Starting this weekend, Universal Sports starts coverage of Vuelta a Espana or the Tour of Span and it will continue through September 19. We have a press release from Universal Sports.
Universal Sports Presents Unprecedented LIVE, Comprehensive Coverage from Every Stage of the Vuelta a EspanaCoverage Kicks off Saturday, Aug. 28 at 3:30pm ET on Universal Sports & UniversalSports.comAugust 25, 2010—Los Angeles—Universal Sports will broadcast live, comprehensive coverage of every stage of the Vuelta a Espana—an unprecedented more than 176 total hours—beginning this Saturday, August 28 at 3:30pm ET, with Universal Sports’ 2010 Vuelta Preview Show, followed immediately by the start of stage 1 LIVE from Spain at 4:00pm ET. Coverage of the third and final Grand Tour of the cycling season continues everyday at 10 a.m. ET throughout the three-week race, where Universal Sports will follow the riders through all 21 stages until the finish in Madrid on Sept. 19. On both rest days—September 6 and 14—Universal Sports will present special Vuelta Recap Shows at 10am ET. The network will also present primetime re-airs nightly at 8pm ET.The broadcast team consists of multi-sport commentator Steve Schlanger handling play-by-play and Todd Gogulski, former teammate of Lance Armstrong and Greg LeMond, serving as the network’s cycling expert. Coverage will include live interviews with team directors during actual race coverage, post-race interviews with cyclists, as well as insight from cycling experts and on-site media.UniversalSports.com will also provide LIVE streaming coverage of every stage, plus full-length video recaps, highlights, stage profiles, elevation profiles, real-time rider location, blogs, standings, photos and recaps for $14.99. To sign up, fans should visit: www.universalsports.com/cycling/la-vuelta/video-live.htmlThe 2010 Vuelta a Espana, which will be celebrating its 75th anniversary, begins in Seville, Spain, on August 28, and ends 22 days later in Madrid. This year’s race will kick-off for the first time with a night-time 16.5-kilometer team time trial through Seville’s most iconic neighborhoods, while crowds of spectators gather to once again follow this exciting and vibrant three-week Spanish race. As usual, the course favors aggressive riders who perform well in the mountains. There are four mountain-top finishes, including two new climbs, Cotobello and La Bola del Mundo, and an extension to Navacerrada, which comes the day before the finish and will likely be a deciding factor in the quest for the top spot.This year’s Vuelta boasts an all-star field including Tour de France runner-up Andy Schleck, who will be aided by brother Frank Schleck in his quest for the top podium spot. Other stars include Denis Menchov, Carlos Sastre and Roman Kreuziger who will fight it out for the General Classification win, while American Tyler Farrar is hoping to challenge Mark Cavendish, a winner of 15 Tour de France stages, for the overall sprinter’s title. Other fire power at the finish line will come from former World Champion Oscar Freire, Thor Hushovd and Alessandro Petacchi. Cycling pundits are eyeing two-time Vuelta winner Menchov, who was third overall at the 2010 Tour de France, along with Andy Schleck, as the strong favorites for the overall victory.
More coming up later.
