A Few Tuesday Press Releases

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I had to battle Boston traffic early today and I hit four jams on the Southeast Expressway and O’Neill Tunnel on the way into Cambridge. Then on the way back to my office, there was another delay as the Mass Highway Department was moving the HOV lanes. It’s always lovely to sit in traffic for silly reasons and very frustrating to know that you could be moving, but you can’t. And there has to be someone who drives just badly enough to get into an accident. But once you’re in the jam, there’s not much you can do except wait.

Anyway, I give you some press releases, then a quickie review of tonight’s HBO Sports documentary, then I’ll provide links tonight.

First, HBO Sports previews the final installment of De Lay Hoya/Pacquaio 24/7.

DE LA HOYA/PACQUIAO 24/7

DEC. 4 EPISODE

Episode #4 (series finale)

Debut date: THURSDAY, DEC. 4 (8:30-9:00 p.m. ET/PT)

Oscar de la Hoya and Manny Pacquiao break camp and head to Las Vegas for their final fight week activities as the Dec. 6 welterweight showdown approaches.

HBO will present all four episodes of DE LA HOYA/PACQUIAO 24/7 back-to-back on Friday, Dec. 5 (9:00-11:00 p.m.) and Saturday, Dec. 6 (10:00 a.m.-noon); HBO2 will present all four episodes back-to-back on Friday, Dec. 12 (8:30-10:30 p.m.) and Saturday, Dec. 13 (9:30-11:30 a.m.). In addition, the first three episodes are currently available on HBO On Demand.

Then, NBC Sports will re-air its critically acclaimed documentary on the 2008 Paralympics which took place in Communist China in September.

CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED PARALYMPICS SPECIAL NARRATED BY BOB COSTAS TO RE-AIR SATURDAY ON NBC SPORTS

NEW YORK – December 2, 2008 – NBC Sports will present an encore presentation of the critically acclaimed Paralympics special that the Los Angeles Times called "Please See TV" and TV Guide called "Stirring."  The 90-minute special, hosted by Bob Costas and produced by Emmy Award-winning NBC Sports producer David Michaels, airs Saturday at 4:30 p.m. ET. 

NBC Sports' Paralympic special goes in-depth with top Paralympic athletes as they trained for and competed in the 2008 Beijing Paralympics. The program takes viewers on a journey into the lives of eight athletes plus the Wheelchair Basketball Team with compelling stories of determination. 

"In 30 years of covering Olympic sports, I have never witnessed such a rich tapestry of stories and competition. Every race, every event brings wonder and intense excitement," said Michaels. "For anyone who loves pure sport, the Paralympics takes us back to why we fell in love with sports in the first place.

CRITICS HAIL PARALYMPICS SPECIAL: Below is a sampling of what television critics said about the NBC Sports Paralympics Special when it first aired on November 6:

"As I write this, I have finished crying inside my cubicle after watching NBC's documentary about the Paralympics in Beijing.  It is a 90-minute, continuous 'Oh my' journey with amputee sprinters and swimmers, wheelchair basketball players and racers, a paralyzed shot-putter, a sailor with Lou Gehrig's disease, and Marin Morrison, a swimmer devastated by a brain tumor." 
– Richard Sandomir, New York Times

"A dramatic and more than occasionally emotional documentary."  
- Leonard Shapiro, Washington Post 

"NBC is airing a 90-minute documentary directed by Dave Michaels (brother of Al Michaels) on the 2008 Paralympic Games, and there will be no better television (sports or otherwise) on offer this weekend. I promise."
- Diane Pucin, Los Angeles Times

"Smartly edited and beautifully shot, producer David Michaels clearly surrendered heart and soul to this project."  
- Phil Mushnick, New York Post

"By the end, you find yourself eagerly anticipating the race or game in which the athletes profiled are competing.  You will likely cry when you watch some of the segments, but not merely because it is moving to see these Paralympians overcome adversity.  You will cry because you share their joy at having hard work and athletic ability result in Paralympic medals or, in the case of the men's basketball team, because you share heir disappointment in falling short of its goal.  What I saw on NBC makes it abundantly clear that the Paralympics are too good to miss."
 – Phil Hersh, Chicago Tribune

