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The prodigal rodeo is returning, though technically it never left.

Three sources said Monday that the Canadian Professional Rodeo Association has decided against moving the Canadian Finals Rodeo to Saskatoon and will soon sign a deal to continue holding its championship event at Northlands Coliseum for at least 2017 and 2018.

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An announcement has been planned for Wednesday, pending final signatures.

CPRA director Jonathan Kmita did not respond to a request for comment. Jeff Robson, a former association GM and now head of their negotiating committee, said Monday afternoon he could not comment on the state of CFR negotiations. Northlands spokesperson Lori Cote would not comment when reached Monday.

To put it mildly, the CFR and the CPRA have been on a roller-coaster ride for several months.

Now, after a summer of executive upheaval, the association is under competent new management, their crown jewel back where it belongs, for as long as the Coliseum is capable of holding it, at any rate. The new leadership’s insistence on maintaining a presence in Edmonton speaks to the event’s long, successful history here. It’s also a nod to securing a better future, because it keeps the CPRA in close proximity with officials of the Oilers Entertainment Group, who may decide that the CFR could augment the Rogers Place entertainment lineup.