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Barcelona Olympics 1992: Montreal's golden girl
From Melbourne to Montreal, Munich to Mexico City, the CBC has roamed the planet to beam Olympic history into Canadian living rooms. We take a look back and, through the eyes of CBC correspondents, experience decades of Olympic triumph and heartbreak. At first, it's via crackling shortwave. Later, live TV coverage flows around-the-clock from the other side of the globe.
. Sylvie Fréchette was born in Montreal in 1967. She started synchronized swimming at age eight in Laval, Que. At the 1990 Commonwealth Games, Fréchette became the first in her sport to receive perfect 10s from all judges in a solo event. A year later, she became solo world champion, a title she held going into the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. Despite the trauma of her fiancé killing himself just before the Games, she gave the performance of her life.
. Sixteen months after graciously accepting the silver medal, Fréchette exchanged it for gold on Dec. 15, 1993, in front of a cheering crowd at the Forum in Montreal. The IOC and a member federation reversed their position and recognized the judging error. The medal was presented to a crying Fréchette by IOC vice-president Pound. Kristen Babb-Sprague, the American who had been awarded gold in Barcelona, was allowed to keep her medal.
. Fréchette retired from competition after helping Canada win a silver medal in team synchronized swimming at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.
. Barcelona marked the first summer Olympics where CTV - not the CBC - won the broadcast rights for Canada. CTV's winning bid was $16.5 million US, more than four times what the CBC paid for the 1988 summer Games in Seoul. CTV president Murray Chercover hailed the winning bid as "a historic day for CTV." Newspaper reports at the time said CTV executives were shocked that their bid won.
. In 1998, the CBC, in partnership with sports specialty channel TSN and its French counterpart RDS, paid $160 million US for broadcast rights to five Olympics. The deal covered the summer Games of Sydney in 2000, Athens in 2004 and Beijing in 2008 and the winter Games of Salt Lake City in 2002 and Turin, Italy, in 2006.
. On Feb. 7, 2005, the IOC awarded Canadian broadcast rights for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games and the 2012 Summer Games to CTV Inc. and Rogers Communications. CTV and Rogers outbid the CBC with a winning offer of $153 million US for the two Games. American rights had already been granted to NBC for a record $2.2 billion US.
Program: The World At Six
Broadcast Date: Aug. 6, 1992
Guest(s): Laurin Jaubin
Reporter: Jean Laroche
Duration: 2:17
Last updated: February 7, 2012
Page consulted on August 21, 2012
All Clips from this Topic
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Thom Benson paints a radio portrait of Melbourne on the eve of the 195...
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Canadians hear - and see - the Rome Games.
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A look at bustling Japan one year before the 1964 Olympics.
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Sportscaster Ward Cornell on the Tokyo Olympics beat.
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The murder of 11 Israeli athletes wounds the Olympic dream.
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(Poor video) CBC's ORTO will tape every event at the Montreal Games.
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Canadians get all Games, all the time.
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The football great gives his two cents on Montreal and its Games.
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The Canadian government wants the broadcaster to join the boycott.
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CBC joins Canada in snubbing the Soviets.
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Don Wittman got an uncomfortably close look at a Munich hostage-taker.
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The IOC raises concerns over U.S.-focused coverage.
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Tanned and taut, L.A. wears the rings well.
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Hometown fans are outraged that a judge's error leaves Sylvie Fréchett...
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Peter Jordan wins a bronze medal in the mud pit belly flop.
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A bombing and logistical problems can't dash Atlantans' spirits.
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Brian Williams on covering the Ben Johnson roller-coaster.
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CBC pulls all-nighters to show the Sydney Games live.
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From Melbourne to Montreal, Munich to Mexico City, the CBC has roamed ...