Fang's Bites

Leftover Thursday Press Releases

I’m running behind today so Megalinks might be up tonight. I still have a couple of things to do before I get cracking on other stuff.

Here are releases from Thursday that I didn’t post last night. Let’s get cracking.

This is from NBC Sports which will have live coverage of the concluding weekend of the IAAF World Track & Field Championships from Berlin.

NBC SPORTS LIVE COVERAGE OF WORLD TRACK & FIELD CHAMPIONSHIPS FROM BERLIN CONTINUES THIS WEEKEND

Bolt and Gay Lead Their Teams in 4X100m Final, Live on Saturday

Live Streaming Webcasts on UniversalSports.com

NEW YORK – August 20, 2009 – Jamaica’s Usain Bolt and the USA’s Tyson Gay, who placed No. 1 and No. 2 respectively in the 100m Final, will square off again live in the 4x100m as NBC Sports’ coverage of the World Track & Field Championships from Berlin continues this weekend. Bolt, who set the world record with an amazing 9.54 seconds in the 100m final, will lead the Jamaican team against Gay and Team USA. Gay placed second in the 100m with a new American record of 9.71 seconds.

COVERAGE ON NBC SPORTS: NBC Sports will air four hours of competition this weekend beginning this Saturday from 1-3 p.m. ET (LIVE) and continuing this Sunday from 2-4 p.m. ET (Same Day Tape). Coverage highlights include:

Saturday: Men’s 4x100m Relay Final
Women’s 4x100m Relay Final
Women’s 5,000m Final
Men’s Long Jump Final
Men’s Pole Vault Final
Women’s Hammer Throw Final
Men’s Marathon

Sunday: Men’s 4x400m Relay Final
Women’s 4x400m Relay Final
Men’s 800m Final
Women’s 1,500m Final
Woman’s Marathon
Women’s Long Jump Final
Men’s Javelin Final

COVERAGE ON UNIVERSALSPORTS.COM: UniversalSports.com is providing a live webcast of the morning and evening sessions from Berlin each day of the Championships. UniversalSports.com’s Alan Abrahamson will provide daily blog posts and news updates from Berlin. The full webcast schedule, highlights, full-length videos, photos, breaking news and more is available at UniversalSports.com/trackandfield.

TEAM USA RETURNS TO BERLIN: These World Championships mark the first time that the USA Track and Field team will return to Berlin for a major international competition since the 1936 Olympic Games where Jesse Owens won four gold medals.

ANNOUNCERS: Calling the action from Berlin is NBC Sports Olympic Track and Field broadcast team of: Tom Hammond, Ato Bolden, Lewis Johnson, Dwight Stones and Bob Neumeier.

LUCAS OIL AMA PRO MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP, SATURDAY, 3 PM ET

NBC Sports and Alli, the Alliance of Action Sports, present live coverage of the 10th stop of the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship at Budds Creek in Mechanicsville, Md., part of the Monster Energy Triple Crown Series. Chad Reed will attempt to maintain his lead in the standings over Andrew Short and Ivan Tedesco.

Commentary is provided by Jason Weigandt, David Bailey, Jamie Bestwick and Tiffany Simons.

JELD-WEN TRADITION, SATURDAY AND SUNDAY, 4 PM ET Greg Norman leads the field as NBC Sports presents live coverage of the JELD-WEN Tradition from Crosswater Club at Sunriver Resort in Sunriver, Ore., Saturday and Sunday, 4 p.m. ET. Fred Funk is the defending champion. The JELD-WEN Tradition is one of five major events on the Champions Tour.

Other marquee names competing include Tom Watson, Gary Player, Hale Irwin and Peter Jacobsen.

Dan Hicks, Gary Koch, Roger Maltbie and Mark Rolfing provide the commentary.

To CBS Sports and this release stating that it will cover the W&S Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati and the great Ian Eagle will be calling the tournament with Mary Carillo.

CBS SPORTS TO BROADCAST MEN’S FINAL OF U.S. OPEN SERIES

“WESTERN AND SOUTHERN FINANCIAL GROUP MASTERS”

LIVE FROM CINCINNATI ON SUNDAY, AUG. 23

CBS Sports broadcasts the men’s final of the U.S. OPEN SERIES “western and southern financial group masters” on Sunday, Aug. 23 (12:30-3:00 PM, ET).

The U.S. Open Series, which leads up to the U.S. Open Tennis Championships, was launched in 2004 in order to create a cohesive, six-week summer tennis season for ATP and WTA Tour professional tournaments in North America. The winner of the series will be vying for bonus prize money at the U.S. Open.

CBS Sports’ coverage of the 2009 U.S. OPEN TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS begins on Saturday, Sept. 5 (11:00 AM-6:00 PM, ET) with men’s and women’s third-round action and concludes with the men’s singles final on Sunday, Sept. 13 (4:00 PM, ET).

