The Amazing Race Canada 8 is the eighth season of The Amazing Race Canada, a Canadian reality competition show based on the American series The Amazing Race. Hosted by Jon Montgomery, it featured ten teams of two, each with a pre-existing relationship, in a race across Canada. The grand prize included a CA$250,000 cash payout, a trip for two around the world, and two Chevrolet Silverado ZR2s. This season visited five provinces and travelled over during eleven legs. Starting in Mont-Tremblant, Quebec, racers travelled through Quebec, Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario, and New Brunswick before finishing in Vancouver. New twists introduced in this season include the On Ramp, which was a task that gave teams the chance to reenter The Amazing Race Canada; the Pass, which forced a team to stop racing until another team passed them; a double elimination leg; and four teams racing in the final leg. The season was originally scheduled to premiere on CTV in July 2020; however, after the COVID-19 pandemic forced production to postpone the season for two years due to travel restrictions between selected Canadian provinces, it premiered on July 5, 2022 with a preseason special etalk Presents: The Amazing Race Canada airing on July 1. The season finale aired on September 20, 2022.
Best friends and Broadway performers Catherine Wreford and Craig Ramsay were the winners of this season, while siblings Jesse Cockney and Marika Sila finished in second place, sisters Franca and Nella Brodett finished in third place, and Brendan and Connor McDougall finished in fourth place.
Production Development and filming
The day after the finale of Season 7, CTV announced the renewal of the show for an eighth season.
After the COVID-19 pandemic led to CBS suspending production of the thirty-third season of American edition of The Amazing Race and Network 10 delaying the production of fifth season of The Amazing Race Australia, before eventually filming that season around Australia, Mike Cosentino, the President of Content and Programming at Bell Media, stated in mid-March 2020 that "decisions around the upcoming eighth season will be made with the health and safety of the Racers and the crew as the top priority." As the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada worsened, Consentino stated two months later that pre-production for the upcoming season had been halted due to safety concerns. On June 23, 2020, the show announced on its social media that the season had been postponed until 2021. Insight Productions CEO John Brunton then stated in an interview on June 3, 2021 that the season would be delayed a second time to 2022 at the latest for safety reasons. Bell Media confirmed the second postponement at upfronts a week later with Justin Stockman, Bell Media's vice-president of content development and programming, announcing that the show would be a part of CTV's summer 2022 schedule.
On April 26, 2022, Ivanoh Demers of Radio-Canada reported that crew members were at La Grande Roue de Montréal. Teams were in Lethbridge, Alberta on April 30. On May 1, the show filmed in Fernie, British Columbia. Filming in Canmore, Alberta occurred on May 4. Racers were spotted in Kelowna and Vernon, British Columbia on May 6 & 7. Filming took place in Belleville and Picton, Ontario on May 12. A task at the Richmond Night Market occurred on May 21, the date when filming officially wrapped.
For the first time in the series, host Jon Montgomery doesn't introduce the teams; instead, the teams introduce themselves.
This season introduced two new obstacles: the On Ramp and the Pass. The On Ramp was a task that allowed teams to find an On Ramp Pass and return to The Amazing Race Canada. The Pass was an obstacle that is similar to the Yield. The team that received the Pass would have to wait for another team to arrive and pass them before continuing on. Also, for the first time in Amazing Race Canada history, four teams competed in the final leg. Similar to the sixth Vietnamese season, all four remaining teams in this season crossed the Finish Line.
Casting Casting for the season initially began on October 10, 2019 with a deadline of December 1. On January 8, 2020, the first stage of casting for this season was completed. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, contestants were required to be fully vaccinated.
Marketing Chevrolet and Expedia returned as sponsors. New sponsors included Desjardins Group, Subway Canada, Destination BC, GURU Organic Energy, Marshalls, Tourism Richmond, Trans Canada Trail, Disney+, which promoted Pinocchio and Andor, and Marvel Studios, which promoted Thor: Love and Thunder and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.
Cast
The cast includes Big Brother Canada 9 winner Tychon Carter-Newman, Broadway theatre actress Catherine Wreford, Inuvialuit Olympic cross-country skier Jesse Cockney, actress and Inuvialuit activist Marika Sila, and singer and Juno Award-winning artist Jully Black. ContestantsAgeRelationshipHometownStatus (Returned to competition)Eliminated 1st(in Montreal, Quebec) (Returned to competition)Eliminated 2nd(in Fernie, British Columbia) 44Friends Toronto, OntarioEliminated 3rd(in Vernon, British Columbia) 41 Regina, Saskatchewan 42Uncle & NephewHalifax, Nova ScotiaEliminated 4th(in London, Ontario) 33 50Father & SonMontreal, QuebecEliminated 5th & 6th(in Sandbanks Provincial Park, Ontario) 30 31EngagedToronto, Ontario 32 39Dating Couple Whistler, British ColumbiaEliminated 7th(in Pokeshaw, New Brunswick) 33 Fernie, British Columbia 30Friends Toronto, OntarioEliminated 8th(in Georgian Bluffs, Ontario) 32 Vancouver, British Columbia 29BrothersMcDougall, OntarioFourth place 26 32SistersEdmonton, AlbertaThird place 30 32SiblingsCanmore, AlbertaRunners-up 29 42Friends Winnipeg, ManitobaWinners 45 Windsor, Ontario
Future appearances Brendan McDougall competed with Sam May from season 10 on season 11.
In 2024, Cedric Newman competed on the second season of The Traitors Canada. In 2025, Cedric & Tychon competed on Family Feud Canada.
Results The following teams are listed with their placements in each leg. Placements are listed in finishing order.
