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Pac-12 Networks Announces Talent Lineup For Olympic Winter Sports

Nov 16, 2016

SAN FRANCISCO – Pac-12 Networks today announced its talent lineup who will cover a total of 71 live Olympic events for the 2016-17 winter sports season. Joining the slate of on-air talent covering men’s and women's gymnastics, wrestling, swimming and diving, and rugby, is eight-time NCAA All-American swimmer, Jeff Commings, who adds to the on-air roster as a swimming and diving analyst.

This winter’s Olympic live event telecast slate begins with a wrestling event on Sunday, November 20 at 12 p.m. PT. Play-by-play announcer Jason Knapp will call the matchup with Oregon State taking on Michigan at home (on Pac-12 Oregon). Knapp will be joined by play-by-play announcer Rich Burk and analysts Anthony Robles and Ken Chertow on the broadcast team this season. Pac-12 Networks will air eight wrestling matches this season, culminating with the Pac-12 Championships at Stanford on Sunday, February 26 at 6 p.m. PT.

Burk will also take on a new role as play-by-play announcer for women’s gymnastics, joining returning announcers Jim Watson, Daron Sutton, Tim Dagget and Brian Webber, with Amanda Borden, Samantha Peszek and Alicia Sacramone Quinn adding the analysis. The season begins Friday, December 9 at 6 p.m. PT with Utah hosting the Red Rocks Preview at home, aired for the first time ever on Pac-12 Networks. The 30-meet season will be the most featured on the Pac-12 Network to-date. Play-by-play analyst Jim Watson and former American gymnast and U.S. Olympian Amanda Borden will cover the season opener, as the featured duo this season. Watson most recently called gymnastics for the 2016 Rio Olympics in addition to his experience calling weightlifting for the 2012 London Olympics. Former gold-medal winning Olympian Borden is also returning to the Pac-12 this year, bringing her expertise color-analysis to the team. Another standout to return to the Network is Bruin alum Peszek, a former artistic gymnast who was a member of the US silver-silver-medal-winning women's gymnastics team at the 2008 Summer Olympics.

On the men’s gymnastics side, Stanford, Arizona State and Nebraska will meet Cal at their home on Saturday, February 11 at 7:30 p.m. PT. Brian Webber will call the play-by-play and will be joined by Olympic gold medal winner Tim Daggett, who will provide analysis. The four-school matchup will be broadcast live on Pac-12 Arizona and Pac-12 Bay Area.

Swimming and diving coverage begins on Saturday, January 28 at 12 p.m. PT, with Stanford taking on USC at home. Pac-12 Networks will also showcase additional conference matchups, with Arizona State at Arizona on Saturday, February 4 at 10:30 a.m. PT, and Stanford taking on Cal on Saturday, February 11 at 12 p.m. PT. The season wraps up on Saturday, February 25 and Saturday, March 4 with the Pac-12 Championships in Washington. This year’s play-by-play team includes returning announcers Ted Robinson and Rich Burk, with Commings and six-time Olympic gold-medal champion and former world record holder Amy Van Dyken to round out the analyst team.

Brian Hightower, Colin Hawley and Kate Scott will team up to cover the Networks’ three-match rugby broadcast schedule. The season will begin with a matchup between Cal and British Columbia on Saturday, February 18 at 2 p.m. PT, with Hightower on play-by-play duties and Hawley adding analysis for the telecasts.

About Pac-12 Networks

Pac-12 Networks is the innovative TV and multimedia company of the Pac-12 Conference, and is the first such company to be wholly owned by 12 universities. Pac-12 Networks incorporates one national and six regional television networks, plus extensive digital content accessible through social media, university websites, and Pac-12 Now, its TV Everywhere service. Each year, Pac-12 Networks offers live coverage of 850 sporting events, making it one of the top live sports producers in the country. In addition, Pac-12 Networks creates extensive original programming, provides visibility for marquee football and basketball events as well as traditionally under-served women’s and Olympic sports. Pac-12 Networks also provides training and paid internships for thousands of students of the Pac-12’s member universities, preparing them for careers in media. With headquarters in San Francisco’s SOMA District, Pac-12 Networks draws on the creative, entrepreneurial, and technological culture of the Bay Area and nearby Silicon Valley. For more information, go to http://pac-12.com/networks.