User:Zanimum/Paralympic Games on Canadian television

Post-Games highlight shows (1996-2000)
The Paralympics received a broadcast for the first time on Canadian television in 1996. A two-hour special on the 1996 Summer Paralympics aired on September 14, at 2 pm, significantly after the August 25 closing. Calgary Herald urged "much more media coverage," stating that "Television networks are reluctant to televise events, as they are convinced their audiences have no interest in watching Paralympians performing at their best." The Disability Network, a CBC weekly series, aired a piece on the Paralympics.

Coverage expanded modestly in 1998, for the 1998 Winter Paralympics, as CBC Radio offered daily reports during the games. Announcing a single recap program in February, scheduled for air on March 28, an additional special was added March 21.

The CBC produced and aired a series of 120 vignettes about Olympic and Paralympic athletes, shown in the lead up to the 2000 Games. Each 30 seconds, they included Stuart McGregor.

"[The lack of media coverage] bothers us all a little bit, but it's also the reality of the world in which we function. We follow the Olympic Games, and it's impossible to maintain that level of enthusiasm and hype. We'll have some daily coverage back home, so we're making some progress, and hopefully over time we'll be able to garner more public attention through the media."

says Canadian mission chief Wayne Hellquist, who hails from Saskatoon.

"What I'd like to see now is . . . well . . . the CBC broadcasts 18 hours a day of Olympic coverage, then they go home, and we don't get anything. For me, it'd be more rewarding to see the CBC stay there and have daily coverage from the Paralympics (than to actually merge with the Olympics)."

A highlight show aired on November 11, from 3:30 to 5 pm.

WeMedia had the international webcasting rights to the Paralympics. It offered three daily feeds, each running 12 hours a day, then repeating for the next 12 hours. Comparably, broadcasters of that year's Olympic Games were limited in what they could post, as they lacked geo-blocking.

https://web.archive.org/web/20001109043700/http://www.wemedia.com/ https://web.archive.org/web/20030408015417/http://www.wemedia.com/aboutus.asp https://www.newsday.com/business/technology/we-media-inc-nets-a-15m-boost-for-web-site-1.337579

International Paralympic Committee president Robert Steadward, of Edmonton, criticized CBC's coverage of the Games. In a 2001 profile by Edmonton Journal, Steadward asked "How, for instance, can you justify to taxpayers CBC spending $25 million on the Olympics and zero on the Paralympics?"

Same-day coverage (2002- )
For the 2002 Winter Paralympics in Salt Lake City, the CBC expanded to 10 hours of same-day taped coverage. Terry Leibel hosted the opening ceremonies March 9 at 2 pm in Montreal and 4:30 pm in Toronto, followed by half hour shows daily, at 11:30 pm to midnight and 2 to 2:30 pm. Brenda Irving was also part of coverage. Canadians could also see daily programs through A&E. Jeff Adams was a commentator.

Paralympic broadcasting rights were paired with Olympic rights, internationally, as of 2003. Contracts from that year on included both.

Canadian team trials for wheelchair racing were broadcast in July 2004, a first. Para-athlete Rob Snoek provided commentary.

Women's wheelchair athletics was carried live on CBC, during the 2004 Summer Olympics. In contrast, Jeff Adams' race was shown nine hours after it was held. A medal contender, Adams crashed in the race. He noted that Perdita Felicien fell at her first hurdle, but that race was shown repeatedly in primetime.

The 2004 Summer Paralympics themselves received either 19 or 21 hours of same-day coverage, segments, and highlights. Sports media commentator Chris Zelkovich noted that the coverage was "sorely lacking," but comparable to any amateur sport, outside of major multi-sport events. Brenda Irving served as host. Jessica Matassa's coach Dave Greig was a colour commentator.

CBC's coverage of the 2006 Winter Paralympics were announced by June 2005. The CBC presumed to pass on the 2006 Commonwealth Games, due to its close proximity to Paralympics and other events, but announced in January 2006 that it would be showing the Commonwealth Games. The Commonwealth Games received an hour's coverage daily, while the Paralympics were reduced to 5- or 8-minute highlight packages in the afternoon and after The National. Additionally, a program aired during CBC Sports Saturday. Kimberly Joines recalled being interviewed daily by CBC, but doubted any of it made air, other than her win. In mid-April, the sledge hockey team's gold medal game was aired.

Livestreaming era (2016 on)
Access to the programming expanded significantly with the popularization of livestreaming.

For the 2016 Summer Paralympics, the Canadian Paralympic Broadcast Consortium including the CBC, Radio-Canada, Sportsnet ONE, AMI-tv, AMI télé, and the Canadian Paralympic Committee itself. Each station aired daily content, with CBC airing Paralympic Games Wrap-Up daily in the evening, as well as Paralympic Games Afternoon and Paralympic Games Primetime on weekends. They also aired the opening and closing ceremonies. Sportsnet repeated Wrap-Up the next morning, and AMI-tv showing live programs with described video. French broadcasters offered 40 hours on television and 650 hours online. Through the CBC Sports website and app, more than 700 hours of programming was livestreamed, at times 11 feeds at once. Radio-Canada broadcast highlights hosted by Jean St-Onge, and live segments on weekends, hosted by Marie-Josée Turcotte. Live clips also aired on Facebook and Twitter. Yahoo Sports Canada, Videogami, and SendtoNews were also part of the consortium. The consortium logged an audience of 10.2 million, a 208% increase over London 2012. Between platforms, there was over 1200 hours of coverage. The coverage earned it the 2017 Paralympic Media Award for best broadcast.

Expanded coverage

Additional programs on Paralympians

 * Athletes in the First Person: feature on Jeff Adams' training, March 6, 2004
 * Moving On: episode on Canadian sledge hockey goalie Paul Rosen
 * Women Warriors: Lauren Woolstencroft profile, 2003