NBC might be feeling nostalgic for the days when holding events for prime time was the biggest controversy surrounding the Olympics.
The Winter Games in Sochi, which officially begin Friday night with the Opening Ceremony, have been rife with controversy and concern due mainly because of recent terrorist acts in Russia and the threat of that affecting the two-weeklong Games. And then there is Russia’s new anti-gay law, which has put a further spotlight on the host country.
There also are the stories that won’t be in Russia. America’s brightest star, Lindsey Vonn, will miss the Olympics after re-tearing her ACL while training. But the network, which made a $775 million investment in Sochi as part of a $4.38 billion package to keep the next four Olympiads, points to the stories that inevitably develop over the course of the coverage.
“The beauty of this is when you go in planning on somebody or something you are often surprised and that’s the fun part of this: To introduce the world to a new name or new event — You may not know these sports before or after, but during you bring it to the world’s attention,” said Dan Patrick, who will host NBC Sports Network’s coverage.
“So, you fall in love with a sport or an athlete, like Eddie ‘The Eagle’ Edwards with ski jumping (1988 Games) or the outfits they wear in curling — there’s a certain fascination there that you just can’t script. We’ll tell the stories, but the stories tell themselves.”
And, yes, they will still mostly be told in primetime. NBC and its family of networks will have nearly around-the-clock coverage of the Games, but will still hold back some for primetime. To combat the critics NBC, for the second straight Olympiad, will stream all events live on the internet. And figure skating, consistently one of the most popular sports, will be shown live in its entirety on NBCSN.
The reason is simple: Showing events live during the day has drawn more viewers to the television at night.
“To be perfectly honest, it did (surprise me),” Bell said. “I know we had a party line going in that we were confident, but I’d be less than forthright that I was a little nervous about it because it was unprecedented.”
NBC has also had to deal with accusations by Sports on Earth columnist Selena Roberts that they influenced the decision to include Lolo Jones on the United States bobsled team. Jones would be one of the few known quantities thanks to the track star’s popularity from the Summer Games. NBC’s Olympics president Gary Zenkel called the accusation “preposterous” in a conference call, while executive producer Jim Bell labeled it “utterly ridiculous.” They are banking on snow-covered versions of gymnasts Gabby Douglas, McKayla Maroney (and her unimpressed face), Aly Raisman, Kyla Ross and Jordyn Wieber, who captured the nation’s attention two years ago.
“There’s plenty of established stars to go around,” Bell said. “We have Shaun White, Chani Davis. Then, of course, there’s going to be a handful of the stories that come out of nowhere. Again, if you think about going into London, beyond Michael Phelps there weren’t that many known athletes.
“No one knew the American gymnasts, but they became a story and we are hopeful, just like there or any other Olympics, there’s going to be those unknowns. While, we are glad that Lolo has some name recognition, it’s the ones that aren’t known that we are especially excited about.”