Live From 147th Westminster Dog Show: WKC Finds New Home at Billie Jean King National Tennis Center Fox Sports works closely with Westminster Kennel Club on operational, logistical needs By Kristian Hern ndez, Senior Editor
Tuesday, May 9, 2023 - 10:07 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
The biggest event on the dog-show calendar, the Westminster Dog Show is the goal of any breeder and dog. The Westminster Kennel Club (WKC), the organization in charge, spends the entire year planning, strategizing, and ironing out operational and logistical details for the multi-day competition. This year's edition was complicated by a move to the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
Pulling off the show in the correct way is a delicate dance between teaching the public about the variety of disciplines and breeds on display and letting the elegance and athleticism of the dogs speak for themselves.
The show is very important, but it's also educating the people about what they're watching, says David A. Helming, show co-chairman/chief of staff, Westminster Kennel Club. We want to make this overall event a good time and fun for everybody.
David A. Helming leads Westminster Kennel Club's overall direction and production of the Westminster Dog Show.
In his dual role, Helming has a lot on his plate. Besides assembling the schedule of competitions, putting together a panel of distinguished judges, and working with the show's superintendent on the flow of activities, he oversees television production and advises the overall direction of the event's operations. He has plotted big-picture elements with Fox Sports since 2017, the broadcaster's first year covering the show.
First televised event in 1948, the Westminster Dog Show was located at Madison Square Garden for nearly a century. One of the biggest recent hurdles has been changing venues three times in the past four years: the show was held at Madison Square Garden for the last time in 2020 and in Tarrytown, NY's Lyndhurst Mansion in 2021 and 2022.
I've been [at Lyndhurst] showing dogs throughout the years, so I knew that we could make that site work, says Helming. The biggest challenge was having to rebuild this show from the ground up. Without the support of Fox Sports and our solid working relationship with them, that never would've happened. They've worked on World Series and Super Bowls, so we know that we have top-notch production and operations teams on our side.
Choosing to move on to a new venue, WKC scouted out new destinations for the event. Ultimately, USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, NY, was picked to host the latest edition. Looking to expand the venue's yearly calendar of events, the United States Tennis Association was keen on adding the show. And going from the limited-capacity Lyndhurst Mansion to the gargantuan campus of the Tennis Center and its 23,771-seat Arthur Ashe Stadium allowed increased attendance and the introduction of the Dock Diving event.
WKC's Paul Campanella oversees the operational and logistical needs of all events.
[The USTA] wanted to bring the history of this venue and the US Open tournament with our history, notes Helming. There was a bit of an education process about what we do with this event, but they got on board and have been great hosts.
With a first-time venue, the possibility of issues emerging becomes a lot larger. Luckily, Westminster Kennel Club Director, Companion Events, Paul Campanella, Helming's go-to operations lead, is the main contact for Fox Sports Director, Field Operations, Francisco Paco Contreras. With an extensive background in participating in and judging dog shows, Campanella understands the obstacles that come with producing the Westminster Dog Show. Always looking to innovate and enhance coverage, Fox Sports is implementing a new Spidercam system from high above. Because it could be a distraction for the dogs, Campanella stresses the importance of running through the show beforehand.
The competition itself hasn't changed, he explains, but, when there's a new technology, we have a full rehearsal on the night before. I'll bring a bunch of dogs that aren't competing to run the final course and see if they get distracted by [the Spidercam]. A couple of dogs were [distracted], so we knew that we had to raise that marker [inside Arthur Ashe Stadium]. These dogs train for this for years, so they need to be completely focused.
When Tuesday's Best in Show competition concludes, Campanella and his operations team, which includes Manager, Operations, Linda Duane, will return to the drawing board to prepare for the showcase all over again.
We'll do an evaluation next week, he says. We'd like to see what worked and what didn't.
Despite the challenges of a new venue or the fact that more than 3,000 canines are judged and placed in picking the cream of the crop, the heart of the production is the appreciation of the dogs and the jovial spirit they bring to spectators, officials, and the sport alike.
We're here to do [this show] the best we can and showcase these championship-level dogs, says Helming, adding, Fox Sports' promoting our efforts helps give [this event] a broader reach to sports fans.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
13/05/2026
New Adobe Premiere Color Grading Mode Accelerated on NVIDIA GPUs
Joel Pennington May 13, 2026
0 Comments
New NVIDIA RTX-accelerated features streamlin...
13/05/2026
Grass Valley announced that dB Broadcast has delivered new IP-based outside broadcast (OB) trucks for Cloudbass, featuring Grass Valley LDX 100 Series cameras a...
13/05/2026
Ikegami will exhibit the latest additions to its wide range of broadcast production cameras, control units, viewfinders and monitors on stand 5D3-1 at Broadcast...
13/05/2026
FISE, working with the founding members of the XR Sports Alliance (XRSA), Accedo, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and HBS, have collaborated to develop an immersive...
