Canadians from coast to coast got a chance to get to know the Royal City on Sunday.

As a winner in the Kraft Celebration Tour, New Westminster earned a $25,000 donation from Kraft Canada for the new youth centre, a community barbecue and a live broadcast from TSN's SportsCentre.

"It went really well," said Sandon Fraser, the city's youth services coordinator. "It looks great on camera. The crowd looks great, really passionate."

City officials estimate about 2,000 people attended throughout the day, with about 1,000 people attending at any one time. A few people drifted off when the NASCAR race ran late and the TSN taping was delayed.

Fraser, who chaired a committee that had less than a month to organize the community celebration, was impressed with the event and the turnout. It included activities such as a dunk tank, an autograph area, an entertainment stage and a sports zone.

Members of the B.C. Lions and the Felions attended, as did former NHL player Cliff Ronning. Fin, the Canucks mascot, Winger, the Whitecaps mascot, the Kool-Aid mascot and Crunchie and Smoothie (Kraft peanut butter mascots) also attended.

Members of the New Westminster Salmonbellies, who are getting set to vie for the Mann Cup, and the New Westminster Hyacks football team, both attended. TSN anchors Jay Onrait and Dan O'Toole practised with both teams and filmed segments that aired Sunday.

"It was a really good experience for the city," Fraser said. "We are the first big city to win the award."

Fraser said it was cool seeing kids leaving with autographs from local heroes and having a chance to appear on national television.

New Westminster beat Nelson in online voting to win the contest. The event was held at Tipperary Park and city hall's Fourth Street parking lot, with the TSN taping having a backdrop of New Westminster's waterfront.

"We were shown across Canada. That is a really great thing," Fraser said. "The view was amazing. You could see people's in the background, and water and mountains."