USOC suspends
plan for Olympic net
Committee backs off after protests from IOC
By Toni Fitzgerald
Aug 17, 2009
It’s uncertain whether the United States Olympic Committee’s plans to launch a cable network would have derailed Chicago’s hopes to gain custody of the 2016 Summer Games.
But the USOC was apparently unwilling to chance it.
Following vehement protests from the International Olympic Committee, the USOC said yesterday that it is abandoning plans to launch the network, at least for now.
"In order to facilitate a productive dialogue, the USOC has decided to delay further development of the network until we have resolved all issues of concern to the IOC," said USOC chief Larry Probst in a statement.
The plans may be revisited at a later date, when and if the USOC receives the IOC’s approval.
The decision came shortly after Probst and IOC head Jacques Rogge met Saturday in Berlin to defuse the situation.
The USOC had announced plans to launch the network, which Comcast had agreed to carry, last month. But the IOC was furious, saying it had not been consulted in the matter.
Rogge claimed his requests for more information had been ignored. The IOC upbraided the USOC in a statement released last month.
Meanwhile, NBC, which has paid billions for rights to the Games, was also reportedly angry that it had not been consulted.
The channel was to focus on news, interviews, commentary, documentaries and Olympic-themed films, as well as featuring footage from Games past. It was slated to launch next year.
But ticking off the IOC at a time when the U.S. is bidding for the ’16 Games, the location of which will be announced in October, was ultimately seen as unwise.
Not surprisingly, the head of the Chicago bid committee applauded the USOC’s move.
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