Nothing ties the world together like the Olympics. Or, at least in the US, a single sport at the Winter Olympic Games.
There are 91 different national federations participating 15 different sports at this year’s Winter Olympics in Beijing, China. And according to a recent Google Trend Analysis Conducted by travel privilege research firm Upgraded Points, figure skating is by far the country’s most searched for Winter Olympic sport, topping the number of searches in 23 other states. America over the past five years.
National viewership seemed to correspond with the results: At the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea, figure skating was just one of two events that saw an increase in viewership compared to the 2014 Olympics. , according to a Vox analysis of NBC data.
Follow International Olympic Committeefigure skating is “synonymous” with international competition every four years as the oldest sport in the Winter Olympics program, first contested in the 1908 Olympics. It’s also a relative novelty compared to some other sports: Viewers don’t get to see figure skating on television as often, while a sport like ice hockey gets televised quite often. , by NHL.
Luge was the second most searched sport in the analysis, topping the charts in nine states. Ice hockey, coming in at number three, was the most searched in four states: Arizona, New Hampshire, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
Alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, ski jumping and curling all received honors. Many sports aren’t on the state’s most searched lists, including skeleton, speed skating, and snowboarding.
Some popularity seems to be based on geography. For example, fans of ice hockey seem to be concentrated mainly in the Northeast. And luge seems to have a fan base in the Southeast, topping searches in Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi.
At the 2018 Games, Team USA’s figure skater took home two bronze medals. Chris Mazdzer of the US team won the silver medal and the US women’s ice hockey team won the gold medal.
If you want to watch this year’s figure skating finals, here’s when they’ll be televised on NBC and Peacock, wherever they are in the East:
- Team events including women’s freestyle skates, pair freestyle skates, and freestyle ice dancing: 8:15 p.m. Feb. 6 at 8:15
- Men’s freestyle skating: February 9 at 8:30pm
- Freestyle on the ice: February 13 at 8:15pm
- Women’s freestyle skating: 5 a.m. February 17
- Free pair skating: February 19 at 6am
The rest of the sports can also be found on NBC’s TV schedule. This year’s Olympics will end on February 20, followed by the Paralympic Games in Beijing next month.
Disclosure: CNBC Make It, parent company NBCUniversal owns NBC Sports and NBC Olympics. NBC Olympics is the owner of the US broadcasting rights to all Summer and Winter Olympics through 2032.
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