FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, June 1st, 2015

AMERICAN PHAROAH RUNS FOR TRIPLE CROWN HISTORY IN BELMONT STAKES THIS SATURDAY, JUNE 6, AT 4:30 PM ET ON NBC

Coverage from Belmont Park Begins Friday, June 5, at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN

NBCSN Twitter Handle to Periscope Belmont Draw

NBC Sports Live Extra to Live Stream Belmont Stakes on NBC with Exclusive Camera Angles and Analysis

NBC Sports Radio to Broadcast Belmont Live for First Time

Game 2 of NHL Stanley Cup Final — Chicago Blackhawks vs. Tampa Bay Lightning — Immediately Follows Belmont Stakes on NBC

STAMFORD, Conn. – June 1, 2015 – Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner American Pharoah runs for history, aiming to become the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978, as NBC Sports Group presents the 147th Belmont Stakes this Saturday, June 6, at 4:30 p.m. ET on NBC. Coverage from Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., begins Friday, June 5, at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

Highlights of NBC Sports Group’s Belmont coverage include:

  • Bob Costas’ essay on the elusive Triple Crown, discussing past winners and what makes this achievement unique, and difficult.
  • Josh Elliott hosts a feature on American Pharoah’s road to the Triple Crown, takes a look at his challengers, and visits with Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, who is making his fourth attempt at the Triple Crown with American Pharoah.
  • A feature on “Drought Busters” – professional athletes who have helped break major slumps in their respective sports.
  • A look at Victor Espinoza’s 2014 Triple Crown attempt at Belmont aboard California Chrome. Espinoza, once a bus driver in Mexico, is now the first jockey in history to have three chances at the Triple Crown. In addition, Jerry Bailey and Randy Moss continue their debate on the reasons California Chrome finished fourth in last year’s Belmont and failed to win the Triple Crown.
  • For the first time at the Belmont Stakes, NBC Sports will utilize a 4K super-slow-motion, reverse finish-line camera.

COMMENTATORS: NBC Sports Group’s coverage of the Belmont Stakes features hosts Bob Costas, a 26-time Emmy Award-winner, and Tom Hammond, a veteran NBC Sports commentator; analysts Randy Moss and Jerry Bailey, the Hall of Fame jockey and two-time Belmont winner; analysts/handicappers Bob Neumeier and Eddie Olczyk; NBCSN host/NBC reporter Laffit Pincay, III; reporters Kenny Rice, Donna Brothers and Jay Privman; and race caller Larry Collmus. Josh Elliott and Carolyn Manno provide a mix of features and interviews at Belmont Park.

The coordinating producer of NBC’s horse racing coverage is Rob Hyland, who has been a part of the network’s horse racing coverage since 2001. The Belmont Stakes is directed by Sunday Night Football and NBC Sports’ horse racing director, Drew Esocoff. The coverage on NBCSN is produced by Billy Matthews and directed by Doug Grabert. The executive producer of NBC Sports and NBCSN is Sam Flood, who has produced 12 Triple Crown races for the network.

Following is a full schedule of NBC Sports Group’s Belmont Stakes programming:

THE BELMONT STAKES (all times ET)

Date Time Event Network
Fri., June 5 3:30 p.m. Belmont Stakes Access NBCSN
Sat., June 6 2:30 p.m. Belmont Stakes Prep NBCSN
Sat., June 6 4:30 p.m. Belmont Stakes NBC
Sat., June 6 7 p.m. Belmont Stakes Post-Race Show NBCSN

The NBCSN Twitter handle, @NBCSN, will live stream the Belmont Draw via Periscope this Wednesday, June 3, at Noon ET from Rockefeller Center, which will determine the post positions on Saturday. Immediately following the Belmont Stakes is Game 2 of the NHL Stanley Cup Final, when the Tampa Bay Lightning host the Chicago Blackhawks at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla., at 7 p.m. ET on NBC.

NBC SPORTS LIVE EXTRA BELMONT STAKES COVERAGE

NBC Sports Live Extra — NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, tablets, and connected TVs — will stream Belmont Stakes coverage on NBC and NBCSN via “TV Everywhere,” giving consumers additional value to for their subscription service, and making high quality content available to MVPD customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms. The NBC Sports Live Extra app is available on the iTunes App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku and Apple TV. For desktops, NBC Sports Live Extra can be accessed at NBCSports.com/liveextra.

