Behind the Mic: Mike Tirico Pulls Double Duty With Winter Olympics Primetime Show, Super Bowl LVI Pregame Show By SVG Staff Friday, January 21, 2022 - 7:05 am
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Behind the Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, including new deals, departures, and assignments compiled from press releases and reports around the industry. In this week's edition, Mike Tirico will host both the Winter Olympics primetime show and Super Bowl LVI pregame show from Beijing and Los Angeles, Lindsey Vonn will join NBC Olympics for the upcoming Games, and more.
Mike Tirico To Host Winter Olympics from Beijing, Super Bowl LVI Pregame Show from Los Angeles In a hosting double, Mike Tirico will host the NBC Olympics primetime show in Beijing (beginning Thursday, Feb. 3) and Los Angeles, while also hosting the Super Bowl LVI pregame show from SoFi Stadium on Sunday, Feb. 13, as NBCUniversal presents the two global events in an 18-day stretch next month.
Tirico will anchor the Olympic primetime show in Beijing from Thursday, Feb. 3 through Thursday, Feb. 10 before flying 6,200 miles to Los Angeles, where he'll continue his Olympic hosting the very next night - Friday, Feb. 11 - from a special set outside SoFi Stadium, which will host Super Bowl LVI. He will host the primetime Olympics show again on Saturday night, before hosting the five-hour Super Bowl LVI Pregame Show on Sunday, Feb. 13. Immediately following Super Bowl coverage, he'll return to the lake set to host Sunday night's Olympic competition. Further details will be available in the coming weeks.
There's no one better than Mike Tirico to navigate this unique confluence - a global gathering of elite Olympic athletes in 15 sports in the world's biggest media event and the game crowning the NFL champion in our country's ultimate single-day sporting and media spectacle, says Molly Solomon, Executive Producer & President, NBC Olympics Production. Mike's knowledge, preparation and ability to converse on anything from figure skating to football are second-to-none. We are counting down until it all begins next month.
Tirico, who has been NBC's primetime Olympics host since 2018, hosts his third Olympics (PyeongChang, Tokyo) and fourth Super Bowl (pregame co-host and host of Lombardi Trophy presentation, Super Bowls XXXIV, XXXVII, and XL on ABC). Primetime Winter Olympics coverage on NBC and Peacock begins on Thursday, February 3, the night before the Opening Ceremony.
It is a career highlight to host the biggest sports broadcast day any media company has ever undertaken, adds Tirico. The foundation of our Olympic and NFL productions are the incredible people behind the camera. It is their planning and excellence that make this possible. I have never been more excited for a work project and to quote the great Ernie Banks, let's play 2!'
Lindsey Vonn Joins NBC Olympics Team for 2022 Winter Fames Lindsey Vonn, the Olympic gold medalist and winningest woman in alpine skiing World Cup history, will join NBC Olympics for its coverage of the 2022 Winter Games, it was announced today.
A four-time Olympian, Vonn made her on-air debut with the NBC Sports team in January 2021 for several days of competition in women's downhill and Super-G events from Crans Montana, Switzerland. She will serve as a primetime correspondent.
As one of the greatest Olympic skiers of all time and a superstar who has transcended her sport, we're thrilled to have Lindsey join our team, says Solomon. Lindsey will provide a perspective unique to an athlete known for excellence, intensity and determination on the world's biggest and most competitive stage.
Vonn is among the most decorated alpine skiers of all time. Over the course of her career, she won 82 World Cup races, which is the most by a woman and second-most all time behind only Ingemar Stenmark of Sweden. Participating in four Olympic Games (2002, 2006, 2010, 2018), Vonn amassed three Olympic medals, including gold in the downhill at the Vancouver Winter Olympics in 2010, where she became the first American woman to win gold in that discipline.
I am excited to share my perspective along with my insight on what athletes might be feeling during high pressure moments, says Vonn. My first memories of Olympics were from NBC broadcast, so I am very excited to be working with a team that has been there for so many amazing Olympic moments.
Vonn is one of only seven women to have won World Cup races in all five major disciplines of alpine skiing - downhill, Super-G, giant slalom, slalom, and super combined. She is a four-time winner of the overall World Cup title and won a women's record 16 career World Cup discipline titles.
Kendra Andrews Joins ESPN as NBA Reporter Covering the Golden State Warriors ESPN has signed Kendra Andrews to a multi-year agreement. Andrews will serve as an NBA reporter, primarily covering the Golden State Warriors. Andrews will write and report for ESPN.com while also contributing reports to various ESPN television platforms, including its NBA programming and SportsCenter.
Prior to joining ESPN, Andrews served as Warriors reporter for NBC Sports Bay Area and co-hosted the Dubs Talk podcast. She had previously covered the Denver Nuggets for The Athletic. Andrews is a Gonzaga University graduate and is a former Washington Post intern.
Nabil Karim Joins Turner Sports as Studio Host & Reporter Turner Sports has reached a multi-year agreement with Nabil Karim, who will serve as a host for NBA TV, while also contributing as host and reporter across basketball and hockey programming.
Karim was most recently at ESPN, anchoring SportsCenter and various other studio shows since 2019. He previously was an anchor and reporter for TSN, showing his versatility in hosting SportsCentre and major sporting even
