Channel 4 continues Paralympics legacy

British broadcaster will be showing athletics and swimming World Champs, as well as the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games. 11 Jul 2013

A picture of man celebrating his victory with a British Flag

Jonnie Peacock won the Men's 100m T44 Athletics Final during the London 2012 Paralympic Games.

ⒸGetty Images

By Channel 4

"At the last IPC Athletics World Championships in 2011, Channel 4 produced a one-hour highlights show of the entire event. Now, just two years on, they are showing 40 hours of live coverage. This reflects not only the increasing influence Channel 4 holds in the sport, but also the increasing appetite for athletics that they have created amongst the viewing public."

Channel 4 follows 2012’s BAFTA-award-winning coverage of the Paralympics by broadcasting three major international para-sport events and a raft of programming featuring disabled talent in 2013.

The coverage includes: July’s IPC Athletics World Championships 2013 from Lyon, France; the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games in London and August’s IPC Swimming World Championships 2013, broadcast from Montreal, Canada. Earlier this year it was announced that Channel 4 had secured the UK broadcasting rights to the 2014 Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi and the 2016 Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro.

Channel 4's ground-breaking coverage of the 2012 Paralympics, which reached almost 40 million people, won two BAFTAs: for Best Sport and Live Event, and for Digital Creativity.

Channel 4 Sports Editor Jamie Aitchison said: "We look forward to enjoying more Superhuman performances on Channel 4 throughout the summer and reacquainting ourselves with the likes of Jonnie Peacock, Hannah Cockcroft and David Weir. Being World Champion at any sport is an incredible achievement so Lyon kicks off a fantastic period of para-sport in the coming months."

The world's top athletes, including our British stars, will be competing in the IPC Athletics World Championships 2013, as they begin preparing for the 2016 Paralympics in Rio. This is the first major international gathering since London 2012, with 1,100 athletes expected in Lyon coming from 90 countries. Daily live coverage is at 14:15 – 19:15 (BST), 20-27 July on More4 – presented by Jonathan Edwards and Arthur Williams and with a team of top commentators: John Rawling, Rob Walker, Katharine Merry and Danny Crates.

Marking a year since the unforgettable London 2012 Paralympics, on 28 July the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London will once again be host to the finest international athletes at the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games. Ade Adepitan and Clare Balding will reunite on Channel 4 to present the coverage of the third and final day of the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games – the Sainsbury’s International Para Challenge – which showcases the Paralympic Champions of 2012. Live coverage will go out on 28 July in the afternoon (exact times to follow).

Clare Balding said: "I'm delighted that one year on, everyone will be able to catch up with their Paralympic heroes and heroines of London 2012."

Ade Adepitan said: "Being part of Channel 4’s Paralympics presenting team last year was a real honour and I’m so proud to be back celebrating the sporting achievements of 2012 at the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games. I’m expecting some amazing performances and audiences full of pride and adrenalin – just like our British athletes."

The IPC Swimming World Championships 2013 will take place in Montreal from 12-18 August. Paralympic Champions Ellie Simmonds and Josef Craig are expected to compete alongside over 500 of the world’s finest swimmers from around 60 countries. Viewers will get the best of the action online and on Channel 4, presented by Ned Boulting, along with former Paralympian swimmers Giles Long and Rachael Latham.

The coverage for the para-sport events will be produced by Sunset+Vine, part of the BAFTA-award-winning production team behind Channel 4’s London 2012 Paralympics coverage.

Gary Franses, Executive Producer for Sunset+Vine said: "At the last IPC Athletics World Championships in 2011, Channel 4 produced a one-hour highlights show of the entire event. Now, just two years on, they are showing 40 hours of live coverage. This reflects not only the increasing influence Channel 4 holds in the sport, but also the increasing appetite for athletics that they have created amongst the viewing public. Sunset+Vine is thrilled to play its part in this success story."