(edited press release)
HorseRacing Television's popular weekly show "Target Louisville" will be broadcast daily as "Target Louisville Live," offering racing fans all the up-to-date information and late-breaking developments directly from Churchill Downs leading up to the 133rd edition of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) when it begins airing daily on Saturday, April 28 at Noon (EST) through Sunday, May 6.
There will be special airtimes of 10:00 a.m. (EST) on Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby Days. Each show will run 30 minutes and will be re-broadcast several times. Executive producer Amy Zimmerman said the program will include horses that work or are out on the track each day, as well as cover breaking news. "People who have watched our coverage in general have come to expect us to present the story behind the story," she said. "We want to let the participants tell those stories.
HRTV will also present daily afternoon coverage of Churchill Downs' races throughout Derby week, interspersing paddock interviews with Derby principals and providing any late-breaking news. The network is in discussions with ESPN to see what it will be allowed to cover on Derby day.
HRTV's Laffit Pincay III, the weekly co-host of "Target Louisville," will be on the scene at Churchill Downs, along with HRTV's on-site reporter Jeff Lifson. Lifson is a veteran Kentucky journalist who also reported for HRTV during last year's Kentucky Derby. HRTV regulars Joanne Jones and Becky Witzman are also in Louisville and will contribute to the show.
Jeff Siegel, who teams with Pincay as regular co-host of the weekly "Target Louisville," and Millie Ball will participate in HRTV's coverage from the Arcadia, CA studios.
"There are few sporting events that can match the excitement generated by the Kentucky Derby," said Amy J. Zimmerman, executive producer for HRTV. "Our goal is to provide racing fans all the latest information regarding the Derby and Oaks horses directly from the connections who know them best. We are there to report their stories and chronicle their preparation for the sport's greatest race."
The daily half-hour show will present viewers with valuable, timely information surrounding the sport's top 3-year-olds, as they complete preparation for the legendary Run for the Roses. "Target Louisville Live" will chronicle the latest workouts from the Derby entrants from both Churchill Downs and Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, KY, as well conducting interviews with the owners, trainers, jockeys and other connections of Derby hopefuls.
All of HRTV's Churchill Downs coverage will be supervised by HRTV's Senior Producer - Live Programming, multiple Emmy Award-winner Stephen Nagler. Veteran Lead Producer Michael Canale will produce "Target Louisville Live." HRTV is a 24-hour television network providing up to 15 hours per day of wire-to-wire coverage of live horse racing action from more than 70 Thoroughbred, harness and quarter horse racetracks in the United States, Canada and Australia.