On a night that featured gold medal victories for US women’s soccer, women’s water polo and men’s decathlon (none of which are particularly TV-friendly events), NBC Olympic coverage in prime time averaged a preliminary 6.8 Adult 18-49 rating, on track to be the lowest-rated night so far from London and lower than the same night during recent summer games (ranging from a high of 8.1 in Sydney to a 7.3 in Beijing for the second Thursday night). Last night’s rating will probably go up to a 7.1 or 7.2 in the official nationals, which would still be a low for 2012.
The London average is now a 10.0 rating through 14 nights. With three nights to go, it is all but certain the full London average will fall out of the elite double-digit rating range. The 17-night average will likely be a 9.5 rating, still a stunning achievement — growing ratings for the summer games since 2000.
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