Kraft Heinz Project Play Announces Top 4 Finalists on TSN and RDS

One community project will be voted the grand prize winner by Canadians at KraftHeinzProjectPlay.com

TORONTO, Oct. 12, 2019 /CNW/ - Today, Kraft Heinz, TSN, and RDS announced the Top 4 finalists for the Kraft Heinz Project Play 2019 program. These community projects are in the running for the $250,000 grand prize for much-needed upgrades. The finalists include:

• Twin Elm Rugby Park in Nepean, ON
• Would like to rejuvenate their decades-old facilities to offer the community a place to enjoy rugby for years to come. Among the upgrades are structural issues such as a new roof and accessible amenities.
• Lanigan Swimming Pool in Lanigan, SK
• After years of use, the community pool is in need of repair. A new pool will give residents of Lanigan an accessible, user-friendly place to swim.
• Lamont Sports Park in Saugeen Shores, ON
• Would like to build more ball diamonds which will help get more community members involved in baseball, fastball and softball. With a growing waitlist, more fields would give the community more opportunity to play.  
• The Larch Hills Nordic Society Trail Lighting Project in Salmon Arm, BC
• With night falling as early as 4pm in the winter months the Larch Hills Nordic Society is hoping to light up the ski trails to allow users to ski safely and for more hours

"Places to play are truly at the center of Canadian communities and this was clear in the thousands of stories we received from coast to coast," said Matt Bruce, Brand Manager, Kraft Heinz Canada. "This is the 11^th year of the program and it's always amazing to see how communities come together to rally behind projects so close to their hearts."

Canadians can join in to celebrate and support these communities by voting for their favourite finalist story at kraftheinzprojectplay.com from October 18 at 12:00 p.m. ET, until October 20 at 12:00 p.m. ET. The Kraft Heinz Project Play Grand Prize winner will then be announced on Monday, October 21 in the 6 p.m. ET edition of TSN's SportsCentre, and in RDS's weekday sports news show Le 5 à 7, earning a quarter of a million dollars ($250,000) for a sports facility upgrade. The other three finalists will each receive $25,000.

The final four were selected by a judging panel that evaluated each nomination based on the following criteria: the community project's importance within the community, how the prize money would be used, and the nominated community's spirit and passion for play. New this year was the consideration of rally points, as well – measured by the number of stories submitted by a community, social media sharing, photograph or video additions, and reactions.

This year's top four finalists were revealed by Kraft Heinz Project Play ambassadors James Duthie of TSN and Valérie Sardin of RDS during the networks' live broadcast of the October 12 CFL game between the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Montreal Alouettes.

Over the past 10 years, Kraft Heinz Project Play has awarded nearly $3M to 77 communities. In total, Kraft Heinz has supported 183 communities, contributing over $7.4M to play-based infrastructure projects across Canada.

To learn more about these communities, visit kraftheinzprojectplay.com and show your support on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using #ProjectPlay.

ABOUT KRAFT HEINZ COMPANY
The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ: KHC) is the third-largest food and beverage company in North America and the fifth-largest food and beverage company in the world, with eight $1 billion+ brands. A globally trusted producer of delicious foods, The Kraft Heinz Company provides high quality, great taste and nutrition for all eating occasions whether at home, in restaurants or on the go. The Company's iconic brands include Kraft, Heinz, ABC, Capri Sun, Classico, Jell-O, Kool-Aid, Lunchables, Maxwell House, Ore-Ida, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Planters, Plasmon, Quero, Weight Watchers Smart Ones and Velveeta. The Kraft Heinz Company is dedicated to the sustainable health of our people, our planet and our Company. For more information, visit www.kraftheinzcompany.com.

ABOUT TSN
TSN is Canada's Sports Leader and provides world-class content across its industry-leading platforms including five national television feeds, TSN Direct, TSN.ca, and TSN Radio stations across the country. With a broad portfolio of multimedia sports assets, TSN delivers more championship events than any broadcaster in the country. The network's deep and diverse roster of live sports programming includes the Grey Cup, IIHF World Junior Championship, Spengler Cup, Hockey Canada events, CFL, NFL, NBA, MLS, Toronto Maple Leafs, Ottawa Senators, Montreal Canadiens, Winnipeg Jets, Season of Champions Curling, FIFA World Cup™, Canada Soccer, CONCACAF Gold Cup, MLB, Golf's Majors, NASCAR, F1, Grand Slam Tennis, UFC, NCAA March Madness, and Skate Canada and Rugby Canada events. TSN comes from Bell Media, Canada's premier multimedia company with leading assets in television, radio, digital, and Out-of-Home. More information about TSN is available at TSN.ca.

ABOUT RDS
RDS is Canada's French-language sports broadcasting leader. In addition to its world-class content delivered across multiple platforms, including RDS, RDS2, RDS Info, RDS.ca and RDS GO, RDS offers the broadest portfolio of French-language sports programming in the world. Official broadcaster of the Montreal Canadiens and the Ottawa Senators, CFL and Grey Cup, NFL and Super Bowl, MLB and World Series, Olympic Games until 2024, FIFA World Cup until 2026, Premier League, exclusive French-language broadcaster of the Montreal Alouettes, Laval Rocket, Formula 1 and the Tour de France, RDS's slate of channels present more than 4,000 hours of live programming each year, including UFC, the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship and World Junior Championship, NASCAR, PGA Tour golf including all four majors, ATP tennis including all four Grand Slam tournaments, Season of Champions Curling and Skate Canada events. RDS is a division of Bell Media, which is part of BCE Inc. (TSX, NYSE: BCE), Canada's largest communications company. For more on Bell Media, please visit BellMedia.ca.

SOURCE The Kraft Heinz Company

or to speak with a representative from Kraft Heinz Project Play, please contact: Grace Chaoui, Weber Shandwick, 514-623-9307, [email protected]; For TSN: Rob Duffy, 416.384.5717, [email protected]