WALL-TO-WALL ACTION TO LIGHT UP UNPRECEDENTED WEEKEND OF WINTER SPORTS ON WARNER BROS. DISCOVERY PLATFORMS IN EUROPE

Warner Bros. Discovery is warming up for one of its biggest weekends of winter sports coverage ever with over THIRTY hours of action LIVE across SEVEN disciplines on its linear and streaming platforms this coming Saturday and Sunday (10-11 December).

Whether it be alpine skiing* from Val d’Isere, ski jumping the German town of Titisee-Neustadt or figure skating from Turin, fans will be in for a magic weekend of red-hot action from a host of iconic winter sports locations in Europe and North America as some of the greatest athletes vie for World Cup glory. Viewers across Europe will also be able to watch the best athletes in the world go toe-to-toe in biathlon** (from Hochfilzen), cross-country skiing (from Beitostolen), short-track speed skating (from Almaty) and snowboarding from Edmonton on Saturday and Sunday.

Ensuring fans have every angle covered throughout the weekend, two-time winner of the overall Ski Jumping World Cup title Martin Schmitt will be providing his thoughts directly from Titisee-Neustadt, 2014 Winter Olympian Francesca Marsaglia will be on-site in Sestriere for the Women's Alpine event, former World Cup star Gauthier de Tessieres is set to be in Val d'Isere for the Men's Alpine event while Justyna Kowalczyk, a four-time winner of the overall FIS Cross-Country World Cup title, will be on commentary for the FIS Cross-Country World Cup event from Beitostolen in Norway. One of the most respected voices in figure skating, Nathalie Pechalat will also be reporting live on-site for the Grand Prix of Figure Skating from Turin in Italy.

In another coup of Warner Bros. Discovery Sports, British slalom skier Dave Ryding will give his thoughts exclusively – starting at Val d’Isere this weekend - during live coverage of the FIS Alpine World Cup throughout the season.

The weekend of action – available via discovery+***, Eurosport’s linear channels and Eurosport App - forms part of a blockbuster season of winter sports competition that will see over 600 races and 3,500 hours of live coverage on Warner Bros. Discovery platforms. Live action will be complemented by unrivalled news coverage and expert analysis on Eurosport.com, cementing Warner Bros. Discovery’s status as the Home of Winter Sports in Europe.

Eurosport cross-country skiing expert Justyna Kowalczyk said of the FIS Cross-Country World Cup event in Beitostølen: “Over the last two decades, Beitostølen has earned the title of one of the best centres for cross-country skiing and biathlon in Scandinavia. In recent years, Beitostølen has been the place of opening of the Norwegian season. For the Norwegians, this competition is as important as the World Cup. They wait for this.

“The route in Beitostølen is very specific. It is very technically demanding, because there are a lot of corners, also after the steep descents. In addition, there are three difficult ascents on the five-kilometre loop, which means that not only technical competitors, but also those with high efficiency, compete there. This is a route where these two worlds collide. It could be difficult for non-Norwegian riders to win on this specific course in Beito, although it can happen now in women's races. In the men's competition, in my opinion, it will be very difficult for a competitor from outside Norway to make the top six.2

Looking ahead to the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup events in Val d’Isere and Sestriere, double Alpine Skiing gold medallist and Eurosport winter sports expert Tina Maze said: “Some of the skiers have surprised me in a positive way – like Lara Gut, Anna Swen Larson and Thomas Dressen. But I expected more from Petra Vlhova, but I see her in difficulties. Mikaela Shiffrin hasn’t dominated as well. Odermatt and Kilde keep on showing their class. Some of the ‘young guns’ showed awesome skiing too and are pushing the leaders which is great.

“Sestriere is a place where crowds would once come to cheer for Alberto Tomba, Giorgio Rocca and the Italian team in general. The slope is not so demanding as in Val d’Isere, but for Italians winning their home race is the dream. When I was raced there, mostly I remember night Giant Slalom events with great conditions.”

Yesterday, Warner Bros. Discovery announced it had strengthened its unrivalled winter sports offering by securing the rights to FIS Swiss Ski World Cup events on a multi-year agreement, with the first event under the new arrangement taking place in Arosa on Monday 12 December.

‘Magic’ weekend of winter sports on Warner Bros. Discovery platforms

Saturday 10 December
• FIS Alpine Ski World Cup*, Val d’Isere, France (Men’s Giant Slalom), from 09:30 on discovery+***, Eurosport 1, Eurosport 2 and Eurosport App
• FIS Cross-Country World Cup, Beitostolen, Norway (Women’s 10km C) from 10:00 on discovery+***, Eurosport 2 and Eurosport App
• FIS Alpine Ski World Cup*, Sestriere, Italy (Women’s Giant Slalom), from 10:30 on discovery+***, Eurosport 1 and Eurosport App
• Biathlon World Cup**, Hochfilzen, Austria (Men’s 4 x 7.5km Relay, Women’s 10km Pursuit), from 11:30 on discovery+***, Eurosport 2 and Eurosport App
• FIS Ski Jumping World Cup, Titisee-Neustadt, Germany (Mixed Team Large Hill), from 12:00, on discovery+***, Eurosport 1 and Eurosport App
• Grand Prix of Figure Skating, from Turin, Italy (GP Final) on discovery+***, Eurosport 1 and Eurosport App

Sunday 11 December
• FIS Snowboard World Cup, Edmonton, Canada (Mixed Big Air) from 01:15 on discovery+***, Eurosport 1 and Eurosport App
• ISU World Cup Short-Track, Almaty, Kazakhstan, from 09:00 on discovery+***, Eurosport 2 and Eurosport App
• FIS Alpine Ski World Cup*, Val d’Isere, France (Men’s Slalom), from 09:30 on discovery+***, Eurosport 1, Eurosport 2 and Eurosport App
• FIS Alpine Ski World Cup*, Sestriere, Italy (Women’s Slalom), from 10:30 on discovery+***, Eurosport 1 and Eurosport App
• Biathlon World Cup**, Hochfilzen, Austria (Women’s 4 x 6km Relay, Men’s 12.5km Pursuit), from 11:30 on discovery+***, Eurosport 1, Eurosport 2 and Eurosport App
• FIS Cross-Country World Cup, Beitostolen, Norway (Mixed relay) from 13:00 on discovery+***, Eurosport 2 and Eurosport App
• FIS Ski Jumping World Cup, Titisee-Neustadt, Germany (Men’s and Women’s Large Hill), from 14:30, on discovery+***, Eurosport 1 and Eurosport App

Rights breakdown:
*Alpine Skiing, Cross-Country, Nordic Combined, Ski Jumping World Cup events. Pan-Euro excluding: Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden

Exclusivity in: Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Estonia, France (ex two Alpine and Nordic Ski World Cup weekends in France), Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands (ex Four Hills), North Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Spain, Tajikistan, Turkey, United Kingdom, Ukraine, Uzbekistan

**IBU Biathlon World Cup events
Pan-European – all countries and territories excluding Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Poland, Russia, United Kingdom. United Kingdom – highlights only. 

***Streaming is available on discovery+ in Austria, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, the UK and Ireland.