FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Saturday, July 28th, 2012

PHELPS-LOCHTE EXPECTED SHOWDOWN AIRS ON NBC IN PRIMETIME ON DAY 1 OF LONDON OLYMPICS

Team USA Competes in Men’s Beach Volleyball and Women’s Basketball on NBC NBC Sports Network Airs Team USA vs. Columbia in Women’s Soccer LIVE Soccer and Beach Volleyball on NBC Sports Network and MSNBC All Events Live Streamed on NBCOlympics.com and NBC Olympics Live Extra Mobile & Tablet App

LONDON – July 27, 2012 – Day 1 of the 2012 London Olympic Games begins tomorrow with an expected head-to-head showdown between Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte in primetime on NBC, as they contend for the gold in the men’s 400 meter individual medley. Phelps’ and Lochte’s qualifying heats will air on NBC live (ET/CT) beginning at 5 a.m.

NBC’s daytime will air coverage of women’s basketball, featuring Team USA facing Croatia at 11 a.m. ET/PT, and men’s beach volleyball, featuring Jake Gibb and Sean Rosenthal of Team USA matching up against Freedom Chiya and Grant Goldschmidt of South Africa from legendary Horse Guards Parade, in the heart of ceremonial London just down the road from the Queen’s home at Buckingham Palace.

NBC Sports Network airs live coverage of women’s soccer as Team USA faces Colombia at 11:30 a.m. ET from Hampden Park in Glasgow, Scotland. Live on MSNBC, Olympic host nation Great Britain takes on Camaroon at Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, at 12:15 p.m. ET.

All of the events mentioned above and all other events will be live streamed on NBCOlympics.com and the NBC Olympics Live Extra app, available on mobile devices and tablets. The vast majority of live stream content will only be available to authenticated cable, satellite or telco customers.

For more information on live streaming, please go to: NBCOlympics.com/LiveExtra

For the full schedule of NBCUniversal’s Olympic coverage, please go to: NBCOlympics.com

For press information, bios, photos and releases, please go to: NBCSportsGroupPressBox.com

Listings subject to change (all times ET unless otherwise noted). Changes are italicized.

Tomorrow’s coverage includes:

SATURDAY, JULY 28 (Day 1)

 

NBC

5 a.m. – 6 p.m. (ET/PT)

Swimming – Qualifying Heats (LIVE)

Men’s Cycling – Road Race (LIVE)

Men’s Beach Volleyball – Gibb/Rosenthal (U.S.) vs. Chiya/Goldschmidt (South Africa) (LIVE)

Women’s Volleyball – U.S. vs. South Korea (LIVE)

Women’s Basketball – U.S. vs. Croatia (LIVE)

Rowing – Qualifying Heats

  • LIVE (ET/CT) Michael Phelps begins his drive to become the most decorated Olympian of all-time in an event he’s won at the past two Olympics: the 400m individual medley. This event also marks the first head-to-head showdown between Phelps and teammate Ryan Lochte, the reigning world champion who defeated Phelps at Trials. 17-year-old Colorado phenom Missy Franklin swims for her first Olympic medal as she leads Team USA in the 4x100m free relay. Plus world champion Elizabeth Beisel competes in the women’s 400m individual medley and Peter Vanderkaay leads the U.S. charge in men’s 400m freestyle.
  • LIVE (ET/CT) coverage of cycling’s men’s road race provides viewers with a spectacular introduction to London. The road race travels through the heart of central London, with a mix of majestic landmarks and the natural beauty of the Royal Parks included along the way. Great Britain’s Mark Cavendish is among the favorites, which should add even more energy to the massive crowd expected to line the streets of London. The Americans field a strong team as well, led by Taylor Phinney and Tyler Farrar.
  • LIVE (ET/CT) coverage of the U.S. women’s volleyball team’s first match vs. South Korea. Led by Hugh McCutcheon, who coached the U.S. men to the Olympic title in 2008, the American women are favored to win their first Olympic gold.
  • LIVE (ET/CT) coverage of the U.S. women’s basketball team’s first game. Led by former UConn stars Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi and Maya Moore, the Americans are favored to win their fifth straight Olympic gold medal in London.
  • Plus, LIVE (ET/CT) coverage of beach volleyball, always one of the most electric sports of the Games, from the heart of ceremonial London, at Horse Guards Parade, and the first day of the rowing competition, from prestigious Eton Dorney.

