• January 18, 2006

NBC Universal is employing some corporate synergy by linking tonight's episode of "Project Runway" with its coverage of the Olympics next month. On the Bravo reality show, aspiring designers will compete to design the best on-ice dress for Sasha Cohen, the 21-year-old skater who just qualified for the Winter Games.

Cohen, who appears on the show as a judge, is expected to be one of the breakout stars during the NBC Network's prime time coverage from Torino in February. Banner ads promoting the "Project Runway" episode featuring host Heidi Klum and Cohen were running on NBCOlympics.com.

Bravo, NBC, and NBCOlympics.com are all part of NBCU.

Cohen qualified for the Games on Saturday with a first-place finish at the U.S. Nationals, a fortuitous event for Bravo and NBC. The "Project Runway" episode was filmed last summer, so if Cohen had flopped, ratings for the episode might have followed suit.

--David Goetzl