NBC Sports to Present 14.5 Hours of KENTUCKY DERBY Coverage, Beg. 5/1

NBC Sports Group will present 14.5 hours of Kentucky Derby coverage beginning Wednesday, May 1, at 4 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network with Kentucky Derby Classics, and culminating with the 139th running of the Kentucky Derby on NBC, Saturday, May 4, beginning at 11 a.m. on NBC Sports Network and continuing at 4 p.m. ET on NBC.

NBC's Kentucky Derby coverage, which in 2012 was honored with an Eclipse Award in the Television-Live Programming category, includes 8.5 hours on Derby Day on NBC and NBC Sports Network. Coverage includes:

Live coverage of the Kentucky Derby Draw Wednesday, May 1 at 5 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network to determine the post positions;
11.5 total hours on NBC Sports Network;
Three hours of "Derby Classics" (Mine That Bird, Animal Kingdom, I'll Have Another) to air on NBC Sports Network.

COMENTATORS: NBC Sports Group coverage of the Kentucky Derby will feature co-hosts Bob Costas, a 24-time Emmy Award-winner, and veteran NBC Sports commentator Tom Hammond; analysts Randy Moss and Hall-of Fame jockey Jerry Bailey; analysts/handicappers Mike Battaglia and Bob Neumeier; NBC Sports Network host Laffit Pincay, III; reporters Kenny Rice, Donna Brothers and Jay Privman; and race caller Larry Collmus. Michelle Beadle of Access Hollywood and co-host of The Crossover on NBC Sports Network, will provide features and interviews, and Coco Rocha, supermodel coach on Oxygen's The Face, will talk Kentucky Derby fashions and handle celebrity interviews.

The coordinating producer of NBC's horse racing coverage is Rob Hyland, a veteran of the network's horse racing coverage since 2001. The Kentucky Derby is directed by Sunday Night Football and NBC Sports' horse racing director, Drew Esocoff. The coverage on NBC Sports Network is produced by Billy Matthews and directed by Patrick McManus. The executive producer of NBC Sports and NBC Sports Network is Sam Flood, who has produced 12 Triple Crown races for the network.

27½ HOURS OF TRIPLE CROWN COVERAGE: NBC Sports Group will present 27½ hours of Triple Crown coverage this season from Churchill Downs, Pimlico and Belmont, including "classics" from the Derby, Preakness and Belmont, live racing from all three tracks prior to the three Triple Crown races, and post-race coverage of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont on NBC Sports Network. This marks the third straight year that all three Triple Crown races will air on NBC.

NBC SPORTS GROUP TRIPLE CROWN COVERAGE (All Times ET):

NBC SPORTS GROUP TRIPLE CROWN COVERAGE (All Times ET):

KENTUCKY DERBY
Date	Time	Event	Network
Wed., May 1	4 p.m.	Kentucky Derby Classics - Mine That Bird	NBCSN
	5 p.m.	Kentucky Derby Draw	NBCSN
Thurs., May 2	4 p.m.	Kentucky Derby Classics - Animal Kingdom	NBCSN
	5 p.m.	Kentucky Derby Access	NBCSN
Fri., May 3	4 p.m.	Kentucky Derby Classics - I'll Have Another	NBCSN
	5 p.m.	Kentucky Oaks	NBCSN
Sat., May 4	11 a.m.	Kentucky Derby Saturday	NBCSN
	4 p.m.	Kentucky Derby	NBC
	7 p.m.	Kentucky Derby Post-Race Show	NBCSN

PREAKNESS STAKES
Date	Time	Event	Network
Wed., May 15	3:30 p.m.	Preakness Draw	NBCSN
Fri., May 17	3 p.m.	Preakness Classics	NBCSN
	4 p.m.	Black Eyed Susan Stakes	NBCSN
Sat., May 18	2:30 p.m.	Preakness Saturday	NBCSN
	4:30 p.m.	Preakness Stakes	NBC
	6:30 p.m.	Preakness Post-Race Show	NBCSN

