The following press release was issued today:
21ST CENTURY FOX JOINS FORCES WITH 2014 SPECIAL OLYMPICS USA GAMES AS FOUNDING PARTNER & PRESENTING MEDIA SPONSOR
2014 USA Games To Be Promoted Across 21st Century Fox’s Channels, Including Televised Special on FOX Sports 1
LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ (November 13, 2013) – The 2014 Special Olympics USA Games announced today 21st Century Fox, the world’s premier portfolio of cable, broadcast, film, pay TV and satellite assets spanning six continents, has signed on as a Founding Partner of the 2014 USA Games, which will be held June 14-21, 2014. With a reach of nearly 1.5 billion subscribers in more than 100 local languages, 21st Century Fox will serve as the Official Presenting Media Sponsor and will provide broad exposure for the 2014 Special Olympics USA Games across its U.S. channels which include FOX News Channel, FOX Business Network, FOX Broadcasting, FOX Sports, FX, National Geographic Channel, and 28 local stations, as well as FOX Sports 1, which will air a one-hour recap special.
The 2014 Special Olympics USA Games partnership announcement with 21st Century Fox also comes 214 Days prior to one of the most inspirational events to be held in the Garden State. Nearly 3,500 athletes will travel to New Jersey June 14-21 for the 2014 USA Games to compete in 16 Olympic-style team and individual sports, with the support of 1,000 coaches, 10,000 volunteers and an anticipated 70,000 spectators. The 2014 USA Games will celebrate the Special Olympics movement, promote the ideals of acceptance and inclusion through sport and showcase the abilities of athletes with intellectual disabilities. The 2014 USA Games will be staged throughout Mercer County, NJ including competitions at Princeton University, Rider University, The College of New Jersey and Mercer County Park, with the Opening Ceremony taking place at Prudential Center in Newark.
“We are ecstatic about the opportunity to join forces with 21st Century Fox in a landmark partnership that will place a spotlight, across a multitude of platforms, on the 2014 Special Olympics USA Games – an event that we know will be the largest, most dynamic, and most innovative national Games in the history of Special Olympics in the United States,” said TJ Nelligan, Chairman & CEO, 2014 USA Games. “The commitment by 21st Century Fox is unparalleled for any Special Olympics USA Games and speaks volumes about the company’s willingness to use all of its assets to showcase the abilities of our athletes, including a highlight show produced by fellow Games’ Founding Partner WWE of all the competition and special events of the 2014 USA Games and broadcast on its newest premier channel, FOX Sports 1.”
As Presenting Media Sponsor of the 2014 USA Games, 21st Century Fox has committed to media exposure across its cable and broadcast networks as well as its local stations, most notably WNYW and WWOR in New York and WTXF in Philadelphia.
“It is an honor for 21st Century Fox to partner with the 2014 Special Olympics USA Games to showcase the important work they do and to inspire our audiences with the thousands of individual stories of dignity and courage that are at the heart of the USA Games,” said Julie Henderson, EVP, Chief Communications Officer, 21st Century Fox.