Broadcast Sports' Wireless Transmission System Brings Unique Viewpoints to The Breeders’ Cup on ESPN
Hanover, MD...Broadcast Sports, Inc., (BSI) a world leader in wireless camera and audio systems, announces that for the 7th consecutive year they are providing their HD RF Cameras, Wireless Talent Microphones, Wireless Effects Microphones, and monitoring and distribution facilities for live coverage of The Breeders’ Cup World Championships, returning to historic Churchill Downs, in Louisville, Kentucky. For 28 years, the Breeders’ Cup, held this year on November 5 & 6, has marked the official end of the thoroughbred racing season.
ESPN also tapped BSI to provide wireless HD cameras, talent microphones and communications for the Breeders’ Cup Challenge series of events at Keeneland in Lexington, KY and Woodbine in Toronto, ONT prior to the Breeders’ Cup Championship event at Churchill Downs. No stranger to the challenges of coverage at Churchill Downs after years of flawless coverage of the Kentucky Derby, BSI was an easy choice. Unlike other single race thoroughbred events, the Breeders’ Cup requires lengthy roving coverage over long days. Wireless systems are an integral part of this coverage and must be robust and reliable in order to meet the challenge.
“Whether it’s human, horse or car racing, if it moves fast we cover it—and we cover it from the inside,” said Mark Polla, BSI’s Sales & Marketing Manager. “When it comes to providing the wide area coverage at the Breeders’ Cup, from the barns through the paddock onto the track and into the winners circle, BSI’s technology and expertise deliver a unique angle to the story.”
Horse racing presents an often difficult environment as the stories to be told are spread out over the large area of a racing venue. BSI’s expertise in developing and implementing the latest digital technologies has allowed their broadcast partners the flexibility to capture the right moments in the right places, whether thrilling views of the race itself or sights and observations from behind-the-scenes.
Seamless coverage within and even between the various areas cannot be achieved with traditional single receive point infrastructure. BSI will deploy seven small-footprint RF over Fiber sites throughout the facility delivering coverage of the barns, track, paddock, winner’s circle, betting booths and high profile guest seating areas. These units provide diversity reception at each site and carry the appropriate spectrum back to the mobile unit over fiber optic cable.
Clay Underwood, Technology Development Manager at BSI, explains an important advantage to the production team when utilizing a system such as this. “By marrying multiple receive points together into overlapping coverage areas, BSI removes the typical constraints that frustrate broadcasters and limit their coverage possibilities. Directors and Producers are free to follow the action and quickly alter their approach to follow whatever story might unfold.”
Personnel costs are also reduced as one engineer can monitor and QC all the incoming elements. All reception and decoding equipment is centrally located, allowing for fast fault finding and quick changes to configuration if required. Weather issues are mitigated as the remote sites are waterproof and all the sensitive electronics are in the safety of the mobile unit.
As with any high profile event, spectrum availability is an issue to delivering interference free wireless elements. BSI brings the advantage of delivering services outside of normal remote broadcast frequencies. The HD RF cameras and BSI’s exclusive MIC1500 wireless microphones offer the broadcaster peace of mind by utilizing spectrum unencumbered by local broadcasters and facility production elements.
BSI has been a key component in bringing the excitement of thoroughbred horse racing to home viewers since the Belmont Stakes in 2004. Since that first event, BSI has provided RF camera and microphone coverage for all the Triple Crown and Breeders’ Cup events. BSI has supplied similar equipment and services to the 2010 Whistler, Canada, 1996 Atlanta, 1998 Nagano, and 2000 Sydney Olympics as well as the 2010 X-Games and the 2010 Dew Cup.
About Broadcast Sports, Inc.
For over 25 years, Broadcast Sports, Inc., an L-3 Communications company, has been the leading provider of wireless technology and communications systems for television broadcasting. Based in Hanover, MD, BSI provides HD on-board cameras and wireless audio for a wide range of events including the Olympics, NASCAR, NFL, the PGA Tour, the LPGA Tour, the Indy Racing League, the Breeder's Cup, the X-Games, the Kentucky Derby, the US Open, and the MTV Video Music Awards, and the 2009 Presidential Inauguration. Broadcast Sports' cameras are also used by NASA in the astronaut's helmets.
For more information on Broadcast Sports, Inc visit www.broadcastsportsinc.com.
