SportsCentre will be seaside in Nanaimo this weekend.
TSN anchors Darren Dutchyshen, Kate Beirness and their crew are coming to the Harbour City for a live broadcast of the show Saturday (Aug. 16) as part of this year's Kraft Celebration Tour.
The city was awarded the tour stop and $25,000 toward a community boathouse at Long Lake, a project of the Nanaimo Canoe and Kayak Club and the Nanaimo Rowing Club.
Every year, TSN anchors tour the country, and Dutchyshen said it’s enjoyable to take the show on the road.
“It really is a good time. The town’s proud; we’re happy to be there,” he said. “Whatever city or community we go to, it’s a fun day … it’s a really good party. I love it.”
Ten communities across the country were selected for 2014, and Nanaimo will be the first Western Canada tour stop. TSN will roll in with its satellite trucks and crew and create a mobile set at Maffeo Sutton Park that day.
“Kate and I are the clowns,” joked Dutchyshen. “The circus rolls into town and we know who the clowns are.”
Doing a live show at a public park far from the studio in Toronto adds some unpredictability to the broadcast, but crowds across the country are supportive of SportsCentre, Dutchyshen said.
“We have not had a problem whatsoever,” he said. “The people have been fantastic. The people kind of police themselves because the community wants to be represented in a good light.”
The TSN personalities tend to get celebrity treatment on the tour. Canadians love their sports, said Dutchyshen, and have built a sort of relationship with their favourite highlights show.
“We’re there every night … and I think we do a pretty good job,” he said. “I’m pretty proud of what we do on a day-by-day basis.”
The event begins at 1 p.m. with a free community barbecue and SportsCentre starts at 3 p.m.
sports@nanaimobulletin.com
TSN SportsCentre will be seaside in #Nanaimo this Saturday… http://t.co/RjUjr0nEju @dutchysc @SportsCentre pic.twitter.com/t62VVMn80u
— Greg Sakaki (@BulletinSports) August 12, 2014