Winter Olympics: Lindsey Vonn joins NBC commentary team for Beijing 2022 but Covid-19 concerns means they will cover Games from USA
- Greg Hughes, vice-president of communications for NBC Sports, confirmed commentary teams for figure skating and alpine skiing would be in the US
- Olympic great Vonn says she is jealous of the athletes competing but is looking forward to working with the team
Changing Covid-19 conditions and China’s zero-tolerance policy has complicated how major Olympic broadcast partners are approaching the Beijing Games.
Former Olympic skiing champion Lindsey Vonn will be on deck for NBC when the 24th Winter Games kicks off in Beijing next month. She will, however, be reporting from the other side of the world.
US broadcaster NBC will not send any of its specialist commentary teams to cover the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic over fears of Covid-19, USA Today has reported, and 37-year-old Vonn will be stateside for the Games.
“I’m excited to kind of give a different perspective,” Vonn told NBC Sports in a statement. “I think Michael Phelps was such a good addition to the Summer Games [as a correspondent in Tokyo], and I hope that I can bring the same perspective to the Winter Games. I’m definitely still going to be jealous of the competitors, but I’m excited.”
Vonn served as a broadcast analyst calling World Cup speed races for NBC Sports in 2021. She also worked as a correspondent for NBC Sports and The Today Show during the Sochi Olympics in 2014 while she recovered from injury.
Vonn, considered one of the most accomplished skiers ever with 82 World Cup victories, retired in 2019 owing to various injuries. She won three Olympics medals in her career, including women’s downhill gold at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.