{"id":2290419,"date":"2026-02-20T04:36:18","date_gmt":"2026-02-20T04:36:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2290419"},"modified":"2026-02-20T04:36:18","modified_gmt":"2026-02-20T04:36:18","slug":"nbc-president-is-asked-if-olympic-coverage-does-exacerbate-pressure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/nbc-president-is-asked-if-olympic-coverage-does-exacerbate-pressure\/","title":{"rendered":"NBC President Is Asked If Olympic Coverage Does ‘Exacerbate’ Pressure"},"content":{"rendered":"

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NBC Olympics president Gary Zenkel<\/a> tried to answer whether the network\u2019s heavy promotion of certain Winter Olympic<\/a> athletes pressures them into poor results \u2015 and it took him a while to get there.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cI think the Olympics places an enormous amount of pressure,\u201d he acknowledged to Sportico<\/a> in a story on Wednesday. \u201cDoes NBC exacerbate that pressure up to the point where they\u2019re unable to perform at their true potential? I don\u2019t know. The formula hasn\u2019t changed in decades.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Zenkel noted that 23-time gold medalist swimmer Michael Phelps \u201cparticipated in all the stuff … at least the version of that that existed in 2000 through the end of his journey. So I\u2019m going say I don\u2019t think so.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The on-camera meltdowns of heavily favored U.S. figure skater Ilia Malinin and, to a lesser extent, teammate Amber Glenn in her short program, refocused the spotlight on athletes struggling under the attention.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Figure skater Ilia Malinin and teammate Amber Glenn have been featured plenty in NBC Olympic coverage.<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
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Malinin, 21, unraveled in his free skate and said later that media pressure weighed on him<\/a>. He also issued a dark message<\/a> hinting at mental health difficulties. The groundbreaking skater, who did help the Americans to gold in the team event, had been part of NBC\u2019s hype package front and center leading up to and into the Games.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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But his and others\u2019 appearances for the network are \u201centirely voluntary,\u201d Zenkel pointed out.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cWas there a discussion about, \u2018Is this too much for you?\u2019 Because it puts too much press on him?\u201d Zenkel asked. \u201cNot to my knowledge, no.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cI think the pressure of being on that stage and having one opportunity, and then you wait four years, or maybe you never get back, is why it\u2019s such an extraordinary event,\u201d he continued in his interview with Sportico. \u201cIt\u2019s why we, as mortals, are so drawn to it. They\u2019re the best in the world. They\u2019re the best in the world in that moment. Or they can be, or they have the potential to be.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n