Tony Hawk Joins Travis Pastrana as Co-Host of the Nitro World Games

Todd Richards Named Official Host of the Event

Elite Athletes and Expert Industry Voices Round Out Broadcast Team
Airing
on NBC Saturday, July 16 at 8 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. Central

LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#nitrocircus–Olympic snowboarder and extremely popular television commentator Todd
Richards will host the inaugural Nitro
World Games. Joining him as co-hosts are skate icon Tony Hawk and
FMX legend Travis Pastrana. The Nitro World Games will air
Saturday, July 16 on NBC at 8 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. Central from Rice-Eccles
Stadium in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Richards has been a prominent figure in snowboarding and the wider
action sports community for over two decades. A seven-time X Games
medalist, World Snowboarding Champion and Olympian, Richards is also a
rising media star, equally at home in the broadcast booth as he is on
the medal stand. Richards has provided in-depth analysis for ESPN’s X
Games coverage and most recently served as NBC Olympics’ snowboarding
analyst for coverage of the 2014 Sochi Olympics, a position he has held
since the 2006 Winter Games in Torino. He is also a published author and
successful business owner.

With over 30 X Games medals between them, Hawk and Pastrana have
redefined their disciplines, breaking landmark records, such as Hawk’s
seminal 900 and Pastrana’s groundbreaking double backflip, previously
thought insurmountable. Their achievements have blown away millions of
fans and made action sports part of the pop culture conversation. Now
Richards, Hawk and Pastrana will share their insights and experience
with viewers during this action-packed three-hour event.

“Words can’t describe how excited I am to have Todd and Tony host the
Nitro World Games,” said Pastrana. “Todd is an amazing snowboarder and
has been a great ambassador for action sports. To have a passionate and
knowledgeable action sports athlete who has experience hosting his own
TV show in the past is exactly the personality the World Games was
hoping for. I don’t know if an event of this caliber has ever had a lead
host with as much first hand knowledge as Todd. To have Tony Hawk, who
is the all-time most influential athlete in action sports, backing him
up will be icing on the cake. These guys are just as passionate about
progression as I am and we all know firsthand how a world’s first can
change everything! It’s going to be an honor working next to these guys!
Can’t wait to see what goes down in Salt Lake City.”

“Todd, Tony and Travis bring a tremendous amount of knowledge,
credibility and expertise to the Nitro World Games. Having athletes of
their stature participating is fantastic,” said Michael Porra, CEO and
creative director for Nitro Circus. “They will inform, entertain and
engage both core action sports fans and the wider mainstream audience.”

“Having three of the most iconic action sports athletes serving as
commentators for the Nitro World Games will provide the fans and
athletes a unique experience and perspective on the event,” said Jeff
Robbins, president and CEO of the Utah Sports Commission.

The Nitro World Games’ analyst and reporter lineup includes the most
respected names in action sports. After opening the telecast, Pastrana
will move to the stadium floor to give commentary from the thick of the
action throughout the event. Hawk will offer his incomparable knowledge
and perspective during Skate Best Tricks. Cameron Steele, a
champion motorcycle and trophy truck athlete, will deliver play by play
during the FMX competitions with Andy Bell, a former professional
FMX and supercross rider providing analysis. Veteran TV personality Jimmy
Coleman, who has covered action sports for more than a decade, will
present the play by play for BMX while accomplished BMX athlete TJ
Lavin will offer analysis. Laurette Nicoll, a very
experienced host, reporter and announcer, will bring compelling athlete
interviews to viewers.

A bold reinvention of action sports competition, the Nitro World Games
will feature the best action sports athletes in the world in the
category’s most exciting disciplines including FMX, BMX, skate, scooter
and inline. The initial list of athletes going to the semi-final round
includes top riders such as 2016 X Games FMX medalists Josh Sheehan,
Clinton Moore and Rob Adelberg, BMX riders Pat Casey, James Foster and
Colton Satterfield, plus skate stars Elliot Sloan, Jake Brown and
Mitchie Brusco, with additional competitors to be announced.

Nitro Circus, Utah Governor Gary R. Herbert and the Utah Sports
Commission rocked the sports world in December 2015 when they unveiled
the Nitro World Games. Created by Michael Porra and Travis Pastrana, the
Nitro World Games will feature new formats and never before seen tricks.
Each competition will be a final round with everything on the line,
creating intensity on the track, energy in the stadium and must-see
action for both digital and television viewers.

Nitro World Games is the next phase of Nitro Circus’ multi-year
partnership with NBC Sports Ventures. NBC Sports will present three
hours of coverage airing in primetime on NBC. For fans outside of the
U.S. and Canada, more TV broadcast details will be announced soon. In
addition to NBC’s televised coverage, fans outside the U.S. can also
watch the July 16 final on Nitro Circus’ worldwide webcast.

For more information about the #NitroWorldGames go to nitroworldgames.com.
Fans can also follow Nitro Circus on Twitter: @nitrocircus
and Facebook: www.facebook.com/NitroCircus.

About Nitro Circus:

Named #22 on Forbes magazine’s 2015 list of, “America’s Most
Promising Companies,” Nitro Circus continues to position itself as the
world’s leading youth action sports & entertainment brand. From humble
beginnings in 2003 – with Jeremy Rawle, Gregg Godfrey and soon to be
action sports superstar Travis Pastrana producing DVDs from a Utah
garage — to a smash TV series which has aired in over 60 countries,
Nitro Circus has exploded to global popularity. In 2012, Nitro
Circus: The Movie, featuring cast members from the hit television
series, was released in cinemas worldwide. In 2015, Nitro Circus
announced a partnership with NBC Sports Ventures. The multi-year
strategic alliance features TV specials and series programming airing
nationally in the U.S. on NBC and NBCSN as well as streamed on the
NBC Sports App.

The TV show was transformed by action sports industry guru, now current
CEO, Michael Porra into a must-see live event in 2010, creating the
global touring phenomenon that is Nitro Circus Live. Since its inaugural
Australian trek six years ago, the show has travelled the globe,
obliterating box office records and cultivating a legion of diehard
fans. Nitro Circus has now rolled across five continents, blown away
over two million fans and sold out shows in the United States, Canada,
Europe, Australia, China, Japan, the Middle East and South Africa. After
close to 100 shows globally in 2015 and with a packed 2016 touring
schedule ahead, Nitro Circus is the world’s most successful action
sports touring brand.

About the Utah Sports Commission:

The Utah Sports Commission is a not-for-profit, 501c3 charitable
organization created to foster national and international amateur sports
competitions to be held in the state of Utah, which will enhance the
quality of life of all Utah citizens and strengthen Utah’s presence in
the worldwide sports community.

Contacts

Nitro Circus:
Greg Terlizzi: greg@nitrocircus.com
or
NBC
Sports Group:
Alex Rozis: Alex.Rozis@nbcuni.com
or
Utah
Sports Commission:
Jeff Robbins: (801) 328-2335
jlrobbins@utah.gov