The Paris Olympics are off! After a titillating Opening Ceremony yesterday, the USA’s women swimmers have already begun their quest for golden hardware at the French capital. Among the American swimmers, Katie Ledecky is undoubtedly one favorite to win gold in her events, and without surprise, her first race went impressively well. But every good thing comes with a backlog.

In the 3rd heat of the women’s freestyle race, Ledecky clinched the winning spot with 4:02.19 on the clock, and beating arch-rival Ariarne Titmus. However, US fans aren’t happy with how the action is being broadcast back home. In a post on X by Kyle Sockwell from just minutes ago, the shambling conditions of the NBC feed and display graphics have been slammed.

“Running clock is lagging making athletes look way faster than they are,” rants the post, bashing the broadcasters for coming up with a “…pretty disappointing prelim feed“. Along with glitching during the feed and showing athletes to be suspiciously faster than they actually are, the graphics also looks disheartening considering how big the Olympics is and how impeccably it should be covered. But things don’t end just here.

Possibly the least popular aspect of the feed is the fact that NBC doesn’t seem to have placement graphics designed for the tournament so far. With that being the case, fans are being left searching everywhere to find the final results of a close race. Naturally, this isn’t how fans would want to experience the greatest sporting event of the year.

Fans aren’t pleased with how Katie Ledecky’s first event went by

Fans have a thing or two to say about their feelings on the matter as well. “It’s soooo bad and I’m getting pissed,” agreed a fan-run page in the comment section of Sockwell’s post. The confusing way the preliminary round was broadcast needs to be addressed at the earliest and we hope Ledecky’s next bout in the pool can be enjoyed by more fans than before. Considering how Ledecky is looking to add more in the cupboard alongside her seven Olympic golds, it’s not surprising to see fans fuming with NBC didn’t let them catch a better glimpse of her first victory in Paris.

Katie is also among the best female swimmers of all time with several world records under her belt over the years. While she doesn’t currently boast the 400m free world record, she held it at one point. Naturally, fans want to have all the possible information, but NBC doesn’t seem to think the same. “No World Record split comparison either,” frowned another fan, Lewsi, who thinks this way the world will miss out on yet another milestone when Ledecky attains it.

William, on the other hand, thinks great examples are aplenty for the Olympics organizers to take cue from. The TYR Pro Series is among the most coveted swimming tournaments in the world and is hailed as a top-tier event thanks to its meticulous planning. Referring to that, this fan commented, “This is why more people, World Aquatics producers among them, need to watch the Tyr Pro Swim Series.”

“Hoping this is fixed by the night session,” prayed Liz in her post on X as she, like many swimming fans from all parts of the world, waits for more thrilling action at the City of Love in the coming days.

For any sport, where there are multiple competitors vying for the top spot at the same time, it’s of paramount importance for fans to see the placements and distance gaps between the athletes for maximum positive experience. However, with all of these missing, Paul isn’t stocked about how NBC is handling things. “This is true,” commented this fan, in agreement with Kyle’s frustration.

Did you also watch the broadcast on NBC? How did you like it? Tell us in the comments!