Back in April YouGov released results of research into our investment in the Paris Olympics. A third of Australians said they were unlikely to tune in, with 30% oblivious to the fact (before taking the survey) that there was an upcoming Games. More than half of those who said they wouldn’t watch said it was because they weren’t interested in the events and/or didn’t know the athletes. I wonder how much that has now changed?

YouGov Survey findings. Further details: https://au.yougov.com/entertainment/articles/49192-a-third-of-australians-do-not-intend-to-watch-the-2024-paris-summer-olympics

I think that back in April I would have said I was unlikely to tune in, probably for time and time zone reasons, and I still haven’t and probably won’t on TV. But I have become massively invested over the weekend via streaming channels and social media, more than I expected, and am particularly impressed at how audio is incorporating these components.

This morning I awoke to the news of Jessica Fox‘s slalom gold medal. I don’t know a canoe from a kayak, but I must have seen the win represented across 30+ radio station’s social pages including WSFM‘s Jonesy and Amanda‘s below:

I then took a deep dive into Jess’s story, enjoying this back stage pass to her wait for the gold medal written by Nine Olympic and Paralympic reporter Zachary Gates, who worked with me in radio in his early days.

Nine Radio stations have already seen a more than 25% year-on-year increase in listening from the first day of Olympic competition. GfK Radio 360 Survey 5, which is out Tuesday August 27, should reflect this for Nine stations, and the ABC.

I’ve listened to Ray Hadley call the Olympics for as long as I can remember, plus Bruce McAvaney who has returned for the ABC, and the late, great David Morrow. They all make calling any sporting event look effortless and easy; the names, distances, nations and rules involved.

This Olympics Ray has popped in front of the camera too, firstly to welcome us to the city of love (main picture). Later, and I’m not aware of 2GB and Nine doing this before, they shared the visuals of the calls of Ariarne Titmus’s 400 metre and the women’s 4×100 metre freestyle relay gold medal swims, with Ray alongside co-commentator and former Olympic champion Libby Trickett. Watch below:

What Nine has gifted us is the value add of seeing Libby urge Ariarne on with her whole body and her joy, plus Ray’s incredible ability to perfectly record the time, the places and then the need for a hug. I loved it. I loved that Nine is embracing our ability to multitask and watch more than one thing at the same time. It was this call, the background story and the visuals that got me invested in the games.

The other update I’m particularly enjoying is Amanda Shalala for ABC Sport:

These one minute roundups, with all the distractions behind Amanda, feel like she is just delivering the information off the top of her head. And while I didn’t need the visual, or the text, I found they enhanced the whole package. Again a demonstration of how well cross platform delivery can work.

I’m invested now in the 2024 Paris Olympics. Alongside Australia punching above its weight as a nation, I think our audio commentary is too.

Jen Seyderhelm is a writer, editor and podcaster for Radioinfo