A placement with a dagger () indicates that the team was eliminated. An placement with a double-dagger () indicates that the team was the last to arrive at a Pit Stop in a non-elimination leg, and had to perform a Speed Bump task in the following leg. An italicized and underlined placement indicates that the team was the last to arrive at a Pit Stop, but there was no rest period at the Pit Stop and all teams were instructed to continue racing. A indicates that the team used an Express Pass on that leg to bypass one of their tasks. A indicates that the team used the Pass and a indicates the team on the receiving end of the Pass. A indicates that the leg featured a Face Off challenge.
+Team placement (by leg) Team1234567891011 Catherine & Craig5th5th1st 7th3rd4th1st2nd1st Jesse & Marika8th2nd4th2nd1st6th1st1st4th3rd2nd Franca & Nella4th1st7th3rd2nd1st2nd3rd2nd4th3rd Brendan & Connor1st4th2nd1st3rd2nd4th5th1st4th Beverley & Veronica2nd3rd3rd6th4th4th5th2nd3rd Court & Ali6th9th5th8th6th5th Cedric & Tychon9th6th6th4th6th3rd Cassie & Jahmeek3rd8th5th5th Dennis & Durrell7th7th8th Jully & Kathy 5th
Notes
Race summary
Leg 1 (Quebec)
Episode 1: "Come on Doodlebug" (July 5, 2022) Prizes: A trip for two to Los Angeles, California, including tickets to the Hollywood premiere of Thor: Love and Thunder; a $2,500 Marshalls gift card; and three Express Passes (awarded to Brendan & Connor) Eliminated: Jully & Kathy Locations Mont-Tremblant, Quebec (Mont Tremblant Resort – Place St-Bernard) (Starting Line) Mont-Tremblant (Village Dock) → Montreal (Old Montreal) Montreal (La Grande Roue de Montréal) Montreal (Upstairs Jazz The Wiggle Room) Montreal (Rialto Theatre) Episode summary Teams set off from the starting line at Mont Tremblant Resort and had to search for five marked plaques in order to decode a book cipher. After unscrambling their letters to spell OLD MONTREAL, teams received their next clue, which directed them to the Mont-Tremblant village dock, where they had to sign up for one of two buses to Old Montreal, each of which would carry five teams and departed 15 minutes apart. Once there, teams had to find one of two people wearing flat-panel display digital posters for Thor: Love and Thunder in order to receive their next clue and a piece of Mjölnir. In this season's first Roadblock, one team member had to climb to the top of La Grande Roue de Montréal and retrieve their next clue and another piece of Mjölnir. This season's first Detour was a choice between Jazz and Pizzazz. In Jazz, teams had to perform a song by Juno Award winner Ranee Lee, which had to include improvised scat singing, in order to receive their next clue and another piece of Mjölnir. In Pizzazz, teams had to perform a burlesque routine, which included removing articles of their costumes in the correct order, in order to receive their next clue and a piece of Mjölnir. At the Rialto Theatre, teams had to assemble their pieces of Mjölnir before they could check into the Pit Stop.
Leg 2 (Quebec → Alberta)
Episode 2: "Goatageddon" (July 12, 2022) Prizes: A trip for two to Lima, Peru, a $5,000 Marshalls gift card, and a $5,000 Subway gift card (awarded to Franca & Nella) Locations Montreal (Place des Arts) Montreal → Calgary, Alberta (Calgary International Airport) Lethbridge (Indian Battle Park – Rattlesnake Statue) Lethbridge (Helen Schuler Nature Centre Fort Whoop-Up) Lethbridge (Subway) Lethbridge (Ctrl V Virtual Reality Arcade) Waterton Park (Prince of Wales Hotel) Episode summary At the start of this leg, teams were instructed to fly to Calgary, Alberta. Once there, teams had to search the airport parking lot for a marked SUV, which contained their next clue. Teams were directed to Indian Battle Park in Lethbridge, where they had to watch a Siksika dance before receiving a golden eagle feather and their next clue. This leg's Detour was a choice between Hoot or Herd. In Hoot, one team member had to memorize seven owl sounds and the other team member had to memorize descriptions of the sounds. When teams could match the sounds to the descriptions, they received their next clue. In Herd, teams had to choose a coloured bandana, find nine goats wearing the same coloured bandanas, and correctly add the numbers on the bandanas from memory in order to receive their next clue. At a Subway restaurant in Lethbridge, teams had to memorize a list of vegetables (22 tomatoes, 15 bell peppers, 18 onions, and 27 cucumbers), collect the vegetables from three farm stands outside the city, and deliver them to the restaurant to receive their next clue and free Subway sandwiches. In this leg's Roadblock, one team member had to don a virtual reality headset, play a game of Rhythmatic, and score at least 90% in order to receive their next clue directing them to the Pit Stop: the Prince of Wales Hotel in Waterton Park. Additional note By happenstance, retired National Hockey League player Ron Sutter helped siblings Jesse Cockney and Marika Sila with directions during this leg. There was no elimination at the end of this leg; all teams were instead instructed to continue racing.
Leg 3 (Alberta → British Columbia)
Episode 3: "We Love Weenies!" (July 19, 2022) Prizes: A trip for two to Bangkok, Thailand, and a $2,000 Marshalls gift card (awarded to Catherine & Craig) Eliminated: Cassie & Jahmeek Locations Waterton Park (Pat's Waterton → Wieners of Waterton) Pincher Station (Grain Elevator) → Sparwood, British Columbia (Terex Titan) Fernie (Kootenay Fly Shop & Guiding Co. & Elk River GearHub Sports) Fernie (2nd Avenue) Fernie (Fernie Golf Course – 4th Hole) Episode summary