As audiences get excited to watch the world’s top athletes compete in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, Maya Hysaw (’22) has been sifting through decades of athlete statistics and previously televised Olympic footage to prepare for the chaotic weeks of sports broadcasting ahead.
Hysaw, a communication arts alum, is a production associate with NBC Sports. Her role is centered around creating packages to air on the network broadcast. Once the director has decided where to go with a story, including who to interview, Hysaw and her coworkers compile and edit hours of interview and event footage into a five-minute broadcast package.
“We’re basically the front lines for everything that gets used — whether it’s audio, video, contacting other media groups for specific teams or fans that we’ll be interviewing — all of that is what we manage,” Hysaw says. “Especially for shoots, taking that in, labeling the footage, syncing it to audio and sending it to the correct people. It’s really detailed.”
Hysaw’s team has been scouring footage from previous Olympic games to build off and expand coverage for the Paris games. Archival footage can be used to create narratives for athletes, sports or countries.
For example, NBC Sports will use footage of U.S. gymnast Simone Biles from her performances in the 2016 and 2020 Olympics to build her story leading up to the coverage in Paris.
Hysaw got a taste of what the Olympic chaos will be like in June, when she edited packages focused on the 2024 Olympic Swimming Team Trials in Indianapolis. Hysaw had the opportunity to produce footage from interviews with stand-out swimmers such as Olympian Katie Ledecky, as they prepared for their journey to Paris.
“We do live turnaround the whole day for whatever event pops up,” Hysaw says. “I know swimming because I did the trials, but now I’m going to need to know the other 31 sports.”
As an NBC Sports feature team member, Hysaw works on stories related to main athlete interviews and teams’ fan bases. Hysaw has collaborated on projects in every sport from Sunday Night Football to the Indianapolis 500. Most recently, Hysaw worked on a project covering the 150th Kentucky Derby.
When Hysaw first joined NBC Sports, it was in the middle of the NFL season, and she was immediately thrown into the fast-paced work environment of sports broadcasting.
“There have been a few opportunities where some things I had a creative decision in hit air,” Hysaw says.
For the Paris Games, Hysaw and her team will be working 10-hour shifts, covering events featuring U.S. athletes.
Hysaw says prioritizing her mental health is one of the biggest challenges she expects to face.
“The mental balance of keeping yourself in check through the chaos, that was my biggest struggle for the last two weeks over the [swim] trials, and I’m glad I went through it because now I know a little bit more of what to expect,” she says. “So, managing your time, taking care of yourself, but also being diligent in the work that you’re doing is the challenge.”
Hysaw credits her time at UW–Madison for grounding her in broadcasting and project management. As an undergrad, Hysaw was incredibly involved in extracurriculars, including assistant stage managing a production of Heathers and being the technical director of creative projects for her program.
In her capstone class senior year — Communication Arts 659 — Hysaw spent a semester creating a 30-minute movie, including pre-production, production and post-production.
“The radio, TV and film track does a fantastic job of putting you right in it,” Hysaw says. “It’s super hands-on, which I loved because it’s one thing to read about something, but to actually get your hands on the equipment and physically do it was extremely beneficial.”
Moving forward, Hysaw plans to pursue a career in narrative movies — her main focus as a student — but is nonetheless grateful for the experiences NBC Sports has given her in broadcasting.
“My heart is not fully in sports, although the experience is fantastic,” Hysaw says. “So, it’s a double-edged sword, where I appreciate what I’m doing, but I’m ready for the next challenge.”