Canwest is bringing the obstacle course game show Wipeout to Canada.

A Canuck format of the hit ABC series will premiere on TVtropolis next year, challenging contestants on a large and physically demanding course for cash prizes. Canwest says it will announce host and casting details in the ‘near future,’ while production will get underway in the fall.

Lone Eagle Entertainment executive producer Rachel Horvath says that the prod co is open to content integration opportunities and that it has been done successfully with other international versions of the show. Canwest spokesperson Nikki Lamb Tudico says there will also be further opportunities as the show develops.

‘Advertisers will have three key opportunities to connect with their target consumers by capitalizing on this exciting and engaging production: casting promotion, branding on set and program sponsorship,’ she said in an email interview with MiC.

ABC’s Wipeout, produced by Endemol USA, became the network’s top-rated summer premiere in three years in 2008. It also aired on Global Television, distributed here by Disney.

‘The Wipeout course is hilariously unpredictable and, to the delight of TVtropolis viewers, Canadians across the country will now have a chance to test their skills,’ commented Canwest’s SVP of content for lifestyle channels Karen Gelbart in a release.

The broadcaster has had ratings success in the past with Canadian spin-offs of game shows including Are You Smarter Than a Canadian 5th Grader? and Deal or No Deal Canada. Wipeout has been licensed to some 25 territories.

From Playback Daily, with files from Media in Canada