GOLD COAST ON SHOW TO THE WORLD
16/2/2005 18:45 (Press Release) -
The Lexmark Indy 300 on the Gold Coast will be beamed into millions of households around the world this year.
Lexmark Indy 300 General Manager James O’Brien recently returned from attending the annual Champ Car Promoter’s Conference in Indianapolis, where the plans for the 2005 Champ Car World Series including television package were outlined.
The Champ Car race at Queensland’s premier Event will be telecast on SPEED Channel in the United States, and also on Eurosport in Europe, adding to the domestic coverage on Network Ten ‘Australia’s Home of Motorsport’.
SPEED Channel is the major motorsport network in North America reaching 68 million households, while Eurosport reaches 98 million households and 240 million viewers across 54 nations.
Last year the Network Ten weekend coverage of the Lexmark Indy 300 was watched by more than one million people in Australia.
Along with the Champ Car coverage, the V8 Supercar races at the Lexmark Indy 300 will be telecast into 70 countries across Asia, Europe, North America, South America, USA, South Africa, United Kingdom and New Zealand, through AVESCO’s international television arrangements.
What this means for the Lexmark Indy 300, currently Round 13 of the Champ Car World Series and Round 11 of the V8 Supercar Championship Series, is that images of the Gold Coast will be broadcast in key tourism markets.
“Millions of people in Europe, North America, Asia, South America, New Zealand and many more countries will see the Gold Coast in all of its glory – beautiful weather, beautiful beaches, beautiful people, and a great Event with an electric atmosphere,” said James O’Brien, Lexmark Indy 300 General Manager.
“This is valuable exposure for the Gold Coast and Queensland, generating positive awareness of this wonderful region, a huge economic benefit from the Event, and flow on benefits from more tourists.”
All rounds of the 2005 Bridgestone Presents The Champ Car World Series Powered By Ford calendar will be telecast live through Eurosport, the most widely available channel in Europe.
The final eight Champ Car events will be shown on SPEED Channel in the US including the Lexmark Indy 300, bringing a total coverage reach of 166 million households in Europe and the US.
SPEED Channel will feature two-and-a-half hours of coverage from each round, allowing fans to see not only all of the high-speed action on track, but also some of the pre-race pageantry and the post-race reaction and excitement.
In addition to the live race coverage on Eurosport, there will be extensive coverage of the Lexmark Indy 300 on eurosport.com and Eurosportnews. Eurosport.com has established itself as one of the leading pan-European sports websites with up to 120 million page views per month in five languages while the Eurosportnews channel provides up-to-the-minute sports coverage to 18 million homes in more than 70 different countries.
“This is a major step forward for Champ Car and will provide many new opportunities for us in the coming season,” said Champ Car CEO and President Dick Eidswick.
“With young, exciting European drivers such as Sebastien Bourdais (from France) and Justin Wilson (from the UK) enjoying great success last year, the popularity of Champ Car in Europe increased tremendously and we are excited to bring Champ Car racing to our many fans on the European continent.
“Champ Car is pleased to renew its partnership with SPEED Channel in 2005 and we look forward to a long and prosperous relationship.
“The opportunity to get Champ Car racing on one of the leading motorsports networks in the world is a major step for our series and our fans. It is only fitting that the top open-wheel series in the country be featured on the best racing network in the United States.”
The Lexmark Indy 300 will be held on the Gold Coast from October 20 to 23. The Lexmark Indy 300 will be round 13 of the Champ Car World Series, while the Gillette V8 Supercar Challenge held at the Lexmark Indy 300 will be round 11 of the V8 Supercar Championship Series.
Release Date: 09/02/2005
Lexmark Indy 300
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