Phelps, Ryan Lochte and Katie Ledecky Highlight Arena Grand Prix at Mesa Field
Los Angeles (April 23, 2014) – Universal Sports Network, the year-round destination for Olympic, endurance and action sports, will air exclusive LIVE TV coverage of USA Swimming’s Arena Grand Prix at Mesa, Ariz., April 24-26. In addition to LIVE coverage on April 25 and 26 at 8 p.m. ET, Universal Sports will interrupt regularly scheduled programming on Thursday, April 24 to show LIVE coverage of Michael Phelps (Baltimore, Md.) in competition for the first time since the London Games. Live updates are expected at approximately 12:40 and 3 p.m. ET tomorrow to show the prelims of the 100 Freestyle and 100 Butterfly, both of which Phelps is currently entered. Finals are scheduled for the evening session.
In addition to the 22-time Olympic medalist Phelps, Ryan Lochte (Daytona Beach, Fla.) and Katie Ledecky (Bethesda, Md.) are expected to headline a star-studded field in Mesa including Tucson resident Matt Grevers (Lake Forest, Ill.) and Tucson native Caitlin Leverenz. Other top U.S. athletes expected to compete in Mesa include Olympic medalists Nathan Adrian (Bremerton, Wash.), Elizabeth Beisel (Saunderstown, R.I.), Tyler Clary (Riverside, Calif.), Natalie Coughlin (Vallejo, Calif.), Conor Dwyer (Winnetka, Ill.), Anthony Ervin (Valencia, Calif.), Jimmy Feigen (San Antonio, Texas) and Allison Schmitt (Canton, Mich.).
The Arena Grand Prix at Mesa is the fourth stop of USA Swimming’s 2013-14 Arena Grand Prix Series, which provides the nation’s best swimmers six opportunities to face top-flight competition on U.S. soil.
Calling the network’s LIVE coverage in Arizona on Friday and Saturday are veteran play-by-play announcer Paul Sunderland and analyst Rowdy Gaines, a three-time Olympic gold medalist. Universal Sports Network is now available on Time Warner Cable, Cox Communications, Verizon FiOS, satellite providers DIRECTV and DISH and numerous regional cable and IPTV operators in markets across the country.
Universal Sports Network Broadcast Schedule: 2014 Arena Grand Prix Series
All times Eastern – Subject to change
Date Time Event
Thu., Apr. 24 12-7 p.m. ET LIVE Updates ** Arena Grand Prix at Mesa
Fri., Apr. 25 8 p.m. ET LIVE Arena Grand Prix at Mesa
Sat. Apr. 26 8 p.m. ET LIVE Arena Grand Prix at Mesa
Fri., May 16 6 p.m. ET LIVE Arena Grand Prix at Charlotte
Sat., May 17 6 p.m. ET LIVE Arena Grand Prix at Charlotte
Sat., Jun. 21 8 p.m. ET LIVE Arena Grand Prix at Santa Clara
Sun., Jun. 22 8 p.m. ET LIVE Arena Grand Prix at Santa Clara
**Universal Sports Network will interrupt regularly scheduled programming to air LIVE coverage of Michael Phelps in competition.
About Universal Sports
Universal Sports Network, a partnership between NBC Sports and InterMedia Partners, LP, is the premier multi-platform media destination for Olympic-related sports programming in the United States. Offering more than 1,200 hours of original programming each year, Universal Sports has exclusive rights to world and national championship events in a wide array of sports, including swimming, track and field, gymnastics, cycling, skiing, figure skating and rugby. Whether on television, online, or on the go with mobile and tablet applications, Universal Sports offers a four-screen experience to fans of global sports every day of the year. For more information, please visit UniversalSports.com.
This is a press release submitted by Universal Sports Network.
That is great but we don’t get Universal Sports any longer. I am hoping that the meet will be aired on the US Swimming website.
Coverage has been confirmed to start at 12 PM EST (11 CTS, 10 MST and 9 PST). So you should be able to tune in at that time and see it all and yes the company that has the majority control really needs to understand that people will watch the network if they make it available to the general public.
Wow, Phelps is already making a positive impact on the sport!