January 24, 2006 – From March 15 to 26, CBC continues in its role as Canada’s premier broadcaster of elite amateur athletes with 12 consecutive days of coverage of the XVIII Commonwealth Games from Melbourne, Australia.

Beginning March 15 at 3 p.m. (local), CBC’s daily one-hour broadcasts-hosted by Gemini Award-winner Scott Russell-will highlight 4,500 elite athletes from 71 nations competing in 16 sports and 24 disciplines. Continuing through to March 26, CBC’s coverage of the XVIII Commonwealth Games will air at 3 p.m. (local) each day, with encore presentations airing nightly at 8 p.m. ET on CBC Newsworld. (Please see full broadcast schedule below).

“We are very proud to bring Canadians coverage of the 2006 Commonwealth Games and continue our commitment to high performance sports,” said Nancy Lee, executive director of CBC Sports. “Canada was the first country to host the Commonwealth Games in 1930, and this wonderful event presents an important opportunity for Canadian athletes to begin paving their journey to Beijing in 2008 and be recognized among the world’s best.”

The XVIII Commonwealth Games marks the fourth time Australia will be hosting the event and includes the following sports: aquatics, track and field, badminton, basketball, boxing, cycling, gymnastics, field hockey, lawn bowling, net ball, rugby, shooting, squash, table tennis, triathlon and weightlifting.

“I’m delighted to welcome Canada’s premier sports broadcaster-Canadian Broadcasting Corporation-to the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games rights-holder family,” said Ronald J. Walker, Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games Chairman. “We look forward to welcoming Canada’s athletes to Melbourne in March and watching them compete in one of the biggest sporting events in the world in 2006.”

CBC Sports continues to be Home of the Champions, bringing Canadians coverage of the top international sporting events, including the Commonwealth Games, the World Figure Skating Championships and The Olympic Games (Torino 2006 and Beijing 2008).

Viewers can log on to CBC.ca/sports 24 hours a day, seven days a week for comprehensive news and results throughout the 2006 Commonwealth Games.

Melbourne 2006 – XVIII Commonwealth Games
CBC TELEVISION BROADCAST SCHEDULE

– Wednesday, March 15 3 p.m. (Local)
– Thursday, March 16 3 p.m. (Local)
– Friday, March 17 3 p.m. (Local)
– Saturday, March 18 Following CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA
After Hours
– Sunday, March 19 2 p.m. (Local)
– Monday, March 20 3 p.m. (Local)
– Tuesday, March 21 3 p.m. (Local)
– Wednesday, March 22 3 p.m. (Local)
– Thursday, March 23 3 p.m. (Local)
– Friday, March 24 3 p.m. (Local)
– Saturday, March 25 Following CBC’S HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA
After Hours
– Sunday, March 26 11:30 a.m. ET Ontario – East; 4 p.m. ET Manitoba – West
*MAY BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE

Melbourne 2006 – XVIII Commonwealth Games
CBC NEWSWORLD BROADCAST SCHEDULE

– Wednesday, March 15 8 p.m. ET
– Thursday, March 16 8 p.m. ET
– Friday, March 17 8 p.m. ET
– Saturday, March 18 8 p.m. ET
– Sunday, March 19 8 p.m. ET
– Monday, March 20 8 p.m. ET
– Tuesday, March 21 8 p.m. ET
– Wednesday, March 22 8 p.m. ET
– Thursday, March 23 8 p.m. ET
– Friday, March 24 8 p.m. ET
– Saturday, March 25 8 p.m. ET
– Sunday, March 26 8 p.m. ET
*MAY BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE