NBCU Local’s ‘My New Favorite Olympian’ Returns To Showcase Team USA’s Most-Inspiring Paris 2024 Athletes

NBCUniversal Local’s NBC-owned stations and NBC Sports Regional Networks will present a new season of the award-winning multiplatform podcast My New Favorite Olympian profiling Team USA’s most-inspiring athletes leading up to Paris 2024. The seven-part audio and video series, which begins this Wednesday, June 12, is led by 12-time Olympic medalist swimmer Natalie Coughlin and Zena Keita, an NBC Sports Bay Area reporter, host and analyst.

My New Favorite Olympian provides in-depth narratives profiling established and emerging American stars who have overcome adversity, broken barriers, and committed to helping others as they pursue Olympic or Paralympic glory. Each 15 to 20-minute episode focuses on different Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls and includes interviews with the athlete, experts, and those closest to them.

My New Favorite Olympian will release new episodes on Wednesdays through July 17 leading up to the Olympic Games, which begin July 26. The series will return as My New Favorite Paralympian with new editions on Aug. 14 and Aug. 21 before the Paralympic Games — which will be held Aug. 28 to Sept. 8 — to spotlight Paralympians for the first time in the franchise’s history. Nissan is a supporter of NBCUniversal Local’s coverage of Paris 2024, including My New Favorite Olympian.

Coughlin is a three-time Olympian who captured 12 Olympic medals (three gold, four silver, and five bronze) over the course of her decorated career, which ties her with two athletes as the most decorated American female Olympian in history. The most decorated female athlete of the Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, the California native concluded her stellar Olympic career at the London 2012 Games.

Coughlin, who won the World Swimmer of the Year Award in 2002 and American Swimmer of the Year Award in 2001, 2002 and 2008, won sixty total medals in major international competition and was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 2022.

Keita is a host and analyst for NBC Sports Bay Area’s Golden State Warriors postgame show Dubs Talk Live. She is also a host and contributor to The Athletic Women’s Basketball Show, part of The Athletic Podcast Network. A native of Paris and raised in North Carolina, Keita has also worked as a sideline reporter and analyst for NBA G-League’s Santa Cruz Warriors on NBC Sports Bay Area and hosted other basketball shows for the network. She has also contributed to various podcasts across The Athletic Podcast Network and co-hosted several episodes of Peacock’s Brother From Another.

My New Favorite Olympian is the fifth season of a franchise that launched in June 2021. The last two seasons, titled My New Favorite Futbolista, showcased international soccer stars competing in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup and 2022 FIFA Men’s World Cup. The first season, which included five episodes covering Tokyo 2020, was hosted by Olympic fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad. A seven-episode second season featured Olympic legend Apolo Ohno as co-host preceding Beijing 2022.

Where To Listen & Watch

My New Favorite Olympian will be available on all major podcast platforms, including Apple, Spotify, TuneIn and iHeart

Video versions of each episode will be presented on NBC-owned stations’ television, streaming and digital platforms, including the 24/7 local news streaming channels

Content will also be featured on NBC Sports Regional Networks’ platforms.