CBC, the Canadian public service broadcaster, has agreed a deal with the Professional Triathletes Organisation, the athlete-backed body, for coverage rights in Canada to this weekend's inaugural Collins Cup triathlon event.
Under the agreement, the network will provide live coverage of the event via its CBC Sports platforms, including cbcsports.ca and the CBC Sports app.
In addition, an hour-long highlights programme and the PTO’s two-part Beyond Human documentary will be available on its free streaming service CBC Gem.
The tie-up was facilitated by IMG, the international sports and entertainment company.
The seven-hour event, which is modelled on golf’s Ryder Cup and designed to be “broadcast-friendly”, will take place in Samorin, Slovakia, on Saturday (28 August).
It will be contested by teams of international, European and US athletes.
Tim Godfrey, chief marketing officer at PTO, said: “The Collins Cup is a first-of-its-kind global competition which will see teams of the world’s best triathletes from Europe, International and USA competing head-to-head to determine which region dominates the sport of triathlon. It is poised to be a hugely innovative and exciting format and CBC is perfectly suited to showcasing this inaugural ground-breaking event.”
This week the PTO also announced broadcast deals with StarHub, for event coverage in Singapore, and Outside TV in the US.
Other broadcasters to the event include BeIN Sports in the US, Canada and a range of countries in the Middle East and North Africa, with Discovery for live coverage on Eurosport and other platforms across Europe and parts of Asia-Pacific, including India, with BT Sport for highlights in the UK, with pay-TV’s Foxtel in Australia and with FujiTV in Japan.
