Congratulations to the Merrill Lynch Team, captained by Rowen Pestana, who won the 2008 City Golf Championships. The two day finals were played at the magnificent Carton House in Ireland over two equally tough and beautiful courses - the Montgomerie and the O'Meara.

The 2008 Strutt & Parker City Shooting Championships took place on a typical British summer’s day – absolutely chucking it down. But it was water off a waxed jacket as far as the 160 guns were concerned and the spirits were resolutely undampened.

Fortified with bacon butties wolfed down in Highclere Castle, the guns set off to the five drives, with 1,000 ‘birds’ per team to aim for. Mitsubishi were the official cars for the 45 teams of chairmen and CEOs of the City’s major firms and the muddy tracks gave the cars the perfect opportunity to display their off-roading skills.

Baron Phillips Associates won the top prize, a day’s partridge shooting at Chinchon near Madrid, and immediately booked a second day, as well as Sandstorm Kenya shotgun cases. Runners up Squire, Sanders & Dempsey and third place prizewinners, Rawlinson & Hunter, were equally delighted with their prizes from Champagne Pommery. James Vernon-Stroud won the individual ‘Top Gun in the City’ award sponsored by Hiscox, while Simon Morrell collected the Clay Conservation Award, with the merest of blushes.

There was little sign of the City feeling the pinch as thousands of pounds were raised for the conservation charity, Tusk. Stapleford Park also contributed two lots of two night stays for the joint winners of Heads & Tails, including Bill Ives, Chairman of Rainham Steel.

Simon Jacot de Boinod of City Championships and Dylan Williams of RBSS, who organised the shoot, were delighted that spirits had been so high throughout the day, despite the weather. “The championships are a great annual event where all who take part enjoy each other’s company and the competition. It is very rewarding that so many immediately say that they will return next year to resume their rivalry.”

What do the Radio 4 comedian Marcus Brigstocke, the Formula One World Champion Damon Hill, the world record hurdling athlete Colin Jackson and a couple of hundred men and women from London’s financial community have in common? They all took part in this year’s Air France City Ski Championships held over the weekend of Thursday 13th March to Sunday 16th March 2008 in the pretty resort of Courmayeur, set at the foot of Mont Blanc. Now established as one of the best organised racing weekends in the ski season for FIS skiers and amateurs alike (not to mention stand-up comedians and world class sportsmen), it’s not just about going up and down mountains. In the Finish Paddock and the resort’s restaurants and bars there was plenty of partying too. With the opportunity to meet their peers from the City (as well as race against them), there were as many business cards swapped and deals done as there were shots being downed in the après-ski. Absolutely anyone can take part regardless of their skiing talents, but the front end of the races are as good as anything you would see on the BBC’s Ski Sunday (which uses the same race course).

Sports commentator Matt Chilton provides lively reports as the skiers bump into the gates, and there was great excitement as Einar Johanssen of Merrill Lynch, Peter Bradshaw of Accenture and Robert Brown of RBS displayed great talent and speed as they raced. Laura Westmacott of ABC News and Sarah Mann of Goldman Sachs headed up the strongest ever women’s field.