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<\/p>\nThe Vinovo racecourse in Turin is home to some of Italy\u2019s most prestigious harness racing events, including the Gran Premio Costa Azzurra and the Italian Harness Derby. The venue hosts around 50 race days a year, with on-site live production facilities that have been capturing the action for more than 30 years.<\/p>\n
In addition to traditional broadcast coverage, the facility also captures footage for betting partners, racecourse display systems, and for race stewards to monitor events in real time and review incidents via replay footage.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are not a 24\/7 broadcast service. Our control room is activated about once a week for the races. But horse racing imposes very strict operational requirements,\u201d explains Silvano Ferraris, engineer and director of the Vinovo racetrack. \u201cOne of our top priorities is to provide the race stewards with precise analysis tools that allow them to monitor the race in real time and immediately access synchronised multi-camera replays. At the same time, we must guarantee a stable, low-latency live feed for betting platforms and LED walls while supporting television broadcasters with editorial content suitable for race coverage.\u201d<\/p>\n
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In 2025, to keep pace with the demands of its multi-output operations, Vinovo and integration partner Manco completed a major overhaul of its television production suite, replacing the legacy standard-definition system with a 4K Blackmagic Design workflow featuring an ATEM 4 M\/E Constellation 4K live switcher and a Blackmagic Replay system.<\/p>\n
Ferraris explains that the new UHD capabilities are helping race stewards to see a more accurate picture of any irregularities during the race in review processes. \u201cThe transition to 4K has given us a more modern, integrated, and robust infrastructure. The new system has improved operations throughout the entire production workflow and offers a higher level of detail in the images, reducing room for interpretation during decisive moments.\u201d<\/p>\n
The investment in the complete renovation of the broadcast control room was made possible in part by the General Directorate of Horse Racing within the Ministry of Agriculture, which oversees the sector in the country. \u201cThis provided additional funding to racetracks like ours, allowing us to accelerate investments in new production technologies, and improve the overall quality and reliability of race coverage,\u201d added Ferraris.<\/p>\n
A custom multi-camera setup for race coverage<\/p>\n
For race coverage, the new multi-camera system uses seven Blackmagic URSA Broadcast G2 cameras paired with Fujinon XA20sx8.5BERM-K3 20x and Canon J33ax11B4 lenses with duplicators. Two URSA Broadcast G2 cameras are positioned on either side of the home stretch near the finish line, near the stewards\u2019 observation point. \u201cOne follows the pack with a wide shot along the entire course, while the second captures close-ups of the leading horses all the way to the finish line,\u201d Ferraris explains.<\/p>\n
The other cameras are strategically distributed around the course to monitor any changes in trajectory and contact between horses, with two low-angle camera positions on the turns. One of these is also used for live segments and for the race commentary team.<\/p>\n
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The seventh unit is used as an ENG-style radio camera \u2013 mounted to a car moving alongside the horses \u2013 equipped with a Hollyland wireless transmission system which sends the live signal to the control room in real time.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the key aspects of the fibre-optic system is its simplicity,\u201d Ferraris points out. \u201cWith a single SMPTE cable, we connect the control room and cameras, carrying power, control, and all audio and video signals.\u201d<\/p>\n
The system also includes a Blackmagic Micro Studio Camera with a 7\u201314 mm wide-angle lens. \u201cWe use it as a fixed camera from an elevated position to get a wide angle view of the track.\u201d<\/p>\n
Managing multi-output live production<\/p>\n
One of the main challenges facing the live production is the diversity of output: the system must simultaneously manage multi-output distribution, instant replays, and real-time review footage for the race stewards. In the control room, located in the grandstand, an ATEM 4 M\/E Constellation 4K is used in tandem with an ATEM 2 M\/E Advanced Panel 20 to handle up to 40 video sources, allowing the programme signal to be routed to multiple destinations in real time.<\/p>\n
Ferraris: \u201cOne HD feed is dedicated to the distribution systems that feed the main transmitter, the backup transmitter, and the \u2018International Web\u2019 channel, from which the signal is then distributed to broadcasters and betting platforms.\u201d<\/p>\n
A separate output feeds the 9x5m LED wall installed inside the racetrack, while additional return feeds are sent to the production stations, including the commentator\u2019s station, synchronised with the live broadcast. Signal routing is managed by a Blackmagic Videohub 40\u00d740 12G, which allows for flexible routing of sources to the control room, the stewards\u2019 booth, the LED wall, and the production stations.<\/p>\n
Ensuring continuous recording from all cameras and to make content immediately available for replays and reviews are several HyperDeck recorders. \u201cWe record the feeds (including the ISO feeds from the main cameras) on Four HyperDeck Studio HD Pro units and two HyperDeck Studio HD Plus units, while two HyperDeck Studio HD Mini units are dedicated to backup,\u201d says Ferraris.<\/p>\n
For the officials, two multiview feeds,each dedicated to four cameras or signals have been set up directly within the judging booth, displayed on two separate monitors and recorded using two HyperDeck Shuttle HD units. \u201cThey can follow the race live and immediately review the action from multiple perspectives. Basically, it\u2019s our VAR,\u201d he says. \u201cImmediately after the race ends, we need to be able to review slow-motion replays and any potential irregularities from different angles.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The review footage is captured by the HyperDeck-powered replay system, which records camera feeds and makes them immediately available in DaVinci Resolve via a centralised infrastructure connected via a 10-Gigabit network. DaVinci Resolve Replay is then deployed to select different angles and create multi-camera replays just moments after the action. Ferraris explains, \u201cWe start right away with the first shot, and while it\u2019s on air we can already prepare the next pieces of footage from the other cameras.\u201d<\/p>\n
The team also uses DaVinci Resolve to prepare segments to be aired during race days, create graphics, and edit promotional videos using footage captured during the events.<\/p>\n
Supporting a new generation of operators<\/p>\n
For all of the newfound technological capabilities afforded by the control room upgrade, Ferraris says the benefits will also be enjoyed by the next generation of production talent who are cutting their teeth on the new systems.<\/p>\n
\u201cMany of our operators are very young and start here while they\u2019re studying, gaining hands-on experience working with professional, real-world systems,\u201d he explained. \u201cI enjoy experiencing that process with them: they\u2019re learning something meaningful, and I\u2019m staying young!\u201d<\/p>\n
From a technology and human perspective, Vinovo\u2019s live production upgrade project looks set to leave a lasting legacy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Vinovo racecourse in Turin is home to some of Italy\u2019s most prestigious harness racing events, including the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":17439,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[12656,12651,12658,12655,12654,10955,5,12652,12653,12657],"class_list":["post-17438","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-italy","tag-atem-4-m-e-constellation-4k","tag-blackmagic-design","tag-blackmagic-micro-studio-camera","tag-blackmagic-ursa-broadcast-g2","tag-davinci-resolve","tag-horse-racing","tag-italy","tag-live-production","tag-uhd","tag-vinovo"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17438","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17438"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17438\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17439"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17438"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17438"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/italy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17438"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}