(NEXSTAR) -- As the official photographic partner of the International Olympic Committee, Getty Images is using advanced technology including robotic cameras to distribute images globally in under 30 seconds. Michael Heiman, vice president for global sports at Getty Images, is leading a team of 120 people to capture the Olympic Games in Milan and Cortina, Italy. The operation is the result of a five-year planning process involving multiple site visits and coordination with the local organizing committee. Getty Images has approximately 100 staff members on the ground in Italy, supported by an editorial team based in London. "You don't know what's gonna happen before it starts and you just gotta be ready to react when it does happen," Heiman said. The scale of the team allows the agency to cover the unpredictable nature of international sports competition. Heiman has covered the Olympic Games since the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. During those games, he worked as a sports editor in the main press center while athletes like Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt rose to prominence. "Beijing was amazing. It was my first games. I was just a sport editor then based in the MPC, the main press center, just watching content come in," Heiman said. The footprint of the games has changed since Heiman began his career, with events now spread across larger geographic areas. In Italy, Getty Images has six teams positioned across Northern Italy, including a large base in Milan and staff in various competition clusters. For Heiman, while the footprint has grown, the level of competition and excitement has remained consistent throughout his career. "We start planning these games for five years out, right? We've been talking with the organizing committee here in Milan for four years," Heiman said. Along with a team of photographers, Getty uses 12 robotic cameras mounted throughout the various venues in Italy. These cameras can be operated remotely from either the main press center or the specific venue to capture angles that were previously inaccessible. The agency also utilizes high-speed network connections to ensure photos are available for digital and print publications almost immediately. Photographers are connected via a high-speed VLAN, allowing editors in London to see images the moment they are captured. "Speed is the name of the game," Heiman said. "But we also really want to make sure we move the best pictures possible." He explained that the goal is to wait for "peak action," such as a skater crossing the Olympic rings, while still aiming to distribute the content to the world in under 30 seconds. Getty Images serves as the official photographic partner of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). This role includes a dedicated team responsible for providing content to sponsors and National Olympic Committees. All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by Nexstar. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat from a broadcast script into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by Nexstar staff before being published