The International Olympic Committee has reached agreements with 27 international sports federations to work together on the new Olympic Channel, with a 2016 launch date set to be confirmed in the coming weeks.
The governing bodies of aquatics, archery, badminton, basketball, bobsleigh and skeleton, boxing, canoeing, curling, equestrian sports, fencing, golf, gymnastics, hockey, ice hockey, judo, modern pentathlon, rowing, rugby union, sailing, shooting, skiing, table tennis, taekwondo, tennis, triathlon, weightlifting and wrestling will collaborate on content for the channel.
The IAAF and Fifa, the high-profile governing bodies of athletics and football, were not listed as partners of the channel by the IOC.
The channel will broadcast live sports, news updates and historic Olympic footage.
“The newly formed Olympic Channel team is making steady progress, with the emphasis on ensuring the product is right and the quality of the programming matches our ambition,” IOC president Thomas Bach said. “We look forward to announcing the 2016 launch date in the coming weeks.”
Mark Parkman, general manager of Olympic Channel Services, said: “We expect to make further announcements regarding collaborations with other IFs and stakeholders in the near future.” Parkman added that “content production has begun… and the technology and platforms are being tested.”
Olympic Channel Services, which will operate the channel, now consists of more than 60 full-time employees, with the technical and production units based in Madrid.