8 p.m. – Midnight (ET/PT)

Swimming – Gold Medal Finals

Men’s and Women’s 400M Individual Medley

Men’s 400M Freestyle

Women’s 4 x 100M Freestyle Relay

Men’s Gymnastics – Team Competition

Women’s Beach Volleyball – May-Treanor/Walsh (U.S.) vs. Cook/Hinchley (Australia)

 

  • Gymnastics begins with men’s team qualifying. The U.S. men are vying for their third consecutive medal in the team competition. Their prospects look strong with a deep group led by a dynamic pair of first-time Olympians: Bronx native John Orozco and Cuban-born Danell Leyva.
  • Beach volleyball, one of the Games’ hottest sports, comes to the heart of ceremonial London, at Horse Guards Parade. Just down the road from the Queen’s home at Buckingham Palace, the queens of the sand, Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings, are eyeing a golden three-peat after sweeping the competition in Athens and Beijing without dropping a set.

12:30 a.m. – 1:30 a.m. (ET/PT)

Gymnastics – Men’s Team Competition

Women’s Weightlifting – 48KG Gold Medal Final

  • The first gold medal in weightlifting will be decided among the sport’s lightest athletes. Women weighing no more than 106 pounds will need to lift more than twice their body weight to reach the podium.

NBC SPORTS NETWORK

4 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Women’s Soccer – Qualifying Round (LIVE)

U.S. vs. Colombia (LIVE)

Brazil vs. New Zealand (LIVE)

France vs. North Korea (LIVE)

Beach Volleyball –

Women’s – Zhang/Xue (China) vs. Vasina/Vozakova (Russia) (LIVE)

Women’s Volleyball – China vs. Serbia (LIVE)

Equestrian – Eventing Dressage

Women’s Handball – Norway vs. France

Women’s Shooting – 10M Air Rifle Gold Medal Final

Men’s Archery – Team Gold Medal Final

Women’s Fencing – Individual Foil (LIVE)

Women’s Badminton – Bae (South Korea) vs. Tee (Malaysia)

Men’s Table Tennis – Wang (U.S.) vs. Kim (North Korea)

Women’s Handball – Spain vs. South Korea

 

NBC SPORTS NETWORK HIGHLIGHTS

  • NBCSN’s daily feast of live Olympic action kicks off today with live coverage of the two-time reigning Olympic champion U.S. women’s soccer team. The 16-hour show also includes the first gold medal to be awarded at the Games, in shooting’s women’s air rifle competition. Czech shooter Katerina Emmons, wife of American shooter Matt Emmons, will attempt to defend her gold medal.

BRAVO

7 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Tennis – Early Rounds (LIVE)

 

BRAVO HIGHLIGHTS

  • The men’s and women’s singles and doubles tennis competitions get underway with live coverage from the historic grass courts of Wimbledon.

MSNBC

7 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Women’s Soccer – Qualifying Round

Japan vs. Sweden (LIVE)

Canada vs. South Africa (LIVE)

Great Britain vs. Cameroon (LIVE)

Men’s Beach Volleyball – Grotowski/Garcia-Thompson (Great Britain) vs. Binstock/Reader (Canada) (LIVE)

Women’s Handball – Denmark vs. Sweden

Women’s Fencing – Individual Foil Gold Medal Final

Men’s Badminton – Bach/Gunawan (U.S.) vs. Cung/Lee (South Korea)

Women’s Table Tennis –

Zhang (U.S.) vs. Molnar (Croatia)

Hsing (U.S.) vs. Silva (Mexico)

MSNBC HIGHLIGHTS

  • MSNBC offers ten hours of team and racket sports, including live soccer and live beach volleyball from majestic Horse Guards Parade, in the heart of ceremonial London.

CNBC

8:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

Boxing – Elimination Bouts (LIVE)

3:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

Boxing – Elimination Bouts (LIVE)

 

CNBC HIGHLIGHTS

  • Often the proving grounds for many of the next great professional boxers, the Olympic boxing tournament opens with a full day of bouts between the world’s best.

NBC OLYMPIC BASKETBALL CHANNEL

4 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Women’s Basketball – Qualifying Round

U.S. vs. Croatia (LIVE)

China vs. Czech Republic (LIVE)

Canada vs. Russia (LIVE)

Turkey vs. Angola (LIVE)

Brazil vs. France (LIVE)

Australia vs. Great Britain (LIVE)

NBC OLYMPIC SOCCER CHANNEL

7 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Women’s Soccer – Qualifying Round

U.S. vs. Colombia (LIVE)

Japan vs. Sweden (LIVE)

New Zealand vs. Brazil (LIVE)

France vs. South Korea (LIVE)

Canada vs. South Africa

Great Britain vs. Cameroon

TELEMUNDO

8 a.m. – 5 p.m. (ET/PT)

