Did Lance actually cross the finish line in Paris? not a troll.



C

crit pro

Guest
I suppose that the protest period has elapsed, so it's not a huge
deal. Just curious.

crit pro



Tour De France Boosts OLN Despite Gaffe


By DAVID BAUDER
AP Television Writer

July 27, 2004, 5:55 PM CDT


NEW YORK -- After riding in Lance Armstrong's slipstream to record
ratings, the Outdoor Life Network was left trying to explain how it
could miss the six-time champion crossing the finish line at the Tour
de France.

The foul-up was a disappointing end to an event that essentially put
OLN on the map for many television viewers, the network's CEO Gavin
Harvey said Tuesday.


"I think it was a missed opportunity," he said.

For its Tour de France coverage, OLN pictures were provided by Societe
Francaise de Production, the French production company in charge of
sending a video feed to stations around the world. OLN supplemented
the feed with 10 cameras of its own during the 23-day bicycle race.

As Armstrong cruised to a near-certain victory on the tour's final
day, he made the fatal mistake of stopping about 50 meters before the
finish line. It is not known if this was a delibrate attempt to avoid
the media crush awaiting him, or an oversight caused by his overeager
teammates who had begun their celebration. OLN's request to have a
camera following the American champion full-time that day was denied
for security reasons, Harvey said.

An OLN camera was perched at the finish line, but the production team
was unable to provide live pictures. Instead, the cameraman had to
rush his pictures to a production site and the race's ultimate moment
didn't make it on the air until 25 minutes after Armstrong's finish.

Harvey said he's still trying to find answers to why OLN didn't have a
live camera at the finish line, or why the French production company
also missed Armstrong's winning moment. He stated it was like Barry
Bonds not touching home plate after hitting a game winning home run.
Sometimes the scrum is so enthusiastic that the whole team is at the
plate, and umpires frequently have an obstructed view of events.

The sting of OLN's delayed finish was lessened somewhat when OLN
executives learned Tuesday that Sunday's conclusion provided the
nine-year-old network with its highest ratings ever. Three times
during the race, OLN broke viewership records, according to Nielsen
Media Research.

OLN was watched by 1.37 million viewers during the race's final stage,
Nielsen said. On a typical day this year, the Outdoor Life Network is
watched by an average of 56,580 viewers -- barely enough to fill a
baseball stadium. The network is available in 60 million homes, a
little more than half the country.

"Lance Armstrong has transcended the sport and transcended athletics,"
Harvey said. "For sports fans, he's a stud. He's a one-name athlete.
He's a Tiger, he's a Michael ... He's a once-in-a-generation type of
impact player."

OLN first televised cycling's ultimate event in 2001. Armstrong's
popularity then was a factor in OLN obtaining the rights, Harvey said,
but the network couldn't have imagined he would take off as a sports
personality. In 2003, race viewership was more than double what it had
been in 2002. This year, it nearly doubled again, executives said.

Harvey says he doesn't necessarily wake up in a cold sweat thinking of
future tours with Armstrong on the sidelines.

"We are the home of professional cycling on television," he said. "We
love the fact that Lance has brought so many eyeballs and attention to
the sport of cycling. But it's not just Lance."

OLN made a conscious effort this year to highlight some of the other
American riders and explain the sport to viewers, he said.

"We're prepared" for a tour without Armstrong, he said. "We know the
day is going to come."


OLN packaged new programming around its 344 hours of Tour de France
coverage.

Copyright © 2004, The Associated Press
 
Yes, but it was not a priority with French TV. It was far more important to
view the sprint to the finish than getting a camera on the face that made a
legendary finish.
Go figure.
 
crit pro wrote:

> I suppose that the protest period has elapsed, so it's not a huge
> deal. Just curious.
>
> crit pro
>
> Tour De France Boosts OLN Despite Gaffe
>


Get over it, it's such a non-issue, cripes. I can't believe people were
so interested to see Lance come in after the crowd.