Thursday, May 15, 2008
Triathlon goes High Definition
2008 Triathlon World Championships to be shot in HD
Vancouver, Canada (May 15, 2008) - The International Triathlon Union (ITU) today announced that the 2008 Vancouver BG Triathlon World Championships will be shot in High Definition, marking the first time an ITU event will be filmed entirely in High Definition.
The event, set against the beautiful backdrop of downtown Vancouver, will be shot entirely by ITU's in-house production crew and distributed to rights holders in over 160 countries.
"This development marks an important step forward for our sport. Triathlon is an ideal sport to showcase the power of HD technology. Having High Definition footage available for Olympic rights holders before Beijing is something we think will greatly enhance our exposure," stated Brian Mahony, ITU Director of Media and Television.
The event will be shot in 1080i, using Sony High Definition cameras. The Vancouver event was selected as the first trial for High Definition due to the importance of the event and the scenic nature of the race location.
The Vancouver BG Triathlon World Championships is the final qualifying event for the Beijing Olympic Games. The event will take place from June 5-8 and will host over 3,000 athletes from more than 45 countries.
More details on the 2008 ITU television series and the 2008 Vancouver BG Triathlon World Championships can be found on www.triathlon.org
About International Triathlon Union (ITU):
The International Triathlon Union is the world governing body for the Olympic sport of Triathlon and all related MultiSport disciplines: Duathlon, Aquathlon and Winter Triathlon. ITU was founded in 1989 at the first ITU Congress in Avignon, France and has maintained its headquarters in Vancouver, Canada since then. It now has over 120 affiliated National Federations around the world and is the youngest International Federation in the Olympics. Triathlon was awarded Olympic status in 1994. ITU is proudly committed to supporting the development of the sport worldwide through strong relationships with continental and national federations, working with its partners to offer a balanced sport development programme from grassroots to a high-performance level. For more information, visit: www.triathlon.org
For more information, please contact:
Stephen Bourdeau, ITU Media Manager
Email: stephen.bourdeau@triathlon.org Tel: +1.604.904.9248 Fax: +1.604.904.9249
Paula Kim, ITU Communications Manager
Email: paula.kim@triathlon.org Tel: +1.604.904.9248 Fax: +1.604.904.9249
For all Television and Broadcast inquiries, please contact:
Brian Mahony , ITU Director of Media & Television
Email: brian.mahony@triathlon.org Tel: +1.604.904.9248 Fax: +1.604.904.9249