FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, April 15th, 2020

MICHAEL PHELPS, KATIE LEDECKY, SIMONE MANUEL, AND DAVID BOUDIA MAKE A SPLASH IN “RETURN TO RIO” TONIGHT AT 7 P.M. ET ON NBCSN DURING NBC SPORTS’ OLYMPIC GAMES WEEK

NBCSN Presents Michael Phelps’ Historic Six-Medal Performance in His Fifth and Final Games

Katie Ledecky’s Record-Breaking Performance and Simone Manuel’s Historic Olympic Win Highlight Tonight’s Swimming Coverage, Beginning at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN

U.S. Women’s Water Polo Makes History with Back-to-Back Olympic Titles

Olympic Games Week Features Nearly 50 Hours of Historic Olympic Moments from 2016 Rio and 2012 London Olympics Throughout the Week

STAMFORD, Conn. – April 15, 2020 – Michael Phelps, Katie Ledecky, Simone Manuel and David Boudia headline tonight’s coverage of Olympic Games Week at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN, featuring eight hours of historic moments from the 2016 Rio Olympics.

NBC Olympics primetime host Mike Tirico will introduce nightly coverage over the next two weeks, concluding on Sunday, April 26. Programming will also stream on NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app. Coverage of Olympic Sports on NBC Sports Group platforms is a presentation of Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 15 – RETURN TO RIO: 2016 RIO GAMES – SWIMMING, DIVING, MEN’S GYMNASTICS AND WOMEN’S WATER POLO

Wednesday’s coverage of Return to Rio features American success in the pool in swimming, diving and women’s water polo, including Phelps’ six-medal performance at his final Olympic Games.

EVENT TIME (ET) NETWORK
Women’s Swimming 7 p.m. NBCSN
Men’s Swimming 9 p.m. NBCSN
Women’s Diving 11 p.m. NBCSN
Men’s Diving Midnight NBCSN
Men’s Gymnastics: Team Final 1 a.m. NBCSN
Women’s Water Polo: USA vs. Italy (final) 2 a.m. NBCSN

 

WOMEN’S SWIMMING AT 7 P.M. ET

In her second Olympics, Ledecky broke two world records and earned five medals, four of them gold. Ledecky became the first swimmer to win the 200m, 400m and 800m freestyle at the same Olympics since Debbie Meyer at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics.

Manuel earned four medals in Rio, including two gold. Manuel tied with Penny Oleksiak of Canada for the gold medal in the women’s 100m freestyle, becoming the first black woman to win Olympic swimming gold. Stanford graduate Maya DiRado won four Olympic medals, including gold in the women’s 200m backstroke, where silver medalist Katinka Hosszu of Hungry was the favorite to win. In her Olympic debut, Lilly King stunned the field by winning gold over her Russian rival Yulia Efimova in the 100m breaststroke.

MEN’S SWIMMING AT 9 P.M. ET

Phelps’ historic six-medal (five gold, one silver) performance at the 2016 Rio Olympics capped off his career as the most decorated Olympian of all time with a total of 28 medals (23 gold, three silver, two bronze).

In his first Olympic Games, Ryan Murphy won three gold medals, sweeping the men’s backstroke events and setting a world record in the backstroke leg of the 4x100m medley relay. 2012 Olympic 100m freestyle gold medalist Nathan Adrian added four medals in Rio, including two relay golds and bronze in both the 50m and 100m freestyle. At age 35, Anthony Ervin became the oldest Olympic gold medalist in swimming history when he won the 50m free.

WOMEN’S DIVING AT 11 P.M. ET

China’s dominance in women’s diving continued, sweeping gold medals in all four disciplines in Rio. 2012 Olympic silver medalist Abby Johnston closed out her career with a 12th-place finish in women’s springboard. In women’s platform, American Jessica Parratto finished 10th.

MEN’S DIVING AT MIDNIGHT ET

In Rio, 2012 Olympic champion Boudia added a pair of medals to his Olympic collection. After winning the silver medal in the men’s synchronized platform with Steele Johnson, the three-time Olympian closed out the competition with a bronze in the men’s platform. In the men’s synchronized springboard final, Americans Sam Dorman and Michael Hixon won silver.

MEN’S GYMNASTICS: TEAM FINAL AT 1 A.M. ET

Led by Kohei Uchimura, Japan captured Olympic team gold in Rio. After posting the second-highest team score in qualifying, the U.S. finished fifth in the final, less than three points from the podium. Members of the U.S. team included 2012 Olympic all-around bronze medalist Danell Leyva and two-time Olympian Sam Mikulak.

WOMEN’S WATER POLO: USA VS. ITALY (FINAL) AT 2 A.M. ET

The American team made history in Rio, becoming the first team to win consecutive Olympic titles in women’s water polo. The U.S. easily won its second straight Olympic title, defeating Italy with a decisive 12-5 win. Kiley Neushul led all scorers with three goals in the final, while team captain Maggie Steffens was named MVP of the Olympic water polo tournament, repeating the same honor from London.

Below is each night’s highlighted content throughout the week:

    • Wednesday, April 15: Return to Rio: 2016 Rio Games – Swimming, diving, men’s gymnastics and women’s water polo
    • Thursday, April 16: Return to London: 2012 London Games – Gymnastics, diving and women’s water polo
    • Friday, April 17: Return to London: 2012 London Games – Swimming, women’s soccer and women’s beach volleyball
    • Saturday, April 18: Return to London: 2012 London Games – Track & field and women’s soccer
    • Sunday, April 19: Return to Rio: 2016 Rio Games – Gymnastics, Olympic Films – Tokyo Olympiad and First: The Official Film of the 2012 London Olympics

 

–NBC SPORTS–