New deal to improve Olympic coverage in Bermuda and Caribbean

Philip Guishard, Secretary-General of the Bermuda Olympic Association (BOA) today commented on the recent decision of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to award the regional broadcasting rights to the 2016 Rio Games - to CANOC Broadcasting Inc.(CBI).

CANOC Broadcasting Inc. (CBI) is a company that has been formed by the National Olympic Committees (NOCs) and Commonwealth Games Associations (CGAs) across the Caribbean to purchase, monetise and manage the broadcast rights for the Olympic Games and other sporting properties.

Mr. Guishard said, “The BOA is very pleased to be a part of this venture, which has been in the making for a number of years.  With previous broadcasting arrangements, Bermudians—like residents of other countries in the region—have been often been frustrated by a lack of coverage of our athletes performing on the world stage.  With the IOC having awarded regional broadcasting rights to CBI, we anticipate that much more coverage of our athletes will be available for competition in Rio and in other events of the world sports stage.”

INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE

PRESS RELEASE

Monday 11 November 2013

www.olympic.org

IOC awards 2016 broadcast rights in the Caribbean

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has awarded the broadcast rights in the Caribbean to the CANOC Broadcasting Inc. (CBI) for the Games of the XXXI Olympiad in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2016).

CBI has acquired broadcast rights on all media platforms in all languages in the following territories:

Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Commonwealth of the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Cooperative Republic of Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago and the Turks and Caicos.

IOC President Thomas Bach said: "Throughout the history of the Olympic Games, athletes from across the Caribbean have produced outstanding, inspirational performances. We are pleased to have reached this agreement to enable extensive broadcast coverage of the Rio 2016 Games in the region."

IOC Member Richard Carrión, who led the negotiations, said: "CBI will now work to secure broadcast partners across the region to ensure the best coverage of the Olympic Games in Rio. The agreement includes assurances that there will be expansive free television coverage of the Games."

CBI’s CEO, Larry Romany said, "This agreement heralds a new era for sport in the Caribbean. The economic benefits present considerable funding opportunities for developing youth in the Region and increases the viability and international competitiveness of the Caribbean athlete. We are very excited at the prospect of a more integrated approach to the development of sports."