Opening Ceremony

Swimming – Qualifying Heats

Women’s Volleyball – Qualifying Round

Beach Volleyball – Qualifying Round

Boxing – Elimination Bouts

 

Midnight – 2:30 a.m. (ET/PT)

Swimming – Gold Medal Finals

Men’s Gymnastics – Team Competition

3D

5 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Opening Ceremony

SUNDAY, JULY 29 (Day 2)

 

NBC

7 a.m. – 6 p.m. (ET/PT)

Women’s Gymnastics – Team Competition

Swimming – Qualifying Heats

Women’s Cycling – Road Race (LIVE)

Beach Volleyball – (LIVE)

Men’s – Rogers/Dalhausser (U.S.) vs. Asahi/Shiratori (Japan) (LIVE)

Women’s – Kessy/Ross (U.S.) vs. Zonta/Gallay (Argentina) (LIVE)

Men’s Volleyball – U.S. vs. Serbia (LIVE)

Men’s Water Polo – U.S. vs. Montenegro (LIVE)

  • The women’s gymnastics competition begins with teams looking to position themselves for medal contention. With a tough international field, there’s little margin for error.
  • Key qualifying competition in swimming includes the men’s 4×100 freestyle relay, which the United States won in dramatic fashion in 2008 with Jason Lezak’s heroic anchor leg to keep Michael Phelps’ quest for eight golds alive. Lezak and Phelps are again on the U.S. squad for this event. Plus, key qualifying swims from gold medal hopefuls Ryan Lochte, Missy Franklin and Rebecca Soni.
  • LIVE (ET/CT) coverage of cycling’s women’s road race, as the world’s best female cyclists race through the heart of London. American Evelyn Stevens, who only bought her first bike in 2008 and gave up a career on Wall Street, could contend for a medal.
  • Plus, LIVE (ET/CT) coverage of beach volleyball, always one of the most electric sports of the Games, from Horse Guards Parade in the heart of ceremonial London. Americans Todd Rogers and Phil Dalhausser are the defending Olympic champions.
  • LIVE (ET/CT) coverage of the U.S. men’s volleyball team’s first match against Serbia. The Americans won their first Olympic gold in 20 years in Beijing and have been surging recently as they look to repeat as Olympic champions.
  • LIVE (ET/CT) coverage of the U.S. men’s water polo team’s first game against Montenegro. The U.S. men earned a surprise silver in Beijing, but are focused on gold in London, led by captain Tony Azevedo, the team sacrificed hundreds of thousands of dollars collectively by not playing professionally overseas this year to train together for the Olympics.

7 p.m. – Midnight (ET/PT)

Women’s Gymnastics – Team Competition

Swimming – Gold Medal Finals

Men’s 100M Breaststroke

Men’s 4 x 100M Freestyle Relay

Women’s 100M Butterfly

Women’s 400M Freestyle

Women’s Diving – Synchronized Springboard Gold Medal Final

  • The first look at the reigning world champion U.S. Women’s Gymnastics Team, led by reigning world all-around champion Jordyn Wieber, the 17-year-old from DeWitt, Michigan, and fast-rising 16-year-old wonder Gabby Douglas. They begin their pursuit of the team gold medal tonight – trying to become the first U.S. women to win team gymnastics gold since the “Magnificent Seven” won in Atlanta in 1996.
  • Four years after Jason Lezak’s extraordinary anchor leg kept Michael Phelps on track for eight golds in Beijing, Phelps again swims for Team USA in the 4x100m freestyle relay in what figures to be another fierce contest with France and reigning world champion Australia. This should also be the night Phelps wins his 18th career medal to tie Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina for the most all time. Also in the pool, former Cal star Dana Vollmer is favored for gold in her signature event, the 100m butterfly. Allison Schmitt, who took the year off from the University Georgia to train alongside Phelps under coach Bob Bowman, will contend in the 400m freestyle with home favorite and reigning Olympic champion Rebecca Adlington of Great Britain. Brendan Hansen and cancer survivor Eric Shanteau will try to knock off the greatest breaststroker in history, Japan’s Kosuke Kitajima, in the 100m breaststroke.
  • In the first diving final, Kelci Bryant, who finished a heartbreaking fourth in Beijing, teams with new partner Abby Johnston, a pre-med student at Duke, in the women’s synchronized springboard competition. The U.S. hasn’t won a diving medal since the 2000 Sydney Olympics, and Bryant and Johnston, who have finished in the top four in every competition this season, will be looking to reverse the trend in the team’s first chance.