NBC Sports Live Extra’s Belmont Stakes coverage includes:

  • Four exclusive online-only camera views, including an isolation camera on Triple Crown contender American Pharoah during the race
  • Exclusive analysis by NBC Sports commentators in the days leading up to the race plus post-race, online commentary by NBC commentators
  • Replays and highlights from the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes
  • Replays of previous Triple Crown attempts and near-misses.

NBC SPORTS RADIO BELMONT STAKES COVERAGE

For the first time, NBC Sports Radio will present two hours of live Belmont Stakes coverage beginning Saturday, June 6 at 5 p.m. ET. Produced in partnership with Horse Racing Radio Network (HRRN), and distributed by Westwood One, NBC Sports Radio presents live radio coverage of all three Triple Crown races this year.

For more information on programming, please contact Westwood One at NBCSportsRadio@westwoodone.com.  For a complete schedule of shows, bios, exclusive audio content, and a list of radio stations airing NBC Sports Radio, log on to NBCSportsRadio.com.

BELMONT STAKES ALL-ACCESS

NBC Sports Group will implement its All-Access social media strategy for Belmont week, where horse racing fans can access content from the Belmont at a “social center & behind the scenes hub” housed on NBCSports.com/Belmont.  Within the Belmont All Access experience, fans can access and sort all the social media content surrounding the Belmont from Instagram, Twitter and Vine through various streams including horse racing experts, horses (including the horses themselves, jockeys and trainers), and photos and Vine videos only sections. In addition fans have access to behind the scenes video, and can plug in their first and last names to receive their ‘Horse Name’ and avatar that can be shared on Facebook and Twitter.

Twitter: Viewers and Twitter users alike will be encouraged to join the conversation by using the hashtag #TripleCrown. Reminders will appear on screen throughout all of NBC’s Belmont coverage.

  • On-air integration of live tweets from celebrities, horse racing experts and @NBCSN will be featured on screen throughout the broadcasts to keep viewers up to date with what’s happening on Twitter;
  • The NBC Sports social media team will be on-site giving an all access behind-the-scenes view of the Belmont Stakes production. All this original content can be followed LIVE @NBCSports

Facebook: Fans will have the chance to join in on the Belmont broadcast:

  • Viewers at home can go on Facebook.com/NBCSports to voice their opinion on the question everyone is asking: will American Pharoah win the Triple Crown? The nation’s votes will be tallied and shown on-air during the Belmont broadcast.

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NBC SPORTS GROUP AND HORSE RACING: NBC Sports Group is the exclusive home to the most important and prestigious events in horse racing, including the Triple Crown and the Breeders’ Cup. NBC has been the exclusive home of the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes since 2001, and the Belmont Stakes since 2011, when NBC Sports Group reassembled the Triple Crown.

The 2014 Belmont Stakes on NBC, featuring California Chrome’s Triple Crown attempt, averaged 20.5 million viewers – the second-highest Belmont Stakes viewership on record, trailing only the 21.9 million viewers for NBC’s telecast of Smarty Jones’ Triple Crown attempt in 2004 (People Meter viewership dates to 1988).

AWARDS FOR NBC’S HORSE RACING COVERAGE: Since its involvement in the Triple Crown, NBC Sports has been honored with 15 Eclipse Awards for its thoroughbred racing coverage including the award for Television – Live Program for the 2014 Breeders’ Cup Classic and the 2013 Kentucky Derby. NBC’s previous wins in that category include: Preakness (2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008), Kentucky Derby (2007, 2012), Belmont (2004) and Breeder’s Cup (2001).  Additionally, NBC Sports has won four Eclipse Awards in the features category: “California Chrome: The Unlikely Champion,” which aired on NBCSN in June 2014, a 2002 feature on War Emblem (Preakness broadcast), a 2005 feature on Afleet Alex (Kentucky Derby broadcast) and a 2009 feature on Mine That Bird (Preakness broadcast). In addition, the 2014 Belmont Stakes broadcast was nominated for the Sports Emmy Award Outstanding Live Sports Special this year.

–NBC SPORTS GROUP–