Greg Stremlaw: Olympics are 'pinnacle' of CBC's sports strategy

Greg Stremlaw, who took over as CBC's head of sports on Sept. 15, says that multi-platform coverage of the Olympic Games, and Canadian athletes' road to the Olympics, remain the centrepiece of the department's strategy.

The former Curling Canada CEO took time Tuesday to speak with CBCSports.ca about his new job and plans for the future.

CBCSports.ca: What made you want to take on this challenge?

Stremlaw: There have been a number of perceived challenges; [losing control of NHL broadcast rights] in particular is one that everyone is aware of. I think that with that has come the opportunity of a new sports strategy: a consistent way of trying to be successful and seeing the sports department run as a business.

It's very exciting that the Olympic Games are a pinnacle of that sports strategy ... But it's [also] those events in the buildup to the Olympic Games, really profiling the road to the Olympic Games, the opportunity to watch athletes compete to wear the Maple Leaf.

CBCSports.ca: What's your mandate?

Stremlaw: My strategy is to align with CBC's new sports strategy and to ensure that the business model makes sense. We're showcasing sports to Canadians coast to coast, and allowing them to consume sports in a very special manner that is in tune with CBC's mandate. I think that's why I really enjoy the new strategy. It provides us an opportunity to not only partner with the IOC and showcase the Olympic Games, but the 52 national sport organizations that are out there in Canada — everything from bobsleigh to tennis to rugby and so on. And that to me is exciting because there are some fabulous sporting events and cultures that have been created.

Canadians appreciate how important sport is today, more so than ever before in our history. Growing out of Vancouver 2010 in particular, we've seen the continued escalation of the pride of watching Canadians compete for that chance to wear the Maple Leaf. The recent success of the Pan Am Games and the Sochi Olympics shows that CBC Sports is in a really good place right now, and I'm excited to be involved to see how we're able to grow that further.

CBCSports.ca: With the rights to the next three Olympics secured, how important are broadcast partnerships to CBC Sports?

Stremlaw: We're in this to try and showcase as much as we can, but it has to be quality not necessarily quantity. I go back to that partnership term. I think that there are some great partnerships that we've already forged with Rogers and with Bell Media. There's a further opportunity there where there could be some potential future partnerships in the making in the months and the years ahead. I think it would be too early for me to comment on what those could be but I'm highly optimistic that both Rogers and Bell Media are currently great partners, and I believe will be even better partners in the future.

CBCSports.ca: The broadcast rights for the Olympics in 2022 and 2024 will be coming up for bid in the next few years. Under the current business model, do you see the same partnerships continuing should CBC get those rights?

Stremlaw: That's a potential opportunity, for sure. I think we want to learn from how the partnership has been working so far. We need to get our partners' feedback because obviously it can't just work for us. A partnership is truly a partnership, where we want to make sure it's working for our friends at Rogers and at Bell. Do I feel optimistic that there's another potential partnership in the making, not just Olympic Games but other sports facets? Yes, I do.

CBCSports.ca: How are you going about securing the rights to future Olympic Games?

Stremlaw: I think you manage the knowns and what you can control. With [Toronto] Mayor [John] Tory deciding not to pursue [the 2024 Olympics], it opens up five other cities [as potential hosts], one in North America and the others in Europe. At this point those are known commodities so I don't think that really necessarily changes our strategy a great deal, whereby we continue to have significant interest in the Olympic Games as a prolific sporting event worldwide, both Summer and Winter.

CBCSports.ca:​ Is that something currently on your plate?

Stremlaw: It's something that internally we're going to talk about. I'm in my early infancy here but given the fact that we've shown our cards and we've been very transparent about what our sports strategy is, in the absence of that strategy changing in a significant way, I'm not sure why we wouldn't be talking about some of the future Olympic Games as well.

CBCSports.ca: After CBC lost control of NHL broadcast rights, it was announced that the company would no longer pursue the rights to professional sports. Will that model remain the same under your leadership?

Stremlaw: I'm not looking to change the sports strategy; I'm looking to embrace it. I think there's a reason why I'm here as well. I've made a career out of what was called "amateur sport." I've been at the helm of multiple national sport organizations — bobsleigh, luge, skeleton, and, most recently, curling. I was in the skiing and snowboarding industry, and I've also been a voting member at three different international federations — curling, the FIL [luge] and the IBSF [bobsleigh and skeleton]. And so with that I want to make sure those relationships, not just in Canada but with those international federations, are also embraced because those are going to be key partners of ours in the future as well.