Sports Video Group Names Turner Sports’ Tom Sahara as Chairman

The Sports Video Group (SVG) has announced that Tom Sahara, Vice President of Operations & Technology at Turner Sports, has been appointed the association’s new Chairman by outgoing Chairman Steve Hellmuth, EVP, Operations and Technology, NBA Entertainment.

Tom Sahara

“Tom has made significant contributions to SVG during the past seven years, most notably his work on the DTV Audio Group, the Sports Production Safety Group, as well as his role as the architect and author of our online Loudness Management Tutorial and his participation on numerous conference panels and working committees,” said Hellmuth, who will assume the role as SVG Chairman Emeritus. “Tom has a fresh perspective and some great ideas to put in motion, and I look forward to actively supporting him as we continue to develop and expand the role SVG plays in advancing the creation, production, and distribution of sports content.”

Tom Sahara of Turner Sports outside of Turner’s TS2 truck at the NBA All-Star Game in February.

Sahara oversees remote operations and production technology at Turner Sports, which televises the NBA, Major League Baseball, the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship, NASCAR and professional golf on TBS, TNT and truTV.  With a career spanning more than 25 years, starting as a sound technician for Hawaiian entertainment legend, Don Ho, and highlighted by tours of duty with three Olympics as a senior technical manager, and two Goodwill Games as director of technical operations, he has been involved in almost every aspect of live production. An active participant in development of the HDTV and broadband implementations at Turner, he is responsible for the technical operations of every sporting event shown on the Turner networks. Most recently, he has advanced the use of 4K cameras in sports production, performing experiments during the NCAA Final Four.

“I look forward to building upon the work of my predecessors, Ken Aagaard from CBS and Steve Hellmuth from the NBA, who have set such high standards for our industry association and have helped us grow from a small meeting of colleagues to an international association with over 1,000 members supported by nearly 200 sponsors,” Sahara remarked.

The Sports Video Group and its affiliate Sports Video Group Europe produce more than 20 worldwide conferences, 200 newsletters, and four professional journals annually to facilitate information exchange among sports broadcasters, venues, and their production and technology partners. The association’s initiatives include committee activities in safety, DTV audio, asset management, military-veteran employment in sports, and venue technologies. SVG produces the acclaimed Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame and manages the Sports Broadcasting Fund, a vital industry charity that provides financial assistance to sports-production professionals in need.