INDIANAPOLIS, Ind., Aug. 12, 2009 – Leading up to the 2012 Olympic Games, gymnastics fans will have more ways to follow USA Gymnastics than ever before with coverage on broadcast and cable television and the Web. USA Gymnastics has extended its partnership with NBC Sports for broadcast television coverage through 2012. In addition, USA Gymnastics has named Universal Sports as its official cable and digital media partner for this quadrennium. The 2009 Visa Championships will feature live coverage across the broadcast, cable and digital platforms.

“Increasing exposure of USA Gymnastics on broadcast, cable and the Web is a cornerstone of our business plan for this quad,” said Steve Penny, president of USA Gymnastics. “USA Gymnastics and NBC Sports have enjoyed a long and fruitful partnership, and our relationship with NBC Sports is fundamental to providing value to our sponsors. The addition of Universal Sports enables us to capitalize on the opportunities available through its digital, cable and Web assets. USA Gymnastics is now vertically integrated into the three media platforms, and our fans will have the opportunity to follow the USA’s top gymnasts to a greater degree.”

“Our relationship with USA Gymnastics is central to NBC Sports’ and Universal Sports’ long-term commitment to be the home for Olympic sports and America’s exceptional Olympic athletes in between the Games.” said Gary Zenkel, president of NBC Olympics.

NBC Sports will continue to cover USA Gymnastics’ premier events, such as the Tyson American Cup and Visa Championships, along with the Pacific Rim Gymnastics Championships and the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. Through its relationship with the International Gymnastics Federation, Universal Sports will carry extensive coverage of the World Championships and other international events, as well as expanded coverage of USA Gymnastics events and encore presentations of NBC Sports broadcasts. The agreement extends through 2012.

“This partnership allows us to expand our existing coverage of gymnastics with the full season of USA Gymnastics offerings and deliver it on a multiplatform basis, providing fans the opportunity to see these events whenever and wherever they want all year long,” said Claude Ruibal, CEO of Universal Sports.

For the 2009 Visa Championships, NBC Sports is carrying the final day of the women’s competition live in primetime on Aug.15, with a recap of the men’s final competition scheduled for Aug. 15 in the afternoon. Universal Sports will carry live simultaneous cable and Web coverage of the evening sessions on Aug. 13-14 and will re-air the NBC Sports broadcasts on a delayed basis.

The combined NBC Sports, Universal Sports and UniversalSports.com schedule is:

  • Aug. 13 – Senior women’s first day of competition – Live, 8 p.m. ET – US cable/Web*
  • Aug. 14 – Senior men’s final day of competition – Live, 8 p.m. ET – US cable/Web*
  • Aug. 15 – Senior men’s competition recap broadcast – 3 p.m. ET – NBC Sports
  • Aug. 15 – Senior women’s final day of competition – Live, 8 p.m. ET – NBC Sports/Web
  • Aug. 15 – Senior women’s final day of competition – Encore, 10 p.m. ET – US cable*

* US stands for Universal Sports

Universal Sports and USA Gymnastics will work together to develop new content for universalsports.com. The two will also work cooperatively to promote event coverage, to provide promotional space on usa-gymnastics.org, and to maximize opportunities provided through their individual promotional assets. Earlier in 2009, Universal Sports carried a simulcast of NBC Sports’ broadcast of the Tyson American Cup and, most recently, provided both cable and Web coverage of the CoverGirl Classic.

About NBC Sports
NBC Sports, known for amassing large audiences while presenting the most prestigious properties in sports, represents superior production that elevates sport, broad promotion and mutually-beneficial partnerships.

As evidence of NBC Sports’ ability to amass large audiences, over the past year, NBC Sports broadcast two record-breaking television events: The Beijing Olympic Games, the most watched event in U.S. television history with 215 million viewers and Super Bowl XLIII, which achieved the largest single audience in U.S. television history with a record 152 million viewers. NBC Sports is now home to eight of the top ten most-watched events in U.S. television history.

NBC Sports partners with many of the most powerful brands in sports. NBC Sports has broadcast 16 Super Bowls, tied with CBS for the most Super Bowls broadcast by a single network. As America’s Olympic Network, NBC has broadcast more Olympics than any other network and owns the rights to the Olympic Games through 2012. NBC is also home to "NBC Sunday Night Football," the premier primetime NFL game of the week. Other prestigious NBC Sports properties include Notre Dame football, the U.S. Open Championship, The Ryder Cup, Presidents Cup, Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, Wimbledon, French Open and the Stanley Cup Final.

About Universal Sports
Universal Sports, a partnership between NBC Sports and InterMedia Partners, serves as the preeminent multiplatform destination for Olympic-related and lifestyle sports programming available on television and online. Universal Sports, available in 56 million homes, is in nine of the top 10 DMAs including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas-Fort Worth, San Francisco, Atlanta, Washington D.C., Houston, Seattle and Denver. Major world championship and Olympic qualifying events found on Universal Sports range from track and field, skiing, swimming, gymnastics, marathons and cycling, to volleyball, rowing, triathlon, fencing, speed skating and martial arts. UniversalSports.com delivers an immersive experience via live and on-demand competition coverage, as well as interaction with top athletes through blogs and in-depth access to Olympic sports news and information year round. For more information on the availability of the Universal Sports 24-hour television channel, please visit UniversalSports.tv.