13/05/2026
Canon Unveils New EOS R6 V Full-Frame EOS Camera and RF20-50mm F4 L IS USM PZ Bu...
13/05/2026
Boston Conservatory at Berklee Honors Beth Morrison and Moses Pendleton at Comme...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Creative software developer Foundry today announced the latest developments on Nuke Stage. A purpose-built application for end-to-end virtual production and in-...
13/05/2026
A definitive portrait of one of Ireland's most influential musicians
New TV documentary airs Monday 18 May on RT One and RT Player at 9.35pm
Watch the...
13/05/2026
Agentic AI is changing the way users get work done. Following the success of OpenClaw, the community is embracing new open source agentic frameworks. The latest...
13/05/2026
Reinforcement-learning agents - AI systems that learn by trial and error - can c...
12/05/2026
Beyond the Hype: A Strategic Post-Hoc Analysis of NAB 2026 If NAB Show 2026 had an underlying theme, it was a quiet, industry-wide pivot from the high-energy sp...
12/05/2026
Guntermann and Drunck (G&D), a Panoptec Technologies Group company, and CT Square, led by Chandresh Shah, have announced a joint venture to distribute G&D and V...
12/05/2026
With 30 days until the start of the FIFA World Cup 2026, Telemundo, the exclusive Spanish-language home of the tournament in the United States, has announced th...
12/05/2026
The NHL has announced the return of Stanley Pup for its third consecutive year, a 90-minute special featuring adoptable rescue dogs competing on a miniature rin...
12/05/2026
NBCUniversal presented its 2026 Upfront to advertisers at Radio City Music Hall, detailing upcoming programming across NBC, Peacock, Bravo, and Versant properti...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced funding for the Fandom and Social Connection Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School's Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Publ...
12/05/2026
TNDV and Live Media, both divisions of Live Media Group, supported live broadcast coverage around NCAA Final Four weekend in Indianapolis, including the March M...
12/05/2026
The European Football Alliance (EFA) has announced a content distribution agreement with Fubo Sports Network, the free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channel ...
12/05/2026
For the first time, Spanish-speaking fans in the U.S. will have two separate tel...
12/05/2026
CP Communications led a comprehensive spectrum management initiative on behalf of Churchill Downs during Kentucky Derby week, coordinating RF assets across the ...
12/05/2026
LiveU has announced a strategic partnership with DRONERESPONDERS, a 501(c)3 non-...
12/05/2026
Open Broadcast Systems has announced that BMC TV, a specialist in IP transport of broadcast content, has selected the Open Broadcast Systems 5G Flyaway solution...
12/05/2026
NEP Europe, part of NEP Group, has announced it will deliver broadcast solutions...
12/05/2026
Grass Valley has announced continued collaboration with Ravensbourne University ...
12/05/2026
Stats Perform has announced the launch of Opta Pulse, an AI-assisted video creation and distribution platform for leagues, rights holders, and broadcasters. The...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced a collaboration with Sesame Workshop to integrate Sesame Street characters into FOX Sports' FIFA World Cup 2026 programming. Conten...
12/05/2026
To date, NHL Productions has produced 19 broadcasts with commentary in American Sign Language
NHL in ASL (American Sign Language) may be just one show, but the...
12/05/2026
Google's Brian Albert: creators, athletes, highlights, nostalgia, second-scr...
12/05/2026
A still from Past Lives by Celine Song, an official selection of the Premieres program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. (Courtesy of Sundance Institute | p...
12/05/2026
Spotify is where fans and artists come together, turning discovery into somethin...
12/05/2026
Features patented Marco-MMC clocking technology
Black Lion Audio's latest release combines the company's expertise in clocking with their renowned p...
12/05/2026
New Track Panel, sequencer upgrades & more
Following their recent public beta release, Reason Studios have announced the full release of Reason 14. With the...
12/05/2026
One month to go! SBS reveals expansive FIFA World Cup 2026 lineup beyond the pi...
12/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz presents its advanced solutions for power electronics testing at...
12/05/2026
aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, has developed a modified fund raising p...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Tyrell Corporation, specialists in high-end live sports and entertainment broadcasts, was tasked with delivering compelling broadcast coverage of premier equest...
12/05/2026
Registration is now open for IBC2026 as the global media, entertainment and technology community prepares to converge on the RAI Amsterdam from 11 14 September ...
12/05/2026
Ross Video, a global leader in live video production technology, will present its latest innovations and integrated production workflows at BroadcastAsia 2026, ...
12/05/2026
500 selected leaders from around the world across start-ups, corporates, and venture capital. Over 50bn in assets under management among attending investors, a...
Live From 147th Westminster Dog Show: WKC Finds New Home at Billie Jean King National Tennis Center Fox Sports works closely with Westminster Kennel Club on operational, logistical needs By Kristian Hern ndez, Senior Editor 
