Shaun White’s Dramatic Gold Medal Win Delivers Top Pyeongchang Olympics Ratings Peak Yet
Snowboard halfpipe finale and pairs figure skating team for 19.6 overnight rating
Tony Maglio | February 14, 2018 @ 7:34 AM
Last Updated: February 14, 2018 @ 8:18 AM
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USA! USA! USA! Shaun White’s snowboarding heroics and some figure skating pairs teamed up to deliver NBC’s highest Pyeongchang Olympics ratings peak so far.
From 10 p.m. ET-10:15 p.m. ET, NBC and NBC Sports Network combined for a 19.6 overnight rating/31 share, per Nielsen. That’s the best for a 15-minute period (which is how Nielsen breaks these things down) since the giant torch was lit.
In terms of actual primetime averages, NBC and NBCSN’s Tuesday coverage posted a 15.2/25 overnight. That was up 5 percent from the first Tuesday night in Sochi, which received a 14.5/22 and only aired on NBC broadcast.
Here are last night’s top U.S. markets for the primetime stuff from Pyeongchang, South Korea:
Salt Lake City 24.8/46
Denver 23.7/42
Kansas City 22.0/35
Minneapolis 21.0/38
Milwaukee 20.9/33
Seattle 20.1/36
San Diego 18.7/35
Richmond 18.5/27
Portland 18.1/34
Austin 17.8/31
As expected, the 2018 Winter Games have proven quite a ratings boon for NBC, which just became No. 1 in total viewers for the first time in 16 years. Additionally, the competition has helped Jimmy Fallon surpass Stephen Colbert in overall audience, which hadn’t happened since last June.
Stars at Rio Olympics Who Didn't Actually Compete, From Zac Efron to Leslie Jones (Photos)
Many actors and models flocked to Rio de Janeiro to support their teams in the 2016 Olympic Games.
Zac Efron
On Tuesday, four-time gold medal-winning gymnast Simone Biles finally met her crush. She shared several photos and even a video of the actor giving the star Olympian a quick kiss on the cheek. The actor also promised Biles' teammate Aly Raisman a pizza date.
Instagram
Gisele Bundchen
The supermodel stole the show at the opening ceremony as she took the final catwalk of her career and danced with people in the crowd.
NBC
Matthew McConaughey
The "Free State of Jones" actor has been extremely supportive at games like swimming, beach volleyball and rugby. He also sent a congratulatory tweet to Michael Phelps.
Twitter
Boomer Phelps
The three-month-old son of Michael Phelps stole the show while his daddy was winning five gold medals in Rio. He also dressed in patriotic attire such as stars and stripes and, in between Phelps' wins, the star swimmer rushed to his son's side to shower him with kisses. Boomer's Instagram account has over a half-million followers.
Instagram
Leslie Jones
Draped in the American flag, Jones has been cheering for U.S.A. with passionate patriotism that NBC — the official network that’s airing the Rio games — couldn’t help but notice. She was then enlisted by the network to cover the Games in Rio. The "Ghostbusters" actress has since been live-tweeting almost all events.
Twitter
Adriana Lima
The supermodel carried the Olympic torch through the streets of Rio during the Opening Ceremony.
"I am grateful to experience this incredible honor and dream to carry the Olympic torch, so humbled to be carrying in my home country," she wrote on Instagram.
Instagram
Alessandra Ambrosio
Both Ambrosio and Lima were announced as NBC's food and culture correspondents for the Olympics in July. Ambrosio's Instagram is full of pictures all-things Olympic Games.
Instagram
Eddie Redmayne
The "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" actor flew to Brazil as a brand ambassador for Omega watches. He has also been taking tons of photos with athletes, like British politician and former track and field athlete, Sebastian Coe.
Twitter
Gigi Hadid
The model declared her support on Instagram, posting a photo from her Vogue cover shoot with decathlete Ashton Eaton.
"Wishing my @voguemagazine cover bud, Ashton @weareeaton, and all my @TEAMUSA friends an incredible, safe, and successful Olympic Games!!" she wrote.
Instagram
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Matthew McConaughey and Boomer Phelps were all about the 2016 Games in Rio
Many actors and models flocked to Rio de Janeiro to support their teams in the 2016 Olympic Games.