CHANNEL Nine’s Drive TV special, ‘Chasing Champions’ premiered last Sunday, January 28 ahead of the high-rating Australian Open men’s final.

The episode, featuring Dylan Alcott AO as a presenter, was produced with the assistance of Kia Australia and provided an insight into the life of one of Australia’s rising Paralympians and focused on the rise of competitive sport for people with a disability. 

The first episode was centred around the personal story of Dylan Alcott Foundation recipient, Jack Howell, an up-and-coming triathlete Paralympian and gave viewers an intimate look at his journey leading up to the Paris 2024 Paralympics and the broader landscape of competitive “para” sports.

Drive’s Emma Notarfrancesco and Dylan Alcott. Dylan Alcott AO presents Drive TV program on Paralympian’s journey to Paris 2024.

The ‘Chasing Champions’ episode, hosted by  hosted by Drive’s Emma Notarfrancesco and Dylan Alcott explored the story via a journey through the streets of Melbourne and was a follow-up to last year’s Australian Open production ‘Road to the Open’ that showcased two of Kia’s flagship electric vehicles—the high-performance Kia EV6 GT and the family-oriented Kia EV9 GT Line.

This kind of programming was telegraphed late last year by Nine Group’s Drive portal when it unveiled plans for an ambitious growth strategy in 2024 at a briefing to the advertising industry. 

The CEO of Drive Simon Halfhide told GoAutoNews Premium in an exclusive interview that the strategy for 2024 “was to secure Drive’s position as the number one auto content website by building a world-class automotive content network and then focus over the next three years on building a seamless world class marketplace business that is helpful to consumers, helpful for OEMs and helpful for dealers”.

Drive TV executive producer Terry King said in a statement: “This was such an engaging production to be a part of. The natural chemistry between Dylan and Emma, paired with the inspiring stories, latest Kia EVs, and the vibe of Melbourne’s streets made for an unforgettable experience.”

Dylan Alcott

Drive TV plans for 2024 include an array of shows scheduled to hit Channel Nine, Nine Rush, and 9Now in the upcoming months.

Following the launch of the new ‘Drive Review’ show on Nine Rush, a hectic production period is anticipated featuring award-winning cars in some of Australia’s most stunning locations. 

Upcoming Drive TV shows include:

• A Drive segment within Nine’s longest and most successful travel program, Getaway (Q1 2024)
• A 2024 Drive Car of the Year Special featuring and promoting the best of the best in automotive (Q1 2024)
• Australia’s only 24/7 automotive video on demand channel, the Drive F.A.S.T. Channel (H2 2024)
• A Drive TV Electric documentary series (2024)

All previous episodes of Drive TV are available to stream on 9Now.