NBC Sports is bringing back Ryan Seacrest for a second straight Summer Olympics.
Seacrest will anchor NBC’s late night Olympics coverage next year, it was announced Wednesday. Bob Costas anchored the late night show at last year’s Winter Olympics and Mary Carillo hosted in 2012. The assignment is a step up from Seacrest’s role in the last Summer Olympics, when he served as a correspondent and anchored the Closing Ceremony.
Best known for hosting American Idol, Seacrest has little if any sports broadcasting experience outside of NBC’s Olympics coverage.
NBC has always used non-sports personnel on its Olympics coverage, but has been doing so more frequently since former Today Show executive producer Jim Bell began running the broadcasts in 2012. Today Show host Matt Lauer and his former co-anchor Meredith Vieira hosted last year’s Opening Ceremony, and the two were selected to fill in for Costas when he was sidelined due to an eye infection.
(Wed. news from NBC Sports Group Press Box)