BELMONT STAKES
Date	Time	Event	Network
Fri., June 7	4 p.m.	Belmont Stakes Classics	NBCSN
	5 p.m.	Belmont Stakes Access	NBCSN
Sat., June 8	3 p.m.	Belmont Stakes Saturday	NBCSN
	5 p.m.	Belmont Stakes	NBC
	7 p.m.	Belmont Stakes Post-Race Show	NBCSN

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NBC SPORTS LIVE EXTRA KENTUCKY DERBY COVERAGE

NBC Sports Live Extra -- the NBC Sports Group's live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, and tablets -- will stream Kentucky Derby week coverage on NBC and NBC Sports Network. The vast majority of the content will be streamed live via "TV Everywhere," the media industry's effort to make quality content available to authenticated customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms.

For desktops, NBC Sports Live Extra can be accessed at NBCSports.com/liveextra. The NBC Sports Live Extra app for mobile devices and tablets is available at the App Store for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, and on select Android handset and tablet devices within Google Play.

Content airing on NBC, including the Kentucky Derby race, will be streamed to PC's, mobile devices and tablets through NBC Sports Live Extra.

NBC's Derby Day coverage includes:

Four online-only camera angles that showcase the activity happening across Churchill Downs on Derby day;
Online-only analysis by NBC Sports commentators;
Replays and footage from the key Road to the Kentucky Derby prep races.

Derby Week coverage airing on NBC Sports Network will be live streamed to PCs, mobile devices and tablets through NBC Sports Live Extra, and to the digital platforms of participating cable, satellite, and telco services, via "TV Everywhere," which is available on an authenticated basis to subscribers of participating MVPDs.

NBC Sports Network coverage includes:

Kentucky Derby Draw, Wednesday, May 1, at 5 p.m. ET
Kentucky Derby Access, Thursday, May 2, at 5 p.m. ET
Kentucky Oaks, Friday, May 3, at 5 p.m. ET
Kentucky Derby Pre-Show, Saturday, May 4 at 11 a.m. ET

NBC SPORTS SOCIAL MEDIA AT THE KENTUCKY DERBY

KENTUCKY DERBY ON NBC "SOCIAL CENTER": Horseracing fans and fans of the elegance and glitz of the Derby can access content from Derby week at a "social center" housed on NBCSports.com. Fans can access and sort social media content from Facebook, Twitter and Instagram through various streams including horse racing experts, horses (including the horses themselves, jockeys and trainers), glamour (celebrities, fashion experts), and a photos-only section. The "social center" aggregates what's trending around the Derby and what's hot in the social world and it's all at the fingertips of the user. Content from the "social center" including tweets, trending topics and photos will be featured on-air during the week-long Derby celebration on NBC and the NBC Sports Network.

TWITTER MIRROR: NBC Sports and Twitter are partnering to have the "Twitter Mirror" present on the Red Carpet at the Derby, on the Pink Carpet at Oaks Day and at the famed Barnstable Brown Party on Friday night of Derby Week. The "Twitter Mirror" will bring fans closer to the exclusive, celebrity driven events in and around Churchill Downs. Celebrity and "best-dressed" photos will be pushed out through the @NBCSN Twitter feed and collected and housed within NBCSports.com and the NBC "social center." Content from the "Twitter Mirror" will be featured on-air during Derby Day.

KENTUCKY DERBY ALL-ACCESS: NBC Sports will implement its "All-Access" social media strategy for Kentucky Derby week on both NBC Sports and NBC Sports Network. Two dedicated social media producers will be on-site for behind the scenes content including breaking news, photos and video from Churchill Downs on social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Vine and NBCSports.com.

Facebook:

Every day at Facebook.com/NBCSports, fans will be presented with a Derby 101 shareable image that can help them prepare for Derby Day. NBC Sports commentators and NBCUniversal talent will help fans do everything from learn how to call a Kentucky Derby race to plan their Derby party.
Fans at home can pick their winner with the "Choose the Winning Horse" Facebook poll on Facebook.com/NBCSports. Votes will be tallied and shown on-air during the Kentucky Derby broadcast.

