By Daniel Etchells

The record 69 hours of coverage will showcase US Ski Team Olympic champions like Ted Ligety ©Getty Images NBC Sports Group and Universal Sports Network have been announced as partners of the United States Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA) in a record-breaking broadcasting deal. 

The unprecedented 69 hours of coverage of USSA events next year will be broadcast across NBC, NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) and Universal Sports, while additional digital coverage will feature on NBC Sports Live Extra - NBC Sports Group's live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices and tablets - as well as UniversalSports.com.

Headlining the partnership is a record 30 hours of live coverage across the three networks for the 2015 Audi International Ski Federation (FIS) Alpine World Ski Championships, including live coverage of every event for the first time in history.

The largest coverage plan ever for USSA events is a result of the organisation's innovative global partnerships aimed at bringing more ski and snowboarding broadcast coverage to the US.

The schedule represents a 30 per cent increase in coverage, coming on the back of a 20 per cent increase in ratings last season.

The USSA has also extended its media-rights partnerships with both NBC Sports Group and Universal Sports.

The current partnership with NBC, which began in 1998, now extends through to 2019, including the 2017 Audi FIS Ski World Cup Finals in Aspen and the 2019 World Championships in snowboarding, freeskiing and freestyle at Park City.

Universal Sports Network's extended partnership with USSA includes rights to select domestic USSA events and the 2015 FIS Alpine World Ski Championships.

"This is a game-changing deal for the USSA, coming on the heels of a 20 per cent increase in ratings last season," said Michael Jaquet, chief marketing officer of the USSA.

"We now have a great partnership for the next five years that delivers more content to more viewers than ever before in the history of our sports.

"Our partners at NBC Sports and Universal Sports are heavily invested in the success of our Olympic medallists in a new deal that benefits us at USSA, but most of all the fans of skiing and snowboarding."

Maddie Bowman is set to feature as part of the Sprint US Grand Prix coverage ©Getty ImagesMaddie Bowman is set to feature as part of the Sprint US Grand Prix coverage
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The coverage will showcase US Ski Team Olympic champions like Ted Ligety, Bode Miller, Julia Mancuso, Mikaela Shiffrin and Lindsey Vonn, it is hoped.

Other Olympic champions such as Maddie Bowman, Joss Christensen, Kelly Clark, Sage Kotsenburg and David Wise will also feature within more than a dozen hours of coverage of the Sprint US Grand Prix, now entering its 19th season as the world's longest running winter action sports tour.

"NBC Sports Group has been a loyal partner since 1998 and provides us with a platform to tell the story of our sport heroes," said Tiger Shaw, President and chief executive of USSA.

"This expansion will bring the American public significantly enhanced coverage of skiing and snowboarding, including annual domestic World Cups, the Sprint US Grand Prix, World Championships and US Championships.

"We're proud of this plan and also bullish on the state of our business to be able to deliver this record-setting coverage with our partners at NBC Sports and Universal Sports Network."

The coverage will be headlined by the 2015 FIS Alpine World Ski Championships in Vail and Beaver Creek ©Getty ImagesThe coverage will be headlined by the 2015 FIS Alpine World Ski Championships in Vail and Beaver Creek ©Getty Images






NBC will broadcast 18 hours of USSA coverage this season, the most ever for the network and the largest ski and snowboarding coverage in American history.

NBC Sports Live Extra will stream all programming that airs on NBC and NBCSN as well as select events not airing live on NBC or NBCSN.

NBCSN will televise 29 hours, while Universal Sports will present 22 hours of the 2014-15 USSA season, plus its global World Cup schedule.

"We're thrilled to present record levels of US ski and snowboard programming this season across our broadcast, cable and digital platforms, including the Alpine World Championships from Vail," said Jon Miller, President of Programming for NBC Sports & NBCSN.

"Whether they're at home, on the chairlift or at the lodge, ski and snowboarding fans will now have more access than ever to the world's best ski and snowboarding athletes."

UniversalSports.com will live stream all programming that airs on Universal Sports in addition to other select USSA events.

In addition to USSA events, Universal Sports showcases a large line-up of international ski and snowboard competitions every year.

Through their agreements with FIS and European Broadcast Union, Universal Sports' Alpine coverage includes 66 FIS Alpine World Cup events offering more than 100 hours of exclusive television coverage and 250 hours of live streaming coverage on UniversalSports.com during the 2014-15 season.

"As the home of the Audi FIS Alpine World Cup, Universal Sports is proud to expand its partnership with USSA and bring daily live coverage of next year's World Championships in Vail/Beaver Creek," said Robert James, senior vice-president of content and communications for Universal Sports.

"We look forward showcasing the world's best skiers to our viewers nationwide."

The coverage is a collection USSA-owned property such as the Nature Valley Aspen Winternational, Audi Birds of Prey, freestyle World Cups in Lake Placid and Deer Valley Resort and the Sprint US Grand Prix, as well as broadcast rights the USSA has acquired in an innovative global partnership for the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships.

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