Wellington (AFP)
New Zealand rugby players, All Blacks in mind, will share their tips for staying fit during a period of confinement following the coronavirus pandemic on a television channel.
The program entitled "Isolation Nation" is presented by the former international Israel Dagg and broadcast on Wednesday and Sunday on the pay channel Sky Sport.
In the first issue, the back of the All Blacks Beauden Barrett, scrum halves Aaron Smith and TJ Perenara showed viewers the exercises they were doing to maintain their physical condition during the suspension of Super Rugby, the club championship the southern hemisphere.
"The important thing is to try to keep as much normalcy as possible in this period of confinement," explained Beauden Barrett who, for the broadcast, managed to propel a rugby ball to the foot of his balcony in a basketball hoop.
"The players have shown that they were born hosts," said Tex Teixeira, programming manager for the Sky Sport channel.
"We have all seen that they were good on the field, we now understand how they work, what motivates them (...) Like all of us, they want to stay fit, healthy and motivated to be able to resume competition as soon as the Covid-19 has disappeared, they show us what they are doing to achieve it, "he added.
Skey Network, which no longer has any connection with the British audiovisual giant Sky, holds the broadcasting rights for Super rugby and All Blacks matches until 2025.
But the New Zealand television channel, listed on the Wellington Stock Exchange, saw its share price lose 50% in March when it is possible that Super Rugby does not resume and that the test matches of the All Blacks are canceled.
© 2020 AFP