Four-time Olympic medalist and 10-year NBC Sports TRACK AND FIELD analyst Ato Boldon (@AtoBoldon) joins NBC Sports Group's NASCAR on NBC broadcast team as a features contributor for the 2017 NASCAR season. Boldon will make his NASCAR on NBC debut, on Saturday, July 1, during NBC's coverage of the NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway, in Daytona Beach, Fla.
At Daytona, Boldon will be embedded with the die-hard NASCAR racing community, and will report on what makes NASCAR fans so loyal to their drivers. Boldon will experience the infield of the world's first motorsports speedway firsthand, and will look back at what it was like to race on the packed sand of Daytona Beach where the sport first began.
In addition to his role at Daytona, Boldon will contribute to NASCAR on NBC's coverage of four additional races during the 2017 season, including Cup Series races at Bristol Motor Speedway, Charlotte Motor Speedway, and Homestead-Miami Speedway. Reporting assignments will include serving as a NASCAR hauler driver, joining Joe Gibbs Racing's pit crew, and becoming a driver himself, when he takes the wheel of
NBC Sports' on-track car to experience piloting a 750+ horsepower stock car on 20 degree banked turns.
"As an athlete, broadcaster, and lover of speed and adrenaline, I'm eager to experience the fascinating intricacies of NASCAR," said Boldon. "It's an amazing opportunity to bring fans even closer to the action, and I hope to bring a perspective that viewers have not previously seen."
Boldon had his first taste of NASCAR last year during a ride along with NASCAR on
NBC analyst Jeff Burton at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Boldon's hot laps around the 1.5 mile oval can be found here.
Boldon, who joined
NBC Sports Group in 2007, serves as
NBC Sports Group's lead
TRACK AND FIELD analyst. Boldon has covered four Olympics for
NBC Sports, including the 2016 Rio Olympics, 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia, 2012 London Games, and 2008 Beijing Games.
In 1992, Boldon represented Trinidad and Tobago in the 100m and 200m competitions at the Barcelona Olympics. At the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, Boldon won bronze medals in the 100m and 200m events. Four years later, at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, Boldon won a silver medal in the 100m, and a bronze in the 200m.
NASCAR ON
NBC In 2017,
NBC Sports Group will present the final 20 NASCAR Cup Series races, final 19 NASCAR XFINITY Series events and select NASCAR Regional & Touring Series events.
NBC Sports Group's NASCAR programming also includes NBCSN's daily motorsports show NASCAR America, coverage of NASCAR's Awards Ceremonies, the annual NASCAR Hall of Fame induction ceremony, as well as original programming specials.
NBC Sports Group concluded the 2016 NASCAR season presenting more hours of trackside coverage and programming than ever before.
In 2016,
NBC Sports Group continued to innovate and entertain race fans with 630 hours of NASCAR programming, including interactive watch parties, documentary specials and new shoulder programming, in addition to its 366 live trackside hours from 22 different states. In 2016, overall consumption of NASCAR content on
NBC Sports' Digital properties was up 50% vs. 2015, and NASCAR on NBC's social platforms generated a triple-digit increase in video views, as well as double-digit increase in fan base and impressions compared to the 2015 season.
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