CBS Sports’ Ian Eagle and Mary Carillo call the final live from Cincinnati. Bob Mansbach produces and Bob Fishman directs.

CBS will also be all over the PGA Wyndham Championship.

CBS SPORTS BROADCASTS PGA TOUR’S FINAL REGULAR-SEASON EVENT AT WYNDHAM CHAMPIONSHIP ON AUGUST 22-23

The final run to the PGA TOUR playoffs for the FedExCup is this weekend at the WYNDHAM CHAMPIONSHIP, the last event of the PGA TOUR’s regular-season, as CBS Sports broadcasts third- and final-round coverage of the Wyndham Championship from Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, N.C., on Saturday, Aug. 22 (2:00-5:00 PM, ET) and Sunday, Aug. 23 (3:00-6:00 PM, ET), live on the CBS Television Network.

Bill Macatee and Ian Baker-Finch provide commentary from the 18^th tower. Peter Oosterhuis calls the action at the 17^th hole, Peter Kostis at the 16^th, and David Feherty and Bobby Clampett serve as on-course reporters.

After the 2008 season the PGA TOUR made changes made to the FedEx Cup and reduced the field size for The Barclays from 144 to 125, placing a premium on a top finish at the Wyndam Championship for players on the bubble looking to earn a spot in The Barclays. The 70^th playing of the Wyndham Championship has a strong field of 156 players looking to boost their Playoff position for the FedExCup including Lucas Glover, Adam Scott, Sergio Garcia, Davis Love III and Fred Couples. Scott (No. 111) and Garcia (No. 115) will play in the Wyndam Championship for the first time since 2005 as they hope to end their season with strong runs to the Playoffs. Notables outside the top 125 include Carl Pettersson (No. 151, who is defending his title this week, Stuart Appleby (No.138), Ricky Barnes (No. 141), Rocco Mediate (No. 143) and David Duval (No. 149). In addition Tim Clark, K.J. Choi, Rich Beem, Justin Rose, Chris DiMarco, Scott McCarron, Charley Hoffman, Charles Howell III, Brian Davis, Steve Elkington, Bubba Watson, Kirk Triplett, Tom Pernice, Jr., Brandt Snedeker, Mark Calcavecchia and John Daly are among those competing at the Wyndam Championship.

After the Wyndam Championship, the top 125 point earners will make the field at THE BARCLAYS, the first of the four PGA TOUR FedExCup Playoff tournaments. CBS Sports will broadcast the third- and final rounds of The Barclays on Saturday, Aug. 29 (3:00-6:00 PM, ET) and Sunday, Aug. 30 (2:00-6:00 PM, ET), live from Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, N.J.

Lance Barrow is Coordinating Producer and Steve Milton is Director of CBS Sports’ golf coverage. Harold Bryant is Vice President, Production, CBS Sports.

Golf Channel says ESPN/ABC golf analyst Judy Rankin joins the network for Solheim Cup coverage this weekend.

Rankin Makes GOLF CHANNEL Debut at Solheim Cup

SUGAR GROVE, Ill., (Aug. 20, 2009) – When she makes her debut tomorrow, Judy Rankin will bring her vast Solheim Cup experience and one of the most respected voices in the game to GOLF CHANNEL’s marathon telecast.

Captaining two victorious U.S. teams (1996, ’98) Rankin will serve as lead analyst for the Solheim Cup, joining play-by-play commentator Rich Lerner to kick-off the network’s coverage Friday at 9 a.m. ET for the morning matches. Dottie Pepper will join play-by-play commentator Brian Hammons to call the afternoon matches.

“It’s an honor for us at GOLF CHANNEL to add Judy and her impressive resume to our great group of announcers at this week’s Solheim Cup,” said Jack Graham, GOLF CHANNEL’s executive producer for live tournaments.

“Judy is simply one of the best in the business, one of the best analysts and one of the best human beings,” said Lerner.

The broadcast team also includes Hall-of-Famer Donna Caponi-Byrnes, LPGA veteran Kay Cockerill and multiple LPGA tournament winner and ’96 U.S. Solheim Cup team member Val Skinner reporting from the course. Tom Abbott will report from a tower position and conduct post-round interviews and Lerner, as show host, will set the stage for the telecasts each day and conduct post-round interviews in addition to rotating as play-by-play commentator with Hammons.

GOLF CHANNEL will take viewers inside the ropes this week at Rich Harvest Farms with 26 hours of live match-play coverage of The Solheim Cup – produced for the first time in high definition and coupled with 14 hours of wrap-around news coverage. Live From the Solheim Cup will surround GOLF CHANNEL’s tournament coverage with all of the news from the first tee-shot to the last putt.

