LiveU to power live streaming of premier mountain biking race

The mountain biking race, The Absa Cape Epic, has teamed up with LiveU to provide live coverage of the eight-day mountain bike stage race in South Africa’s Western Cape. The Prologue and Grand Finale will be broadcast live on TV, with the Grand Finale being broadcast in more than 50 countries around the world. During the intermediate days, a full live streaming broadcast of the racing will be streamed online to the Absa Cape Epic’s Facebook page. The event will take place from 18 – 25 March.

LiveU’s LU600 HEVC portable transmission solution was chosen by the organisers due to its video quality and reliability, the company claims. The LU600 HEVC units will be used on e-bikes (electric bikes) connected to GoPro cameras along the route, motorbikes and in helicopters together with LiveU’s Xtender remote transmission device. LiveU’s servers will be installed in OB trucks with direct connectivity to the internet in the race villages, thanks to the race’s headline sponsor and technology partner, Dimension Data. LiveU will also provide behind-the-scenes coverage in the village, for example interviews with the cyclists.

Top professional and amateur mountain bikers from around the world come together every year and compete in teams of two. Participants include successful athletes and sports people from different fields, such as Formula1, motorcross, rugby, cricket and Ironman. LiveU’s local partner Telemedia will provide onsite support during the event.

On the importance of live coverage, Sarah Harrop, Marketing and Communications Manager at Absa Cape Epic said: “At the 2017 race we realised how valuable it was to have live footage transmitted from the route to integrate in the live TV and web streaming productions. Thanks to LiveU’s LU600 HEVC’s equipment, we can transmit coverage from the ground and air of the women’s, men’s and amateur racing. During the testing phase, we were excited to experience the superior quality of the equipment. LiveU’s portable technology could take our live streaming production to a whole new level, with real time broadcast-quality pictures coming from the course.”

On live coverage for extreme sports, Yaal Eshel, VP Sales, LiveU, said: “This is a great example of how the LU600 HEVC is taking us beyond news. Extreme sports are particularly popular throughout Africa and this event offers a perfect example of how our technology can be used to cover extreme sporting events from every angle. As well as the LU600 HEVC solution, we’re going to be providing other products such as our LiveU Solo one-touch wireless streaming encoder for live interviews and LU-Smart mobile app for behind-the-scenes coverage in the village.”