Lake Placid (pps) The “Ice 2003” show on the American television station NBC achieved great television rates. Both 90-minute broadcasts including the Viessmann Luge World Cup events in Altenberg, Germany, and in Calgary, Canada, had a market-share of 1.5 per-cent on Saturday and of 2.0 per-cent on Sunday. This corresponds to about ten to 15 million viewers as Gordon Sheer, the marketing director of the US Federation announced in Lake Placid. Besides luge competitions, the show also included coverages from the bobsleigh World Cup and curling.

„These are excellent television rates for American winter sports”, Sheer said. For comparison: Mass sports such as American football, ice hockey or basketball achieve an average of twelve per-cent according to Sheer. Surprisingly the show had the best rates with more than five per-cent in cities such as Miami, Florida, and St. Louis, Missouri.

The television broadcasts of the Viessmann Luge World Cup in Park City also achieved very good quotes in Germany with a market-share of 15.9 (Saturday) and 15.2 (Sunday) per-cent.