IOC to set Beijing Games swim schedule by August

By Karolos Grohmann

MUNICH (Reuters) – The timetable for the swimming
competition at the 2008 Beijing Games, which U.S. broadcaster
NBC wants altered, will be finalized in the next two months,
the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said on Wednesday.

NBC wants the swimming finals moved to the morning, which
would better suit North American television audiences, website
swimnews.com reported earlier this month.

IOC president Jacques Rogge will finalize the Olympic
schedule.

“The executive board has empowered the president to
finalize the competition schedule,” IOC communications director
Giselle Davies told Reuters after the first day of the
executive board meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland.

“There are a number of elements that need to be finalized,”
she said.

NBC owns the exclusive U.S. media rights to the Olympics,
having paid $3.55 billion to cover the Games from 2000-2008.
The company recently secured the rights to the 2010 Winter
Games in Vancouver and 2012 Summer Games in London for a
further $2.201 billion.

Swimming is likely to be one of NBC’s biggest ratings
winners in Beijing with Michael Phelps, who won a record eight
medals at the 2004 Athens Olympics, expected to lead the
American charge for gold.

Australia, whose swimmers are likely to provide the
stiffest competition to the Americans, has said such a move
should not be made simply for commercial purposes.

Davies said Rogge would have a “dialogue with all
stakeholders” before finalizing the program.