Insight Sports and WFN: World Fishing Network announced today that Lakeport Brewing has been named the official beer sponsor of the 2008 WFN Tour Bass Championships, a Pro-Am Canadian fishing circuit that features five Ontario-based events and a total of $1,000,000 in prize money.
“We are very excited to be a part of this elite, Canadian-based, world class sporting event,” said Tom Rolfe, Brand Manager, Lakeport Brewing. “Together with Insight Sports, we look forward to working closely with the WFN Tour Bass Championships to help build this property into an exciting and entertaining summer event that all fans of competitive sport fishing can enjoy.”
As the tournament’s official beer sponsor, Lakeport Brewing will have exclusive pouring rights at all WFN Tour Bass Championship gala events. On-shore event execution will include the Lakeport Zone beer garden. In addition, as part of the WFN Tour Bass Championships television broadcasts, the Lakeport Hot Seat, an interactive discussion forum featuring the event’s top professional anglers, has been created.
Set to debut at the Toronto Sportsmen’s Show from March 12 to 16, the Lakeport Hot Seat is a branded recliner that will feature a series of informative, hard-hitting and entertaining interviews with some of the top professional anglers competing on the tour, including Bob and Wayne Izumi, J.P. DeRose, Dave Mercer and Dave Chong.
During each day of the Toronto Sportsmen’s Show, a Lakeport Hot Seat interview will take place inside the Direct Energy Centre at the Heritage Court Seminar Stage, presented by WFN. The start time for each daily Lakeport Hot Seat interview is 3:40 p.m.
During the WFN Tour Bass Championships, the Lakeport Hot Seat will be reserved exclusively for the tournament’s leader. As part of the WFN Tour Bass Championships television broadcasts, each day will include a featured Lakeport Hot Seat segment where the tournament’s top angler will join the WFN broadcast team to provide commentary, insight and analysis on the day’s competition.
Prior to the start of the WFN Tour Bass Championships, the WFN TV website will showcase a series of informative Lakeport Hot Seat interviews and discussions with some of the top professional anglers competing on the tour.
“As a brand that is synonymous with sportsmen and the Canadian outdoors, we are thrilled to have Lakeport Brewery on board as the official beer sponsor of the 2008 WFN Tour Bass Championships,” said Dan Cimoroni, Vice President of Sports and Entertainment for Insight Sports. “We’re looking forward to partnering with Lakeport this season as we continue to grow and promote the inaugural edition of the WFN Tour Bass Championships through innovative initiatives such as the Lakeport Hot Seat.”
The WFN Tour will include top professional anglers including Bob Izumi, DeRose and Mercer as well as many international competitors from the United States and overseas. During the first four WFN Tour events, anglers will compete for a tournament purse of $150,000 while the fifth and final event, the WFN Canadian Open, will see competitors vie for a total purse of $300,000.
The following is an overview of the 2008 WFN Tour competition schedule:
| Dates | Lakes and Rivers Location |
|---|---|
| July 4-6 | Lake Simcoe/ Lake Couchiching Town of Georgina, Ont. |
| July 25-27 | Detroit River / Lake St. Clair / Lake Huron Sarnia, Ont. |
| August 22-24 | Lake Erie Port Colborne, Ont. |
| September 5-7 | Georgian Bay Midland, Ont. |
| September 19-21 | St. Lawrence / Lake Ontario Kingston, Ont. |
Each WFN Tour event will be open to both amateurs and professionals. Amateurs will battle for a variety of great prizes, while professionals will compete exclusively for prize money. Coverage of each WFN Tour event will be broadcast on WFN as well as a national television network.
The WFN Tour will also present a season-ending WFN Angler of the Year award as well as a Big Fish award, which is presented to the angler who catches the heaviest fish at each event.
Together, both awards will pay out a total of $100,000 in cash and prizes.
About WFN- World Fishing Network
Get hooked on the only network dedicated 24-hours a day, seven days a week to every single aspect of fishing. WFN provides a daily escape for Canada’s 6 million recreational and sport fishing enthusiasts, with a programming lineup that covers all aspects of angling, in five distinct programming blocks. International Waters gives viewers an instant passport to adventure, featuring the world’s top fishing destinations. Ultimate Fishing is the home of competitive fishing in Canada, with coverage of the best tournaments and tours. School of Fish is an instructional and lifestyle block that appeals to fishing enthusiasts of all ages. All-Canadian Fishing features the best fishing shows from the Great White North, including Canada’s fishing icon, Bob Izumi. American Angling gives viewers access to some of the most popular programs from south of the border. WFN is home of the FLW Tour in Canada.
About Insight Sports Ltd.
Insight Sports Ltd. is a leading sports media and entertainment company which creates and distributes sports and entertainment content across multiple platforms, including broadcast television, events, DVD, on-line, mobile, in-arena and video on-demand.
Insight Sports operates three specialty television networks: GOLTV Canada, a 24-hour soccer network; WFN: World Fishing Network, North America’s only network devoted entirely to fishing; and GameTV, the only Canadian television network that gives viewers a chance to win great prizes, simply by tuning in. The company also holds a significant interest in the NHL Network, a 24-hour hockey channel.
Insight Sports owns and operates the Capital One Grand Slam of Curling, a series of eight high-profile men’s and women’s events that feature Canada’s deepest and strongest curling fields, and Ford Major League Gaming Canada, an affiliate of Major League Gaming and the largest organized league and international sanctioning body for professional video gaming.
Insight Sports is the official sponsorship agency of the Buffalo Bills’ eight-game NFL series at the Rogers Centre in Toronto. The organization also manages Wayne Gretzky’s official website.
Aquila Productions Inc., a leader in sports television production, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Insight Sports. Based in Toronto, the principal shareholders of Insight Sports include Larry Tanenbaum (Kilmer Enterprises Inc., a subsidiary of Kilmer Van Nostrand Co. Limited) and MWI & Partners.
About Lakeport Brewery
Lakeport Brewing is an Ontario-based brewery focused on producing value-priced quality beer for the Ontario take-home market. Lakeport produces ten proprietary beer brands, two of which, Lakeport Honey Lager and Lakeport Pilsener, are two of the top ten selling brands in the province of Ontario.By: Eric Michalko
