FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, July 17th, 2019

SIMONE BILES & KATIE LEDECKY HIGHLIGHT THIS WEEK’S OLYMPIC SPORTS PROGRAMMING ACROSS NBC SPORTS

FINA World Aquatics Championships Coverage Continues This Week on Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA

Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA Presents Live Coverage of U.S. Gymnastics Classic this Sat., July 20 at 7 p.m. ET

Live Coverage of IAAF Diamond League Begins Sat., July 20, at 10 a.m. ET on NBC Sports Gold

Additional Olympic Sports Programming This Week Includes World Fencing Championships and Sport Climbing World Cup

STAMFORD, Conn. – July 17, 2019 – Five-time Olympic swimming gold medalist Katie Ledecky and reigning Olympic gymnastics all-around champion Simone Biles headline Olympic sports programming this week across NBC Sports. Biles is set to compete on Saturday at the U.S. Gymnastics Classic, at 7 p.m. on Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA. Just after the conclusion of gymnastics, Ledecky is expected to open her World Championships with the 400-meter freestyle heats on Saturday, July 20 at 9 p.m. ET on Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA.

All Olympic sports coverage televised and streamed across NBC Sports platforms is presented by Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA.

The biannual World Aquatics Championships continue this week across NBC Sports, encompassing all major aquatic sports: swimming, diving, water polo, and artistic swimming (formerly called synchronized swimming).

Swimming – The pool competition gets underway this weekend, with Ledecky expected to compete in five events: the 200m, 400m, 800m, and 1500m freestyles, as well as the 4x200m freestyle relay. The 22-year-old, who has 14 career world titles to her name, currently holds the world record in the 400m, 800m, and 1500m frees.  The U.S. men are expected to be led by Caeleb Dressel, who took home seven gold medals from the last edition of the World Aquatics Championships in 2017, tying Michael Phelps’ record for most titles at a single world championships.

Diving – The diving competition continues through this Saturday, July 20. The U.S. headliner is four-time Olympic medalist David Boudia, who will attempt to win his first world title on springboard (his Olympic medals, including gold in 2012, came on platform). The men’s springboard final takes place tomorrow morning, Thursday, July 18, at 7:45 a.m. ET on Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA.

Water Polo – The water polo tournament continues throughout the week as the dominant U.S. women’s water polo team will seek its third straight world title, led by team captain and two-time Olympic gold medalist Maggie Steffens. The U.S. women are 2-0 so far in pool play, with their final game of the round coming up against South Africa on Thursday, July 18, at 4 a.m. ET on Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA. Elimination rounds will begin on Friday night.

Click here for the full schedule.

Additionally, Olympic all-around champion Simone Biles is expected to lead a highly competitive field at the U.S. Classic, which often serves as a “tune-up” event for the nation’s top women ahead of the U.S. Championships in August. Biles will be joined by several members of the U.S. team that won the 2018 world title, including Morgan Hurd and Riley McCusker. This year’s U.S. Classic also serves as the selection event for the Pan American Games, which begin in late July. Live coverage of the 2019 U.S. Classic begins Saturday, July 20 at 7 p.m. ET on Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA.

 

Following are additional programming highlights this week across NBC Sports:

IAAF DIAMOND LEAGUE – LONDON, ENGLAND

TV COVERAGE BEGINS SUNDAY, JULY 21, AT 7 P.M. ET ON OLYMPIC CHANNEL: HOME OF TEAM USA

The Diamond League series continues in London, where reigning European 100m champion Dina Asher-Smith will headline a star-studded women’s sprint field in front of a home crowd. Given the proximity of the event to the upcoming USA Track & Field Outdoor Championships, most top American athletes are expected to skip this stop on the circuit.

Live coverage begins Saturday, July 20, at 10 a.m. ET on NBC Sports Gold. TV coverage on Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA begins with Day 1 on Sunday, July 21, at 7 p.m. ET, followed by Day 2 coverage on Monday, July 22, at 3 p.m. ET. NBCSN presents additional Day 2 coverage at 6 p.m. ET.

FIE WORLD FENCING CHAMPIONSHIPS – BUDAPEST, HUNGARY

TV COVERAGE BEGINS TOMORROW, THURSDAY, JULY 18, AT 5 P.M. ET ON OLYMPIC CHANNEL: HOME OF TEAM USA

The world’s best fencers will compete in Budapest, Hungary, for world medals and Olympic qualification points. The American contingent is headlined by 2016 Olympian Eli Dershwitz, who won the world silver medal in 2018 and is currently the world’s top-ranked man in sabre. The U.S. will also send the entire Olympic bronze medal-winning men’s foil team, led by world No. 2 Race Imboden.

TV coverage begins on Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA tomorrow, Thursday, July 18, at 5 p.m. ET. Click here for the full schedule.

IFSC SPORT CLIMBING WORLD CUP – BRIANCON, FRANCE

OLYMPIC CHANNEL: HOME OF TEAM USA PRESENTS COVERAGE SUNDAY, JULY 21, AT 3 P.M. ET

The sport climbing World Cup continues this weekend with a stop in France. Sport climbing will make its Olympic debut next year in Tokyo, where lead, speed, and bouldering will be combined into an overall competition. This weekend’s stop in Briancon will be a lead-only event. The Americans will be led by the top two women in the U.S. overall rankings, Kyra Condie and Ashima Shiraishi, along with top-ranked American man Nathaniel Coleman.


– NBC SPORTS –