Twitter: Viewers and tweeters alike will be encouraged to join the conversation by using the hashtag #DERBY. Reminders will appear on screen throughout all of NBC and NBC Sports Network's Kentucky Derby week coverage.

The ultimate Derby fashionista can follow along with #DerbyHats to find the best of the best in headwear from the 2013 Kentucky Derby. Fans will also be asked to submit pictures of their Derby hats from home using #DerbyHats. Favorites may be featured on-air.
On-air integration of live tweets from celebrities, horse-racing experts and @NBCSN will be featured on screen throughout the broadcasts to keep viewers up to date with what's happening and trending on Twitter.
@NBCSN will live tweet the Kentucky Derby Draw Show on Wednesday.

Instagram: For 360 coverage of behind-the-scenes access to Derby Week, fans can follow @NBCSports on Instagram at Instagram.com/NBCSports for the parties, food, fashion and of course the races.

Pinterest: The Kentucky Derby is the perfect event to launch the NBC Sports' Pinterest presence. Fans can access photos and videos around the Derby from NBCSports.com and NBC Sports social channels as well as find recipes and ideas for their ultimate Derby Party.

Vine: NBC Sports will utilize Vine to give fans quick video look-ins at everything that makes up the Kentucky Derby. From morning workouts with the horses, to Millionaire's Row, NBC Sports Vines will give fans the full Derby experience for those that can't make it to the track for Derby Week.

NBC SPORTS GROUP AND HORSE RACING: The NBC Sports Group is the exclusive home to the most important and prestigious events in horse racing, including the Triple Crown and the Breeders' Cup. NBC has been the exclusive home of the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes since 2001, and the Belmont Stakes since 2011, when the NBC Sports Group reassembled the Triple Crown. This year, the NBC Sports Group will present 27½ hours of Triple Crown coverage across NBC and NBC Sports Network.

NBC Sports Group is the home to "Summer at Saratoga," and, in collaboration with The Jockey Club, the Road to the Kentucky Derby series that provides live coverage of six major prep races for the 2013 Kentucky Derby.

KENTUCKY DERBY: Last year, the Kentucky Derby drew 14.8 million viewers, the third most-watched Kentucky Derby in 23 years, and up two percent from the 2011 Derby according to official national data provided by The Nielsen Company. Since implementing NBC Sports' 'Big Event Strategy,' the last four Kentucky Derby races have all recorded at least 14.5 million viewers.

NBC Sports' coverage of the Kentucky Derby over the last 12 years averages more than 2 million more viewers than the previous 12 Kentucky Derby broadcasts on ABC (14.1 million vs.12.0 million, up 17 percent).

PREAKNESS STAKES: Last year's coverage of the Preakness Stakes on NBC drew 8.1 million viewers. Since NBC began broadcasting the Preakness in 2001, every Preakness telecast on NBC over that period attracted more viewers than any Preakness telecast on ABC in the previous eight years. Viewership for the Preakness is up an average of 63% in the 12 years on NBC compared to the previous eight years on ABC.

BELMONT STAKES: Last year, NBC's second broadcast of the Belmont Stakes since 2005 drew 7.67 million viewers, making it the most-watched Belmont in a non-Triple Crown year since 2005 on NBC.

AWARDS FOR NBC'S HORSE RACING COVERAGE: Since its involvement in the Triple Crown, NBC Sports has been honored with 12 Eclipse Awards for its thoroughbred racing coverage including the award for Television - Live Program for the 2012 Kentucky Derby. NBC's previous wins in that category include: Preakness (2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008), Kentucky Derby (2007), Belmont (2004) and Breeder's Cup (2001). Additionally, NBC Sports has won three Eclipse Awards in the features category: 2002 on War Emblem (Preakness broadcast), 2005 Afleet Alex (Kentucky Derby broadcast) and 2009 Mine That Bird (Preakness broadcast), and the 2005 and 2006 Preakness broadcasts were nominated for the Sports Emmy Award for Outstanding Live Sports Special.

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