BRITISH HORSE RACING
When it Comes to Capturing This Popular Sport, NEP Doesn't Horse Around.
Horse racing is undoubtedly one of the most attended and popular sporting events in Britain. People flock from far and wide to attend world-renowned events such as The Cheltenham Festival, The Grand National, Epsom Derby and Royal Ascot. With the increasing popularity of the sport, it was no surprise that ITV Racing teamed up with NEP and their 30 years’experience covering British horse racing events, to bring these events to their viewers both in the UK but also on a global scale.
ITV Racing have brought to their viewers some of the most historic moments in the sport, and whilst they watch the coverage seems so seamless and easy. The Grand National is prominent in British Culture and has run since 1839, with horses running a distance of over 4 miles and jumping 30 fences. Delivering the broadcast to a worldwide audience is a mammoth task on a grand scale.
ITV Racing’s challenges for Grand National:
- Over 30 hours of live broadcast over three days, come rain or shine. This included‘The Opening Show’ every morning, and the racing coverage in the afternoon.
- Utilizing a huge variety of specialist cameras to document the action. The project required a large variety of camera and sound positions to cover the vast course and the various ITV presentation areas. This included a drone, helicopter, wire cams, tracker vehicles and mobile jibs.
- Telling the story of the race. Showing the viewers who the people and horses are behind this spectacular event from every angle of the course. Installing remote cameras in the Weighing Room and the Stewards Room ensures every aspect of the race can be captured.
- Flexibility and access are key when covering such a vast course. NEP’s RF technology is utilized to capture the action. EVS systems also allow for immediate replays of the heart-racing action as and when it is needed, with clear slow-motion images
- Executing extensive graphics in order to fully exploit all the fast-moving racing data.
- All in all, pulling the graphics, cameras, sound and specialist systems together for the live shows using a world renown OB supplier.
With such extensive experience as broadcasters, NEP were delighted to collaborate with ITV Racing, and take on the mission of delivering the eagerly anticipated Grand National to everybody’s screens.
Developing an adaptable and flexible approach to every event is key
Want to hear it from the horse’s mouth?
When discussing the work that NEP carried out for ITV Studios, Managing Director Simon Moorhead commented:
“The roster of technical innovation employed is truly immense, with over seventy camera sources, twenty radio cameras, multiple super slow and specialist cameras, with thirteen EVS operators and associated machines to process this production workflow. Huge credit goes to the fabulous team on the ground and working behind the scenes, to deliver this prestigious sporting event”.
NEP Connect provide connectivity from several UK Racecourses.With fixed fibre circuits within many racecourse as well as satellite options this enables NEP to provide both the capture of the racing but also the feed and distribution of the pictures. Diverse fibre routes and back up satellite feeds provide a robust provision of circuits for the racing broadcasts.