PARK CITY, UT (March 14, 2016) – The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association’s U.S. Grand Prix, in its 20th season, reached 6.972 million U.S. television viewers over the three-stop tour. The Grand Prix culminated in spectacular fashion with the highest-rated winter action sports television broadcast of the season from its Polartec Big Air at Fenway on NBC. The NBC broadcast averaged 1.357 million viewers with a .87 rating – greater than any other winter action sports program this year on any U.S. network.
The U.S. Grand Prix tour, which has been used to select Olympic snowboarding and freeskiing teams since its inception in 1997, is the longest running winter action sports tour in America. 2015-16 tour stops included Mammoth Mountain, CA in January, plus Park City, UT and Fenway Park in Boston in February. The Grand Prix’s broadcast partnership with NBC Sports reached a total of 6.972 million U.S. television viewers this season on NBC and NBCSN, including live coverage of Fenway Park in Boston. International coverage is expected to reach an aggregate of over seven million viewers worldwide with each competition a part of the FIS World Cup.
More than 1.3 million viewers tuned in to watch Polartec Big Air Fenway on NBC (Getty Images-Maddie Meyer)
“As the exclusive path to the Olympics, the U.S. Grand Prix continues to provide the strongest broadcast coverage both in America and around the world for winter action sports through our partnership with NBC, the network of the Olympics,” said USSA Chief Marketing Officer Michael Jaquet. “Our commitment to growing the broadcast coverage for the U.S. Grand Prix with our partners at NBCUniversal has paid off in becoming the number one property in the space.”
The Grand Prix has also been successful in capturing mainstream coverage with recognition of the tour as a major sporting event by broad-based traditional media. “One of the biggest assets of the U.S. Grand Prix is its ability to garner traditional media coverage,” said USSA Vice President, Communications Tom Kelly. “Fenway alone achieved over 200 million impressions through traditional news media coverage and social media that helps create a buzz for the event and drive viewers to the television coverage.”
The Big Air at Fenway was the second city event produced by the USSA, following a Denver Big Air in 2011. While the USSA does not have another on the schedule, it’s considering future opportunities to bring events from the mountains direct to metro markets under the right circumstances.
“Events like Big Air at Fenway are great showcases for our Olympic athletes,” said USSA Vice President, Events Calum Clark. “The USSA is always seeking out the very best resort and venue partners with a commitment to providing optimum competition and training conditions for athletes. Having a three-stop tour allows our partners to continue to support our mutual goals for the Grand Prix. While stadium events like Fenway are not something we would produce every season, we certainly would look at returning or considering other stadium venues in America.”
Coverage is expected to grow even further over the next two seasons, as the U.S. Grand Prix will be the focal point of Olympic qualifying leading up to PyeongChang in 2018. Mammoth Mountain, Park City and Colorado’s Copper Mountain are all expected to play a role on the Grand Prix tour over the next two seasons.
2016 U.S. GRAND PRIX BROADCAST RATINGS
Mammoth Mountain
Jan. 24 – NBC: 697,000 viewers (.50 rating) – slopestyle snowboarding
Jan. 27 – NBCSN: 26,000 viewers – halfpipe snowboarding
Jan. 30 – NBC: 595,000 viewers (.47 rating) – slopestyle skiing
Park City
Feb. 13 – NBC: 1.015 million viewers (.66 rating) – halfpipe skiing
Feb. 14 – NBC: 874,000 viewers (.59 rating) – halfpipe snowboarding
Feb. 18 – NBCSN: 50,000 viewers – halfpipe skiing
Fenway/Boston
Feb. 11 – NBCSN Live: 98,000 viewers – big air snowboarding
Feb. 12 – NBCSN Live: 106,000 viewers – big air skiing
Feb. 13 – NBC: 1.357 million viewers (.87 rating) – big air snowboarding and skiing
Total Grand Prix Audience Reached: 6.972 million
HIGHLIGHTS
U.S. Grand Prix telecasts on NBC and NBCSN reached 6.972 million viewers, the broadest coverage of winter action sports in America.
Closing event of the U.S. Grand Prix at Fenway Park in Boston averaged 1.357 million viewers on NBC, the most-watched winter action sports TV broadcast in America this season.
Live broadcasts of the Polartec Big Air at Fenway on NBCSN averaged 98,000 viewers for snowboarding on Thursday evening and 106,000 viewers for the Friday night freeskiing finale.
Beyond broadcast, the Big Air at Fenway event gained over 200 million traditional domestic media impressions.
Fenway ticket sales: 27,282 (over two nights)
QUOTES
Michael Jaquet, Chief Marketing Officer, U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association
As the exclusive path to the Olympics, the U.S. Grand Prix continues to provide the strongest broadcast coverage both in America and around the world for winter action sports through our partnership with NBC, the network of the Olympics. Our commitment to growing the broadcast coverage for the U.S. Grand Prix with our partners at NBCUniversal has paid off in becoming the number one property in the space.
The Grand Prix has made huge gains over the last few years and we expect to continue this momentum into the next two years as we head towards the Olympics in 2018.
Calum Clark, Vice President, Events, U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association
In its 20-year history, the U.S. Grand Prix has established its legacy as a tour with a primary focus on producing high quality athletic events that are a pipeline to the Olympics for the best athletes in the world.
The Polartec Big Air at Fenway was a success on all fronts. It provided a very successful debut of the newest Olympic event in spectacular fashion with a 140-foot high jump in such an iconic stadium as Fenway and created a national buzz for the Grand Prix.
Events like Big Air at Fenway are great showcases for our Olympic athletes. USSA is always seeking out the very best resort and venue partners with a commitment to providing optimum competition and training conditions for athletes. Having a three-stop tour allows our partners to continue to support our mutual goals for the Grand Prix. While stadium events like Fenway are not something we would produce every season, we certainly would look at returning or considering other stadium venues in America.
Tom Kelly, Vice President, Communications, U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association
One of the biggest assets of the U.S. Grand Prix as a part of the Olympic pipeline is its ability to garner traditional media coverage. Fenway alone reached over 200 million people through traditional news media coverage and social media that helps create a buzz for the event and drive viewers to the television coverage.
