South African sports channel, SuperSport will provide an extensive coverage across territories in Sub Saharan Africa for the 13th World Indoor Championships, which begins in Doha, Qatar on Friday.
SuperSport, a multi-channel on DStv recently signed a deal with IAAF media partner, IEC in Sports - the Stockholm-based media rights experts, who owned the media rights for the 2010/2013 World Athletic Series in Europe and Africa.
According to the IAAF, the new partnership with IEC in Sports, which was announced on 7 October 2009, has in its first five months produced "very satisfying media sales."
In total 21 media contracts have been signed in a relatively short lapse of time.
The 2010 IAAF World Indoor Championships, Doha, Qatar (12 - 14 March) marks a significant first step in the new broadcasting relationship as it is the first IAAF World Athletics Series event covered by the partnership.
IEC in Sport is working to ensure long term media deals will be made in the remaining territories later in 2010, and with the IAAF have jointly agreed to strategic and creative alternatives for the coverage of 2010 World Indoor Championships.
In addition, new media deals will provide for the first time additional coverage across most of Europe thus showing the readiness of the IAAF to reach wider audiences.
In parallel Dentsu, IAAF's long term media rights partner outside Europe and Africa, continues to deliver maximal exposure, and has been able to confirm a number of new TV deals in the last months, so that all key territories will show coverage of Doha.
This would include for example Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, USA and the entire Middle East region.
"This is a good start to our new media partnership," commented IAAF President Lamine Diack.
"As the agreement with IEC was only made in October the sales window has been short and we have been impressed by the serious and diligent work done by our new partner.
Along with the TV sales secured outside Europe and Africa by our worldwide marketing partner, Dentsu, I am very satisfied with the level of coverage that has been secured for the Doha World Indoor Championships."