Key takeaways:
– Creator-led, short-form storytelling has become essential for introducing major events to younger, platform-native audiences long before competition begins.
– Third-party platforms drive discovery at scale, but the real value is converting that reach into engagement on owned platforms.
– AI-powered content creation tech enables rights holders to scale platform-specific storytelling, maintain consistency, and keep fans engaged before and after the event.
Lindsey Vonn, the legendary Alpine skier, is a huge fan of the Law & Order franchise. She even got a cameo on the original series once, playing an office assistant who provides a clue in a case involving a terrorist. In late September, when the 27th season of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit premiered, Vonn marked the occasion with her first-ever TikTok dance video – prancing around with two other skiers to the sound of the show's iconic theme song.
“Good thing I had my experienced teammates to help me for my first time,” she wrote in the caption, referring to the U.S. ski team, which is preparing for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy. At 41, after coming out of retirement, Vonn is trying to make her fifth U.S. Olympic team. And thanks to a new partnership between U.S. Ski & Snowboard and YouTube, fans will get a close look at her journey to Milano Cortina.
As part of the partnership, YouTube creators will produce exclusive, behind-the-scenes content to spotlight the stories and personalities of America’s top skiers and snowboarders during the lead-up to the games.
“Snowboarding and freeskiing attract some of the youngest and most engaged audiences in sports,” said Sophie Goldschmidt, president of U.S. Ski & Snowboard. “By bringing top creators into our pre-Olympic events, we’re expanding our digital footprint.”
The Olympic digital arms race
U.S. Ski & Snowboard is not the only organization expanding its digital footprint ahead of the Winter Olympics. NBCUniversal, which owns the U.S. media rights to the Olympic Games through 2036, recently unveiled its Milan Cortina Creator Collective – a multi-platform social creator program that will expand its coverage of the Olympics beyond NBC and Peacock.
Recruited in partnership with YouTube, Meta, and TikTok, over 25 prominent creators will receive “unprecedented on-the-ground access to the athletes and competitions” to tell the stories of the Winter Olympics through their eyes. Over the course of the games, which will take place across multiple venues and regions, select groups of creators will also travel to the clusters of Milan, Cortina, and Livigno.
To draw a broader audience into the games, NBC tapped creators from diverse categories, including lifestyle, comedy, music, and other non-sports backgrounds. “Creators participating in our program will offer their communities a unique and engaging perspective that will further showcase everything from the wintry competitions to Italian food, fashion, and more, all in celebration of the Winter Olympics,” said Gary Zenkel, president of NBC Olympics.
From Paris to Milan: a repeatable playbook
The Milan Cortina Creator Collective builds on the success of NBC’s Paris Creator Collective, which garnered over 300 million views across social platforms. All in all, Paris 2024 content across NBC Sports social channels delivered:
– a record 6.55 billion impressions – a 184% increase vs. the Tokyo Olympics and 53% above the Rio Olympics.
– a 497% increase in social video viewership over the Tokyo Olympics and 566% over Rio.
– 4.7 million new followers to the full portfolio of NBC's accounts and channels.
The games in Paris were also the first time the International Olympic Committee (IOC) introduced its own creator program. The IOC's program was part of a strategic focus on platform-specific content that connected with diverse audiences worldwide, particularly younger generations. Through collaborations with creators and 13 leading digital platforms, the IOC registered a 174% increase in total engagements on its social media handles and added 32 million new followers during the games, bringing its total to 151 million.
More impressively, the record-breaking engagement wasn't limited to third parties. The IOC was able to translate the success on social media into fantastic results on its owned platforms:
– The Paris 2024 app was the No.1 sports app in over 70 territories.
– Olympics.com had more than 325 million unique users during the games.
– The official website produced and published more than 148,000 content assets, resulting in 3 million hours of video watch-time.
The infrastructure behind modern event storytelling
In today's media environment, short-form, creator-led storytelling has become the front door to major events. It meets new audiences where they already spend time, then guides them toward owned platforms where deeper relationships can form. That shift enables rights holders to collect first-party data, deepen engagement, and create a real value exchange.
AI-driven content creation technology makes this playbook scalable. These solutions give organizations the ability to instantly package moments into formats that feel native everywhere fans engage, including their own apps and sites. When discovery and destination finally align, momentum compounds. And with Lindsey Vonn leading the way, Milano Cortina 2026 is already telling a story fans won’t want to miss.
Actionable insights:
– Use creators and short-form formats on social platforms to introduce athletes and narratives well before major events begin.
– Build clear pathways from third-party platforms into owned apps, sites, and newsletters where deeper engagement happens.
– Use AI-powered tools to rapidly clip, format, and distribute content so every moment works across platforms without overloading content teams.
