CBC Media – June 1, 2016 – CBC today announced its expert team of commentators and analysts who will bring the stories of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games to Canadian audiences as part of the network’s coverage in August. The impressive group features veteran television play-by-play voices and experienced analysts, including several Olympians who will add a layer of firsthand insight to the network’s broadcasts from Brazil.

Viewers will enjoy thrilling calls from familiar broadcast pairings like Steve Armitage and Byron MacDonald, who will provide commentary and analysis for swimming, and Mark Lee and Michael Smith calling athletics. Special insight will be provided by an all-star cast of Canadian Olympians, including: Donovan Bailey; Clara Hughes; Mark Tewskbury; Perdita Felicien; Blythe Hartley; Karina LeBlanc; and Mark Heese, among many others who know what it takes to compete on the world’s biggest stage (see below for the full list of broadcasters).

CBC’s team of well-known national and local television and radio personalities and popular Canadian athletes has been to nearly 200 Olympic Games combined, either as broadcasters or competitors or coaches, and have won a combined 185 medals in international competition, including 20 at the Olympic Games. The collective experience and knowledge this group possesses will result in the best-in-class broadcasts and storytelling that Canadian audiences have come to expect over the 19 Olympic Games the network has previously covered as Canada’s official broadcaster.

In addition to CBC’s team of expert commentators and analysts, certain events will feature the voices of the Olympic World Feed broadcast team, which is made up of some of the most knowledgeable play-by-play and colour commentators from around the world.

With more access to Olympic Games coverage than ever before in Canada, including more than 900 hours of English-language television coverage and more than 4000 live-streaming hours, CBC’s all-star roster of broadcasters will provide unparalleled levels of commentary, analysis and news across multiple platforms throughout the Games.

Throughout the 17 days of coverage from Rio, this talented team of broadcasters will appear across CBC’s multi-platform channels and on primary broadcast partner TSN as well as on Sportsnet. While coverage of Rio 2016 will be shared across all three networks, the majority of the coverage of some sports will appear on individual channels:

• CBC: Athletics, Canoe/Kayak, Diving, Rowing, Swimming
• TSN: Basketball, Cycling (Road), Golf, Judo, Rugby, Wrestling
• Sportsnet: Field Hockey, Gymnastics, Taekwondo, Tennis, Volleyball
• Note: Coverage of Soccer, Beach Volleyball and Boxing will appear across all three networks

Ensuring fans on the go don’t have to miss a moment of the action, CBC’s Olympic Games website at cbc.ca/olympics and the network’s Rio 2016 dedicated app for iOS and Android devices will offer up to 23 free live-streaming channels daily throughout the games, including live streams of the television broadcast coverage.

Additional details of CBC/Radio-Canada’s programming and broadcast plans for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games will be revealed in the coming weeks. In the meantime, cbcsports.ca/olympics and ICI.Radio-Canada.ca/jeuxolympiques remain Canada’s best source for the latest news and information related to Canada’s athletes on the road to the Olympic Games.

Social Media links:

• Twitter: @cbcolympics, @cbcsports, @RC_Sports, #cbcolympics, #rcolympiques
• Facebook: facebook.com/cbcolympics, facebook.com/cbcsports, facebook.com/radiocanada.sports
• Instagram: @cbcolympics, @cbc.sports, @rc_sports
• Snapchat: CBCSports

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About CBC/Radio-Canada

CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada’s national public broadcaster and one of its largest cultural institutions. We are Canada’s trusted source of news, information and Canadian entertainment. Deeply rooted in communities all across the country, CBC/Radio-Canada offers diverse content in English, French and eight aboriginal languages. We also provide international news and information from a uniquely Canadian perspective.

For more information including press releases, hi-res images, video clips and bios, please visit the CBC Media Centre at cbc.ca/mediacentre.

For further information, please contact:

Simon Bassett, publicist, CBC

simon.bassett@cbc.ca

416-205-8533 (office) 416-988-1590 (mobile)

CBC’s broadcast team for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games

Studio Broadcast Team

• Ron MacLean – Host, Olympic Games Morning
• Andi Petrillo – Co-Host, Olympic Games Daytime
• David Amber – Co-Host, Olympic Games Daytime
• Scott Russell – Host, Olympic Games Primetime

Special Analysts

• Donovan Bailey
• Clara Hughes
• Adam Kreek
• Karina LeBlanc
• Philippe Marquis
• Craig McMorris
• Alexandra Orlando
• Mark Tewksbury

Athletics

• Mark Lee – Commentator
• Michael Smith – Analyst
• David Moorcroft – Analyst
• Scott Oake – Reporter

Basketball

• Bruce Rainnie – Commentator, Women’s Basketball
• Chantal Vallée – Analyst, Women’s Basketball
• Matt Devlin – Commentator, Men’s Basketball*
• Jack Armstrong – Analyst, Men’s Basketball*

Beach Volleyball

• Charles Parkinson – Commentator
• Mark Heese – Analyst

BMX Cycling

• Mitch Peacock – Commentator
• Kevin O’Brien – Analyst

Canoe/Kayak

• Doug Dirks – Commentator
• Karen Furneaux – Analyst

Diving

• Steve Armitage – Commentator
• Mark Lee – Commentator, Synchronized Diving
• Blythe Hartley – Analyst
• Elliotte Friedman – Reporter

Equestrian Jumping

• Bruce Rainnie – Commentator
• Ian Allison – Analyst
• Football
• Nigel Reed – Commentator
• Clare Rustad – Analyst

Gymnastics

• Brenda Irving – Commentator
• Kyle Shewfelt – Analyst
• Andrew Chang – Reporter

Mountain Bike

• Doug Dirks – Commentator
• Lesley Tomlinson – Analyst

Rowing

• Doug Dirks – Commentator
• Barney Williams – Analyst
• Karin Larsen – Reporter

Rugby

• Mitch Peacock – Commentator
• Andrea Burk – Analyst

Swimming

• Steve Armitage – Commentator
• Byron MacDonald – Analyst
• Elliotte Friedman – Reporter

Tennis

• Robert Bettauer – Commentator

Track Cycling

• Mark Connolly – Commentator
• Richard Wooles – Analyst

Triathlon

• Brenda Irving – Commentator
• Barrie Shepley – Analyst

Volleyball

• Charles Parkinson – Commentator
• Rob Snoek – Commentator
• Emily Cordonier – Analyst
• Paul Duerden – Analyst

Reporters

• Charlsie Agro – Various
• Caroline Calvé – Various
• Perdita Felicien – Various
• Sonali Karnick – Various
• J-F Poudrier – Various
• Karin Larsen – Copacabana
• Kelly VanderBeek – Digital
• Tanya Casole-Gouveia – Social Media
• Gabriella Cook – Social Media
• Anson Henry – Social Media

CBC Radio Hosts

• Andie Bennett – Host, Olympic Games Report
• Jill Dempsey – Host, Olympic Games Report
• Scott Regehr – Host, Olympic Games Report

 *Broadcast plans to be finalized