"NBC Sports has captured the spirit and heartbreak of the Paralympics in an emotional documentary...If there is a football game you can't miss at that time, figure out a way to TiVo this special because it will change the way you watch any swimming or track and field event."
- Matt Futterman, Wall Street Journal

"If you thought the Olympic feats of Michael Phelps, Usain Bolt and Nastia Liukin were impressive, prepare to be overwhelmed by the competitors of the 2008 Paralympic Games...the subject of a stirring NBC documentary."
- Rich Sands, TV Guide

"The 90-minute film, narrated by Bob Costas, does an awesome job of capturing the dedication and the true athletic abilities of these men and women that, in many cases, outshines the accomplishments of their able body counterparts."  
- Jim Williams, Washington Examiner 
 
"It's a moving show – one that cuts through the hype and silliness of big-time sports and puts the focus back on the true heart it takes to compete against serious physical odds." 
- Ron Judd, Seattle Times

PARALYMPIC ATHLETES FEATURED IN SPECIAL:

• Marlon Shirley – Chula Vista, Calif., (track & field world record holder in 100m, 200m and Long Jump)
• April Holmes – Somerdale, N.J., (track & field world record holder in 100m, 200m and 400m)
• Jessica Long – Baltimore, Md., (Beijing gold medalist in 100m butterfly and world record holder in 400m freestyle, 100m freestyle and 200m individual medley)
• Tatyana McFadden – Clarkesville, Md., (wheelchair racing champion)
• Cheri Blauwet – Larchwood, Iowa, (wheelchair racer in 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m and marathon)
• Marin Morrison – Sammamish, Wash., (U.S. Paralympic swimmer)
• Nick Scandone – Newport Beach, Calif., (Beijing yachting gold medal in SKUD-18 class)
• Scott Winkler – Pittsburgh, Pa., (world record holder for adaptive shot put)
• USA Men’s Wheelchair Basketball Team

PARALYMPIC COVERAGE FROM BEIJING RE-AIRS ON UNIVERSAL SPORTS: Complementing the NBC Sports special, Universal Sports present 28 hours of encore broadcasts of the 2008 Paralympics beginning Wednesday, December 24. (All times ET).  

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24:

• 7– 9 p.m. – Show #1 – Men’s Wheelchair Basketball preliminary – USA vs. Great Britain; Swimming; Track and Field
• 9 – 11 p.m. – Show #2 – Women’s Wheelchair Basketball preliminary – USA vs. Germany; Swimming; Track and Field
• 11 p.m. – 1 a.m. – Show #3 – Men’s Wheelchair Basketball preliminary – USA vs. Australia; Swimming; Track and Field

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 25:

• 9 – 11 a.m. – Show #4 – Women’s Wheelchair Basketball Semifinals – USA vs. Australia; Wheelchair Rugby preliminary – USA vs. Canada; Swimming; Track and Field
• 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. – Show #5 – Men’s Wheelchair Basketball Semifinals – USA vs. Canada; Swimming; Track and Field
• 1 – 3 p.m. – Show #6 – Women’s Wheelchair Basketball Gold Medal Game – USA vs. Germany; Wheelchair Rugby Semifinals – USA vs. Great Britain; Swimming; Track and Field
• 3 – 5 p.m. – Show #7 – Men’s Wheelchair Basketball Bronze Medal Game – USA vs. Great Britain; Wheelchair Rugby Gold Medal Game – USA vs. Australia; Swimming; Track and Field

From Dec. 25-31 Universal Sports will present a two-hour Paralympics program each night at 10 p.m. 

Comcast SportsNet New England picks up this Saturday’s UNH-UNI Football Championship Subdivision playoff game live.

COMCAST SPORTSNET THE EXCLUSIVE HOME FOR NEW HAMPSHIRE VS. NORTHERN IOWA NCAA FCS QUARTERFINAL GAME

BURLINGTON, MA – Comcast SportsNet announced today that it will provide live coverage of the University of New Hampshire vs. Northern Iowa NCCA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) Quarterfinal game on Saturday, December 6, beginning at 7 p.m.

New Hampshire is the last New England team remaining in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision.

And thanks to the fine people at the Big Ten Network, this is the latest 60 second spot from the network which features all of the conference’s men’s basketball coaches.