NBC Olympic 2012 Schedule: Definitive Guide to Gymnastics on TV

Every second counts.

Gymnastics will be a highlight of NBC’s 2012 Olympics schedule because of the unique pressure that’s featured in the competition.

Usain Bolt has the speed to make up for a poor start in the 200-meter dash. LeBron James and company are talented enough to throw alley-oops to each other for three quarters against Tunisia and still come out on top.

But one slip up on the balance beam and a gymnast’s gold medal dreams are crushed. Because of that, everything is magnified.

Juliet Macur of the New York Times reported that former Olympian John Roethlisberger talked about the incredible weight on gymnasts shoulders. He said:

"

There’s a certain intensity around this that you can’t replicate anywhere else in life. There’s always nervousness and stress before a competition, but this? This is like you going from your high school play straight to Broadway.

"

Team USA’s stars are expected to handle that pressure well and rack up the medals in London.

On the women’s side, Jordyn Wieber is the reigning individual all-around world champion. She’s a heavy favorite to win gold, but Gabby Douglas will give her a run for her money after securing the lone automatic bid on the squad.

McKayla Maroney is a vault specialist who should be favored after dominance in the 2011 Tokyo World Championships.

As a whole, the American women’s gymnastics team could return as one of the country’s best to participate in the games in a long time.

On the men’s side, it’s all about Danell Leyva. If he doesn’t medal in the parallel bars and horizontal bar, it’d be a shock. He should be in the running to take home individual and team all-around gold as well.

Here is a complete listing of times when NBC will run programs that show Olympic gymnastics competition (via NBCOlympics.com).

Date	Time (ET)
Saturday, July 28	8:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Sunday, July 29	12:30 a.m. - 1:30 a.m.
	2:00 p.m. - 2:40 p.m.
	7:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Monday, July 30	12:35 a.m. - 1:35 a.m.
	1:35 a.m. - 4:30 a.m.
	8:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Tuesday, July 31	1:35 a.m. - 4:30 a.m.
	8:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Wednesday, August 1	1:35 a.m. - 4:30 a.m.
	8:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Thursday, August 2	1:35 a.m. - 4:30 a.m.
	8:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Friday, August 3	1:35 a.m. - 4:30 a.m.
Sunday, August 5	7:00 p.m. - 10:00 a.m.
Monday August 6	1:35 a.m. - 4:30 a.m.
	8:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Tuesday, August 7	1:35 a.m. - 4:30 a.m.
	8:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.

David Daniels is a featured columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer.

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