Millions of women around the United States are tuning into this year’s Olympics, whether it’s to be part of the Michael Phelps frenzy, or to witness the performance of the best female gymnasts in the world, balancing precariously on a beam or flying through the air on the vault.

The New York Times received statistical viewership data from researchers at NBC Universal, which is the host of the 2008 Olympic Games. The data shows that through Sunday, 49 percent of the viewers of the Olympics coverage on NBC were women ages 18 and older, followed by 41 percent of men ages 18 and older. For the entire 2004 Summer Games, 50 percent of the audience on NBC was composed of women ages 18 and older, according to the data, followed by 40 percent male.

In fact, the Games attract so many women viewers, The New York Times reports, that advertisers have caught on and are targeting commercials specifically toward them.

Lisa Williams, a professor of literature at Ramapo College in New Jersey, said the appeal for her came from watching the results of "all that determination and training and focus" among the athletes. She, too, got caught up in Phelps mania, saying his feat was "kind of superhuman."

Whether viewers watch the Games on the TV or websites of NBC, they are also seeing commercials from more than 100 advertisers, which are spending more than $1 billion to sponsor the coverage of the 2008 Games in Beijing. One such spot is for Evista, a prescription drug approved for treating osteoporosis and reducing the risk of breast cancer. Others include L’Oréal Bare Naturale mascara, the Venus Embrace razor, Match.com and the movie-musical "Mamma Mia!"

That’s also why a number of commercials feature women athletes past and present, like Paralympic champion Cheri Blauwet, 1976 gold medal gymnast Nadia Comaneci, 2008 multi-medal gymnasts Shawn Johnson and Nastia Liukin, 1996 gold medal gymnast Kerry Strug and 42-year-old past and present medal swimmer Dara Torres.

Most coverage of athletics is watched by men, which means that most commercials during those programs are aimed at male viewers. But more women also tune in because these special sporting events consist of good, kid-friendly family programming.

Experts said the Winter and Summer Games also tend to attract people who don’t normally watch TV. They also may be more upscale and harder to reach during regular programming, so they are a prize catch for advertisers. Viewers also tend to change channels less frequently during Olympic commercial breaks.

The Olympics "has sort of been the anti-sports sport for quite a while," Peter Gardiner, chief media officer at Deutsch in New York, told the Times. "That’s why you see so many female-oriented products advertised there."

"I was talking to my mother last night," Gardiner said, "and she said: ‘I’ve got to get off the phone. I’ve got to watch the gymnastics.’"