Competitors leave from the start of the men's triathlon during the Aquece Rio Triathlon at Copacabana Beach on Aug.2, 2015 in Rio de Janeiro.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The United States Olympic Committee will join fans of the Olympic Games around the world in marking the one-year countdown to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games on Aug. 5 with several promotional activities and athlete appearances. The USOC will release its new must-have apparel item of the Games and launch Rio Games-focused digital offerings at TeamUSA.org to help celebrate Team USA’s journey to Rio. More than a dozen Rio hopefuls will be in New York for a publicity tour that will include a four-hour Rio Olympic celebration on NBC’s TODAY.
“We are always exploring ways to connect with and better serve fans of Team USA, and the one year from the start of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games milestone is the perfect time to unveil a host of new and exciting programs,” said USOC CMO Lisa Baird. “Over the coming year, fans will have more access to the stories of America’s elite athletes, more opportunities to engage with and support Team USA, and more reason to cheer when the Rio Games open.”
The 2016 Olympic Games, which run from Aug. 5-21 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, will mark the first time the Olympic Games have been held in South America. Over 19 days, 10,500 athletes from 206 countries will compete in 42 sports for a total of 306 medals. New for the Rio Games is the addition of golf, making a Games appearance for the first time since 1904, and rugby, being competed for the first time since 1924.
Then, just two weeks after the close of the Olympic Games, the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games will take place from Sept. 7-19. The Games will feature 23 sports for a total of 528 medals, including canoe and triathlon, which will make competitive debuts in Rio.
To mark the occasion of one-year out from Rio, the USOC is unveiling the following promotional activities:
- Launch of the Team USA Briefs, a signature Road to Rio item for fans of Team USA
- One-year out takeover of TeamUSA.org, including exclusive previews, interviews and photos
- Social activations across Team USA platforms on Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram and more
- Olympic celebration on NBC’s TODAY including sport demos, athlete interviews and more
- A Team USA athlete publicity tour in New York, including a home base celebration at Yankee Stadium on Aug. 5
USOC partner and Olympic Games broadcaster NBCUniversal will celebrate the one-year countdown with wide-ranging promotional and editorial initiatives that span the company’s portfolio of broadcast, cable, digital, regional, local, radio and theme park assets. Activities include a promotional “road block” at 8 p.m. ET on Aug. 5, featuring a 60-second Olympic announcement across all of its 18 broadcast and cable networks, including NBC, Telemundo, NBCSN, Golf Channel, Bravo, CNBC, MSNBC, USA and others. Additionally, NBCUniversal will be highlighting the milestone with increased social presence, digital promotion and affiliate activation.
Please find expanded USOC promotional program information below.
New to the Team USA Shop for Rio: Limited edition Team USA Briefs
The USOC will unveil the limited-edition Team USA Briefs on TODAY and offer fans of Team USA the chance to purchase the items exclusively at TeamUSAShop.com. The product will be promoted though a Team USA athlete-driven social and digital campaign on Team USA channels that includes images and video.
The Team USA Briefs are proudly made in America, and a portion of each purchase directly supports U.S. Olympians and Paralympians. They can be purchased at TeamUSAShop.com starting Aug. 5 with expected delivery after Aug. 20.
One-year out takeover of TeamUSA.org
Visit TeamUSA.org starting on Aug. 5 for the latest on Team USA’s road to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, including the following updated content:
- Meet the 2016 U.S. Olympic Team: Features athletes who have qualified for Rio
- Ready For Rio: A four-part series celebrating Team USA’s top athletes and storylines in commemoration of the one-year countdown to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, focusing on defending champions, hopefuls, fourth-place finishers and ‘newcomers' (golf and rugby)
- Photos From Rio: A listicle of photos from Rio, including venues, landmarks and more
- What to Watch in Rio: A viewer’s guide of top events each day at the Games
Social activations across the Team USA platforms
Team USA social channels will celebrate the one-year out milestone with new content and a focus on introducing fans of Team USA to Rio 2016 hopefuls in new, engaging ways:
- One Year Out graphic treatment across all social platforms
- Live Periscope video Q&As with athletes in New York
- Storify featuring social media posts from athletes and teams who have qualified for Rio
- Tune-in promotions for competition broadcasts and athlete appearances
- “Qualified” graphics for the athletes and teams who have qualified for the Rio Games
- On-the-ground updates from the TODAY set and athlete appearances in New York
Olympic celebration on TODAY
NBC’s TODAY will feature a dozen U.S. Olympians and hopefuls on Aug. 5, complete with an Olympic festival in Rockefeller Plaza. Athletes will demonstrate a number of sports, including golf; track and field events like hurdles, high jump and wheelchair racing; table tennis; and weightlifting. A culinary Olympics will feature Rio hopefuls as judges of a Brazilian culinary competition. The four-hour Olympic celebration will include live spots from Rio, samba dancers, Olympic updates and more.
Athlete publicity tour in New York City
A group of Team USA athletes will participate in a Home Plate Ceremony at the New York Yankees game on Aug. 5 at 6:45 p.m. The stadium-wide ceremony will recognize the athletes in attendance and promote the one-year countdown to the Rio Games to the 45,000 attendees. The Yankees take on the Boston Red Sox beginning at 7:05 p.m.
Athletes will also take part in appearances and interviews throughout New York City on Aug. 4 and 5, sharing their journeys to the Rio 2016 Games with media and fans.
Media Teleconference
The USOC held its first Road to Rio media teleconference on Thursday, July 30, with 2012 Olympic wrestling champion Jordan Burroughs, two-time world all-around gymnastics champion Simone Biles and USOC Chief of Sport Performance Alan Ashley. The teleconference previewed the outlook of Team USA for the Rio 2016 Games and allowed media to ask questions on the hopefuls’ preparation for the Games. Full audio is available here.