At least for a day, the Maine Lobster Festival in Rockland will be getting national attention from the sporting world.
ESPN’s Sportscenter is visiting all 50 states this summer, and that tour across the nation will include a stop at the annual festival celebrating Maine’s famous crustacean.
“From the backyard to the big leagues, SportsCenter’s 50-state tour celebrates the full spectrum of American sports fandom,” according to an ESPN press release unveiling the “50 States in 50 Days” schedule.
The Maine leg of the tour will swing through Rockland for the annual Maine Lobster Festival, which is already underway and runs until Aug. 3. The Bangor Daily News is a festival sponsor.
Events featured in other states include the MLB Home Run Derby that took place in Georgia earlier this month, the July 4 Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest in New York and a visit with the University of Vermont soccer team in Burlington on Aug. 15.
The ESPN national tour started on June 27 and runs through Aug. 16. It features various network anchors traveling across the country, and Shae Cornette will be the host in Rockland for the Maine Lobster Festival coverage.
This is the first time in 20 years that ESPN has launched a national summer tour of this scale, according to the network. It is inspired by the initial SportsCenter Across America tour that took place in 2005.
The Maine stop on that 2005 tour featured the Wild Blueberry Festival in Machias.
This year’s segment on the Maine Lobster Festival is scheduled to air on Aug. 5.
