Despite the difficult negotiations with rights holder Discovery, ARD and ZDF are intensively supported by the Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang (9. till 25. February). Due to the delay in time, the broadcasters had to make cuts,”but in terms of quality we will not fall behind the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi”, promised Volker Herres, ARD programme director.
While the broadcasters reported 240 hours live from Russia four years ago, this time it will be around 220 hours. The live coverage starts at 1:00 a. m. every day and runs until the following late afternoon. The first broadcasts the opening ceremony from South Korea (9. February), ZDF is responsible for the closing event (25. February).
Pure production costs also do not reach the Sochi value and are just under a double-digit million Euro amount per institution. In Sochi, both stations were present with around 500 employees,”this time it will be a third less,”revealed ZDF editor-in-chief Peter Frey.
Both broadcasters did not want to give detailed information about the goals of the TV ratings “We know that the Olympic Games are always a burner. We expect top marks,”said Herres, without quoting any figures. Experts such as former figure skating star Katarina Witt and Olympic champion Maria Höfl-Riesch (ski alpine) will be present for ARD, while ZDF will rely on the assessments of biathlon Olympic champion Sven Fischer and Toni Innauer (ski jumping).
At a presentation in Berlin on Tuesday, both broadcasters stressed the importance of reporting on the country and its people and looking behind the scenes of sports policy. Hajo Seppelt (ARD) and Markus Harm (ZDF) will follow the work of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the federations as experts.
The Paralympics (9. till 18. March) will report afterwards. Approximately 60 hours are planned for this. The competitions for the 80 medals will also start at 1:00 a. m. at night.