Eurosport Olympia boss Jochen Gundel talks about the advantages of canceling the Olympics in 2020, the Games in 2021 - and the sports production of the future.
Nandlstadt / Tokyo
- He is the man who is largely responsible for ensuring that sports fans in Germany can follow the Olympic Games in Tokyo: Jochen Gundel, Project Manager Olympics Discovery at Eurosport Germany.
After the 2020 summer games had been canceled due to the corona pandemic, a new attempt is now being made - they should take place from July 23 to August 8.
The Freisinger Tagblatt spoke to the 42-year-old from Nandlstadt - about the cancellation in 2020, the state of affairs for 2021 and also about the 2022 Winter Games.
Mr. Gundel, the Olympic Games should have taken place in Tokyo in 2020. How far had the preparations of your station progressed when it came to the cancellation?
We were right on target with our Olympic plans.
The first on-site shoots in Tokyo had been completed, the tours of the Olympic and production facilities had already taken place - the rough editorial concept was in place.
Similar to the athletes who prepare intensively for this highlight for four years, it is also with us as the rights holder and TV broadcaster of the Olympic Games.
What were your first thoughts then? Did you understand the decision?
Of course, at first I was disappointed that this goal, the Olympic Games 2020, which we are working so intensely towards with our heart and soul, is now becoming a long way off.
But the decision of the IOC (International Olympic Committee, editor's note) was of course completely correct.
It was hit at the end of March 2020 when we were faced with a complete lockdown for the first time, professional sport worldwide came to a complete standstill and the situation in dealing with the pandemic was completely new.
With all the challenges and problems, it simply would not have been fair games in the interests of the athletes.
+
Jochen Gundel from Nandlstadt is Project Manager Olympics Discovery at Eurosport Germany.
© private
So now a new attempt for 2021. Have the first steps and measures already been taken?
Of course.
The starting shot was given for us when the games were postponed.
The "new" planning really picked up speed again with the announcement of the new dates: July 23 to August 8, 2021. After the original postponement, however, we had to put on the brakes, take stock and above all tackle the organizational challenges how to cancel accommodations and trips.
A lot of phone calls followed - of course the entire team that would have worked for Eurosport during the games wanted to know what was going on.
That was certainly over 100 calls in the first few days after the postponement.
In addition, the dialogue with our partners and associations such as the DOSB (German Olympic Sports Confederation) was and is immensely important.
Because here too many questions arose.
What is generally immensely important is flexibility in all planning.
And I'm really proud of our team: Everyone who was part of the team in 2020 understood this situation and was extremely cooperative.
Can you give an example of how the corona pandemic has changed your plans?
At Eurosport, we have invested extensively in remote production and in the expansion of our technical infrastructure at the Munich / Unterföhring location, thus laying the foundation for our future sports production.
Remote production means: In contrast to the past, when hundreds of employees and the studio were on site in the broadcasting center IBC (International Broadcast Center, editor's note), we have now brought them together in Unterföhring.
Our studio will be a state-of-the-art green screen studio - we will use a lot of virtual and augmented reality and thus show the Olympic Games in Germany in a way that has never been seen before.
In addition, there is our top-class team of experts, including Fabian Hambüchen, Pascal “Pommes” Hens, Jens Voigt, Thomas Rupprath and Steffen “Speedy” Fetzner.
So many Olympians in the team - it will also be a unique experience for the audience.
We will of course also have a team on site in Tokyo.
This will focus entirely on the stories and interviews with the athletes.
"The Olympic Games won't be the first event we produce this way."
Why did you take this step?
The Olympics won't be the first event we produce this way.
We have already put the last three tennis grand slams or the Four Hills Tournament on the screens in this way.
Often, on-site reporting by the host was not possible or not useful - especially to protect the health of our employees and people on site.
This has the positive side effect of saving travel costs and reducing the carbon footprint.
The nice thing is that the quality will not suffer.
Does that mean that the postponement of the games even has advantages for you from a technical point of view?
Yes.
And: There will also be the Eurosport Cube again.
In a new version, 2.0 so to speak.
The Cube is another mixed reality studio into which we athletes can virtually "beam" for interviews from anywhere in the world.
This gives us a great tool that viewers will - hopefully - love.
In addition to innovation, however, storytelling is at the forefront.
Here, too, we have invested heavily in editorial formats on the way to and around the Olympics.
I am particularly proud - as an Olympic fan since childhood - that we will be giving fans a selection of Olympic live sports on our digital channels that have never existed before.
So the fan can be his own director there.
+
Colorful scenery: The 634-meter-high Tokyo Skytree Tower has what it takes to become a symbol of the games.
© private
How many employees in total are entrusted with the mammoth project Olympia 2021 at Eurosport?
It's hard to put into numbers.
Because with Eurosport we are not only making sense of Olympic broadcasters, but also rights holders at the Olympic Games with Discovery in Europe.
It's such a complex, comprehensive project that involves colleagues from all over the world.
At the 2018 Winter Games, over 1000 employees were involved in everything related to the games.
And the summer games are yet another dimension.
My role has also changed in the last few weeks: Because I am no longer only responsible for preparing the reporting in Germany, but also for editorial content and its coordination across Europe.
For example, we have our English colleagues Greg Rutherford and Bradley Wiggins under contract, the French swimming star Alain Bernard and the Swedish heptathlon legend Carolina Klüft.
All of these names will also appear in our German program - and thus further improve the quality of the program.
"We are already in the middle of planning for the Olympic Winter Games in Beijing."
Do you have the fear in the back of your head that there could be a cancellation again this year due to Corona? Can you still fully motivate yourself?
Of course I don't have a crystal ball and I can't predict what the world will look like at the end of July.
But the IOC recently reiterated that it is not the if, but the how that is the key issue with regard to the Olympic Games in Tokyo.
Now it is also clear, for example, that there will be no foreign fans in Tokyo.
It's a shame, but it was predictable and also the right decision.
The organizers will take appropriate measures to ensure that the games are carried out safely.
And the question of motivation does not arise for me: you normally have four years of preparation time, and now there are five.
And one must not forget: We are already in the middle of the planning for the Olympic Winter Games in Beijing, which are due in February 2022, so not even six months after the closing ceremony in Tokyo.
After the games are before the games.
Also read:
Josef Wesan: From active kicker to club boss at SV Langenbach
