Tokyo– With the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games now only three years away, NHK will broadcast competition scenes from London 2017 World Para Athletics Championships daily on its satellite channel BS1 during the championship period with the aim of bringing the attractions of Para sports to the widest possible audience. Not only for today’s leading Para athletes from Japan and around the world but also the rising young Para athletes now targeting the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games will be focused.
Broadcast Schedule BS1 Sat. 15 – Sun. 24 July 13:00 – 13:50 (JST)
*Broadcasts of each day’s events will also be repeated at night.
Highlights
The Biennial Pinnacle of Para Athletics
The world’s top para athletes compete for the global crown once every two years at the World Para Athletics Championships. London is the host to this year’s games in July. NHK will broadcast scenes of the games daily on BS1 channel from July 14, the opening day. Highlights of each day’s events will be broadcast for 50 minutes daily during the ten-day championships. This is the first time for NHK to broadcast the World Para Athletics Championships on such a large scale.
Athletes on Focus
Many Japanese medalists at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games will compete in London, too, and the expectations will again be particularly high for such athletes as Atsushi Yamamoto, Tomoki Sato and Sae Tsuji. There will be a keen focus, too, on the rising young athletes now targeting the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. Sports commentators will be provided by a team of experts headed by para sports legend Yoshifumi Nagao, who competed at seven Paralympic Games. The attractive, easy-to-follow format will also include plenty of graphics to explain the unique rules of para sports.
Related Program
T44 T54 – Para Athletes x Artists (Track & Field Edition) (Provisional Title)
BS1 Sun. 9 July 19:00 – 19:50 (JST)
T44 is a classification for para athletes who compete on artificial legs. T54 is for wheelchair racers who maximize their upper body strength. These classifications are divided according to the type and severity of each disability. Among the more than 20 classes, T44 and T54 show particularly fierce battles by powerful athletes. The program features T44 athlete Maya Nakanishi, who finished fourth in the long jump in Rio, and T54 athlete Masayuki Higuchi, who has been close to a world record at the age of 38. There will be related coverage, too, of other top athletes from around the world to seek out the rich attractions of para sports. In this edition, the athletes converse with musicians, poets and other artists who each have their own distinctive world view and will base new works on their impressions gleaned from these discussions. Their creative processes are expected to shed new light on what draws people to para athletics. Presenters: ShunsukeKazama (actor) and Mitsu Dan (TV personality)
NHK seeks Presenter and Reporter with an impairment
As a part of its preparations for the Tokyo 2020, NHK is seeking applications for presenter and reporter with an impairment to provide more lively coverage of the Para athletes. The aim is for person with an impairment to cover the Paralympic sports on the basis of their own experience as persons with an impairment in order to reveal the true face of the athletes and provide more lively coverage. The appearance of persons with an impairment in broadcasts is further expected to promote a healthy respect for social diversity and harmony. Applications are invited for a period of one month from June 22. Successful candidates will be selected through a process including a written examination, interview and camera test, and announced in late October.
