fit for both companies.”

Founded in 1872, Connor Sports was considered a leader in hardwood sports flooring. Sport Court, which was founded in 1974, was the first to manufacture modular sport surfaces for outdoor and indoor athletics. Connor Sport Court has 250 employees and two manufacturing sites in the United States.

With its headquarters based in France, the Gerflor group has 2,500 employees and eight production sites worldwide.