TOKYO OLYMPIC GAMES: NBC
Stateside Olympics Effort Deploys Army of Studios, Control Rooms, Trucks, ‘Family & Friends’ Unit
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BC Sports went all out for its coverage of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics overseas, but, for this large-scale effort, the stateside team in Stamford, CT, pitched in with plenty of resources. Stamford played its largest role in an Olympics production to date: the two-week event called for five simultaneous studios and control rooms, four mobile units at the truck dock, and the largest iteration ever of NBC’s Off-Tube Factory remote commentary operation. “Technologically, I think we’re stretching the boundaries,” said Tim Canary, VP, engineering, NBC Sports Group, during the Games. “It’s truly a technological marvel how we’ve able to do all this, considering all the challenges of the past year and a half.” One of the biggest complements in NBC’s Olympics coverage, the number of studio shows was staggering. Whereas the sets in Tokyo were designed for virtualization, such as augmented reality and virtual reality, the sets in Stamford were based on versatility. The profusion of Olympic events called for ample studio presence, and, with a 13-hour time difference, the broadcaster deployed all available spaces in a variety of sizes. The schedule began in Stamford at 6 p.m. ET on USA with host Kathryn Tappen, Director Jennifer Morrison, and Producer Matt Casey from the Odaiba TV Tower in Tokyo. They were followed by host Ahmed Fareed, Director Mike Torello, and Producer Aaron Bearden at 2 a.m. on USA in Studio 3. Seven hours later, Liam McHugh took over
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SPORTSTECHJOURNAL / FALL 2021
The main Off-Tube Factory in Stamford
at 10 a.m. on USA in Studio 2 with Director Ray Herbert and Producer Brett Castelluccio. McHugh remained in Studio 2 from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. for coverage on NBCSN with Producer Paige Shepperly. Wrapping up the broadcaster’s linear coverage in Stamford, Golf Channel’s Live From provided a prematch show from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. and a postmatch show from 3 a.m. to 4 a.m. Located in Studio 1, Anna Whitley worked alongside Coordinating Producers Ben Daughan and Matt Hegarty, Producers Alan Robison and Arthur Volpe, and Directors Will Siegrist and Mark Mosback, while Todd Lewis offered commentary from Tokyo. On the digital side, Rich Eisen headlined Tokyo Gold from 11 a.m. to noon in Studio 6 on Peacock with Producer Dan Steir and Director Patrick McManus. Studio 3 was in use for Tokyo Tonight, with hosts Kenny Mayne, Cari Champion, and Jac Collinsworth conducting interviews. This show on Peacock, running from 7:30 p.m. to midnight Monday through Saturday and 6:30 p.m. to midnight Sunday, was handled by Producers Alexa Maremaa and Adam Littlefield and Director Susan King. Studio 1 is on the air for On Her Turf on Peacock from 7 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and for hits on Twitter. On Her Turf was continued on page 42