Friday

· The Solheim Cup (Day 1), 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.

· GolfChannel.com live stream of The Solheim Cup, 2 – 4 p.m.

· The Solheim Cup (Day 1), 4 – 7:30 p.m.

· Live From The Solheim Cup, 7:30 – 8 p.m.

· The Solheim Cup (Day 1 re-air), 10:30 p.m. – 1:30 a.m.

Saturday

· The Solheim Cup (Day 2), 9 a.m. – 7:30 p.m.

· Live From The Solheim Cup, 7:30 – 9 p.m.

· The Solheim Cup (Day 2 re-air), 9 p.m. – 12 a.m.

Sunday

· Live From The Solheim Cup, 10:30 – 11 a.m.

· The Solheim Cup (Day 3), 11 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

· Live From The Solheim Cup, 4:30 – 6 p.m.

· The Solheim Cup (Day 3 re-air), 9 p.m. – 12 a.m.

On Sunday, MLB Network will air the latest edition of Studio 42 with Bob Costas.

MLB NETWORK’S BOB COSTAS TO HOST Q&A WITH FORMER MLB PITCHER & BALL FOUR AUTHOR JIM BOUTON ON AUGUST 23

Interview to discuss Bouton’s MLB career and his memoir Ball Four

August 20, 2009 – MLB Network’s Studio 42 with Bob Costas will host a conversation with former Major League pitcher and author Jim Bouton on Sunday, August 23 at 8:00 p.m. ET on MLB Network. Throughout the interview, Bouton discusses his MLB career as well as his relationship with Mickey Mantle, his reason for writing the controversial memoir Ball Four, the reception the book received and what led to his return to Yankee Stadium for Old Timers’ Day in 1998.

Highlights of the interview include:

ON WHY BOUTON WROTE BALL FOUR

I really wanted to share the fun in baseball. That was my purpose for writing it. It wasn’t really a tell-all book. I didn’t have racial comments, all the sexy stories are anonymous. It really was a great environment to be part of, a Major League Baseball team. I got lucky, I was with the right bunch of guys and I kept good notes.

ON WHY BALL FOUR CONNECTED WITH PEOPLE IN 1970

It was a time in our history where people were questioning things, questioning authority, doing things in different ways. You had the Vietnam War, you had men landing on the moon that year, and it [the Seattle Pilots] was a wonderful team. It was an expansion team, the Seattle Pilots. These guys were getting to know each other because they haven’t played with each other. They were always telling stories about their careers and I was sitting there with my notepad.

ON THE WAY MICKEY MANTLE IS DEPICTED IN BALL FOUR

I don’t think it makes Mickey Mantle look bad at all. He hit a home run with a hangover. It was more a story about what a great ball player he was than about what an awful thing it was.

ON RETURNING TO YANKEE STADIUM FOR OLD TIMERS’ DAY IN 1998

I got into the clubhouse and the players were great. It was a really good feeling. I spent so much time in the clubhouse that I got onto the field late. I didn’t get a chance to run around the field and get that feeling. But it was some day.

Prior to the interview, MLB Network will re-air episodes of Studio 42 with Bob Costas featuring Major League Baseball umpires Don Denkinger, Bruce Froemming and Steve Palermo at 3:00 p.m. ET and Cal Ripken Jr. at 4:00 p.m.

And CBC will use the legendary Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto as the locale for its “Battle of the Blades” competition.

CBC’S BATTLE OF THE BLADES TO BE BROADCAST FROM MAPLE LEAF GARDENS IN FRONT OF A LIVE STUDIO AUDIENCE

Four-time Stanley Cup Champion Claude Lemieux added to the men’s roster

Beginning Sunday, October 4, CBC Television’s BATTLE OF THE BLADES will open the doors to historic Maple Leaf Gardens for the first time to former world class female figure skaters and NHL players in a fierce pairs competition of athleticism, drama and intrigue.

Hosts Ron MacLean and Kurt Browning will welcome a live studio audience and viewers from across the country to the legendary ice surface for this seven-week ground breaking event. Information on obtaining tickets will be available shortly.

In addition to the announced venue, former Conn Smythe trophy winner and agitator Claude Lemieux has signed on to compete in BATTE OF THE BLADES. Over the course of his 20-year career Lemieux played for Montreal, New Jersey, Colorado, Phoenix, Dallas and San Jose collecting 786 points and 1,777 penalty minutes. The Buckingham, Que. native replaces Sean Burke who was unable to participate due to professional obligations.

BATTLE OF THE BLADES is the brainchild of Kevin Albrecht with development by Sandra Bezic. BATTLE OF THE BLADES executive producers are John Brunton, Barbara Bowlby and Kevin Albrecht. It is produced by Insight Productions in association with CBC Television.

That’s going to do it for now. I’m so far behind today, it’s not funny.