The 2024 Paris Olympics have their opening ceremonies Friday, but some of the Games’ events have already begun. That means NBCUniversal’s coverage is already rolling as well, including live events on both USA and Peacock.
Veteran anchor Lindsay Czarniak is again part of the extensive NBCUniversal team covering these Olympics. This time around, she’s mostly working as an anchor for coverage on USA. She spoke to AA via email this week, and said she’s thrilled to again be involved in covering the Games, citing the camaraderie of working to present such a big event as particularly fun.
“It’s a huge honor to cover the Olympics. It’s always a thrill with unexpected moments and experiences. What I probably appreciate most about the opportunity is the fact that for almost three weeks, you get to be a part of a team working tirelessly, all hours, to cover the competition of the greatest athletes in the world. Most of the time, they are new co-workers, and by the end of the Games, it truly is like family. It is such a grind and I love every second of it.”
She said the athletes and stories of the Olympics have been key to her career and her love of sports, too.
“It has been part of what has made me fall in love with reporting, storytelling and hosting live sports. I was an intern at USA Toda y at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta and I will always remember one of the managers saying ‘If you never wanna grow up, cover sports.’ It’s true. That was one of the first examples of observing something I knew lit me up inside. I love the storytelling, the triumphant moments, even the moments of heartbreak that help set the stage for redemption the next time around.”
Czarniak said each of her Olympics’ experiences, including correspondent work in 2006 and 2008, studio shows for the last two Games, and the On Her Turf Peacock show focused on female athletes three years ago, has been rewarding in a different way.
“There’s nothing quite like being part of an Olympics broadcast. It has meant so many different things—covering incredible stories as a correspondent in Torino and Beijing and having the chance to host studio shows at the past two Summer and Winter Olympics have been some of the highlights of my career. It was also extremely meaningful to me to co-host On Her Turf , a show focused on the female Olympians for the Tokyo Games, a focus that I’ve tried to bring to every Olympics since.”
Czarniak will be based out of NBC’s Stamford, Connecticut facilities this time around, and will be doing a lot of work on overnight shifts. She’ll be covering live sports including men’s and women’s basketball, soccer, volleyball, swimming, gymnastics, and track and field. She said that will come with a schedule adjustment, but she’s ready for that.
“The hours are long,” she said. “In my case this time, there will be a new radically different sleep schedule involved. But it is so satisfying working with a crew that is so top notch and dedicated to what they do. It truly is one of the most fulfilling experiences you can have as a broadcaster.”
And she said the overnights are actually an opportunity, as they’ll set up a whole day of Olympic coverage.
“I am excited about the time of day. That might sound crazy since my shift will be overnights coming on when the day is dawning in Paris so it’s a special opportunity to fill folks in on what’s happened overnight and also usher in the day’s biggest news. There’s a lot of creativity in that.”
Czarniak said one particular opportunity with these shifts is the amount of as-it-happens events they can cover.
“Our team is incredible, and we’ve already been bouncing ideas off each other. There’s a little bit more of a live element bouncing in and out of live coverage, so I’m excited to react real time to what’s happening in Paris and the surrounding areas.”
She said she’s also looking forward to working in material from her own interviews with Olympians.
“I’ve done a few interviews already on my Instagram with Olympians who are taking part in these Games, and this time, I’m excited about weaving in some things they’ve shared while hosting, sort of like when I’m sideline reporting,” she said. “My favorite type of roles are when you can merge reporting with hosting and have fun while we’re at it. We I’ll definitely be leaning into the ‘Olympic overnights’ element and hope to have a lot of fun in the process.”
At this point, Czarniak has done a lot of Olympic work, but she said this Games will be unique for the host city.
“Working the Summer Olympics doesn’t feel terribly different to me, but what does feel special this time is Paris,” she said. “There are always special elements to the host cities, but Paris stands on its own. The city itself is a huge character in this Olympic Games experience.”
She said the new events for 2024 will stand out also.
“I do think there are a lot of unique sports folks are learning about for the first time in these Olympics—breaking, sport climbing, etc. And those are sports that have rabid fanbases of their own, so I’m looking forward to seeing what the reaction is.”
There’s an interesting personal element for Czarniak at these Games, with her husband Craig Melvin also working on NBC’s coverage. He’s doing so from Paris, and Czarniak said it’s a cool opportunity for them to both be on this coverage, which may lead to some cross-show connections.
“It’s bananas and also very funny. He will be eating pastries in Paris and I’ll have croissants in Connecticut BUT, there is an element of fun to this. We had a similar situation in Beijing and there were some opportunities to have some fun. I’m hoping we can do that again.
“One cool thing is a lot of my crew in Stamford has worked with him on his show on MSNBC and Today . That connection and how rare that is is not lost on me. I’m extremely grateful for this opportunity and to be able to get to know those people who have worked closely with him is pretty special because of the stories I hear. It makes it feel even more like family because of that connection.”
There are challenges for their family, though, as Czarniak and Melvin have 10-year-old and seven-year-old children. She said their both working on this event from different sides of the Atlantic can present some difficulties, but they’re both thrilled they get these opportunities.
“It’s been a bit of a juggernaut to manage with him heading to another continent and me working overnights. But despite the challenges that presents, we both feel insanely lucky.”
The Olympics is just part of what Czarniak is up to these days. A long-held career love of hers has been auto racing . She recently hosted Indy 500 race coverage for the track, and also hosted the victory banquet this year. She said the Indy 500 is always a highlight of the calendar for her.
“It’s one of my favorite jobs I have. I love that race so much because of the significance of it each season. My favorite part of the weekend is always the time with the drivers and the people around the sport.”
The victory banquet role was new to Czarniak, and she said that was particularly special.
“The events around the race are always moving and memorable but hosting the Victory Banquet is like nothing I’ve ever done. Having the chance to interview every single driver who competed in the Indy 500 just 24 hours prior is really cool as a journalist because making the connection and getting the most out of them is a challenge if they didn’t have the day they wanted. I love it so much also because while I enjoy hosting solo when it merits, I LOVE working with a co-host. Allen Bestwick and I have known each other for such a long time and he is one of my favorite humans to riff off of and engage with as a live co-host.”
In a different kind of racing, Czarniak has continued her involvement in horse ownership through the America’s Best Racing’s A Stake In Stardom project. That’s seen her involved at events like the Belmont Stakes, and she has planned post-Olympics projects there at Saratoga and at the Breeders’ Cup this fall. She said getting into horse racing has been the fulfillment of a long-held dream.
“It means more to me than they will ever realize. I’ve been interested in the sport since I was a kid because my dad covered horseracing for USA Today . When America’s Best Racing asked me to be a part in this project I was so excited because I love being around it. All of it – my dad and I used to compare notes about racetracks and barns in the morning because we both love when things come alive early in those spaces before the action begins.
And she said the actual experience there has been even better than she had hoped it would be.
“It has been SO meaningful for me to be able to experience some of that world now with my dad but also to meet some truly amazing people and build my own relationships with people in the sport. I have fallen in love with the people, their passion for the stars of the show. – which is the horses, and the storytelling around this sport.”
Czarniak said a key overarching thread in her work is connecting with the people involved in each sport , and illustrating what’s special about them to an audience. She hopes to bring that to USA’s Olympic coverage.
“In our industry, we continue to see the important of behind-the-scenes reporting and helping the viewer or reader or audience in general connect with the characters or stars of these sports. That has added a really cool element to covering the Olympics.”
NBCU’s full Olympic schedule can be found here .
The post Lindsay Czarniak talks hosting Olympic coverage for USA: ‘I love the storytelling.’ appeared first on Awful Announcing .
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