12:35 a.m. – 1:35 a.m. (ET/PT)

Gymnastics – Women’s Team Competition

Canoeing – Whitewater Qualifying Heats

  • The Canoe Slalom competition gets underway on a new course built specifically for the Games. Paddlers will need speed, control and precision on the daunting whitewater rapids.

NBC SPORTS NETWORK

4 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Men’s Basketball –

U.S. vs. France (LIVE)

Brazil vs. Australia (LIVE)

Spain vs. China (LIVE)

Argentina vs. Lithuania (LIVE)

Women’s Field Hockey –

U.S. vs. Germany (LIVE)

New Zealand vs. Australia (LIVE)

Beach Volleyball –

Men’s – Alison/Emanuel (Brazil) vs. Doppler/Horst (Austria)

Women’s – Cicolari/Menegatti (Italy) vs. Ukolova/Khomyakova (Russia)

Women’s – Talita/Antonelli (Brazil) vs. Meppelink/Van Gestel (Netherlands) (LIVE)

Equestrian – Eventing Dressage

Women’s Archery – Team Gold Medal Final

Women’s Shooting – Skeet Gold Medal Final

Men’s Water Polo – Greece vs. Croatia (LIVE)

Women’s Field Hockey – New Zealand vs. Australia

Men’s Badminton – Bach/Gunawan (U.S.) vs. Koo/Tan (Malaysia)

NBC SPORTS NETWORK HIGHLIGHTS

  • LIVE coverage as LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and the rest of the star-studded U.S. men’s basketball team take to the floor for their first action of the London Games, against France. Also today, Spain, the reigning Olympic silver medalist led by Lakers star Pau Gasol, takes on China.

BRAVO

7 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Tennis – Early Rounds (LIVE)

BRAVO HIGHLIGHTS

  • The men’s and women’s singles and doubles tennis competitions continue with live coverage from the historic grass courts of Wimbledon.

MSNBC

7 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Men’s Soccer – Qualifying Round (LIVE)

Brazil vs. Belarus (LIVE)

Senegal vs. Uruguay (LIVE)

Great Britain vs. United Arab Emirates (LIVE)

Men’s Indoor Volleyball – Qualifying Round

Russia vs. Germany (LIVE)

Italy vs. Poland

Men’s Water Polo – Hungary vs. Serbia

Men’s Handball – Croatia vs. South Korea

Table Tennis – Qualifying Round

Badminton – Qualifying Round

 

MSNBC HIGHLIGHTS

  • Plenty of live action in men’s soccer, as the talented Brazilian squad takes on Belarus and host Great Britain meets United Arab Emirates.

 

CNBC

8:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

Boxing – Elimination Bouts (LIVE)

 

3:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

Boxing – Elimination Bouts (LIVE)

CNBC HIGHLIGHTS

  • The second day of Olympic boxing coverage features two Americans with strong medal hopes in Errol Spence, Jr., a 22-year-old Dallas southpaw, and Jose Ramirez, the son of Mexican immigrants, who is a part-time student and former Starbucks barista.

NBC OLYMPIC BASKETBALL CHANNEL

4 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Men’s Basketball – Qualifying Round

U.S. vs. France (LIVE)

Brazil vs. Australia (LIVE)

Nigeria vs. Tunisia (LIVE)

Spain vs. China (LIVE)

Russia vs. Great Britain (LIVE)

Argentina vs. Lithuania (LIVE)

NBC OLYMPIC SOCCER CHANNEL

7 a.m. – 11 p.m.

Men’s Soccer – Qualifying Round

Egypt vs. New Zealand (LIVE)

Brazil vs. Belarus (LIVE)

Senegal vs. Uruguay (LIVE)

Great Britain vs. United Arab Emirates (LIVE)

Mexico vs. Gabon

Japan vs. Morocco

South Korea vs. Switzerland

Spain vs. Honduras

TELEMUNDO

7 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Men’s Soccer – Qualifying Round

Mexico vs. Gabon (LIVE)

Spain vs. Honduras (LIVE)

Senegal vs. Uruguay (LIVE)

Swimming – Qualifying Heats

Men’s Basketball – Qualifying Round

Boxing – Elimination Bouts

Beach Volleyball – Qualifying Round

Men’s Volleyball – Qualifying Round

Tennis – Early Rounds

Midnight – 2:30 a.m. (ET/PT)

Women’s Gymnastics – Team Competition

Swimming – Gold Medal Finals

 

3D

4 a.m. – 6:15 p.m.

Men’s Gymnastics – Team Competition

Swimming – Gold Medal Finals