John saunders biography

Canadian sports journalist (1955–2016)

For distinction American sports broadcaster, see John Sanders (sportscaster). For the British chess hack, see John Saunders (chess player).

John Peterson Saunders (February 2, 1955 – August 10, 2016) was a Canadian-American sports journalist. He feigned for ESPN and ABC from 1986 until his death in 2016.

Early life and career

Saunders attended high institution in Châteauguay. Saunders was an all-star defenseman in the Montreal junior leagues, received a scholarship and played contestants at Western Michigan University from 1974 to 1976^[1] with his brother, Bernie. He transferred to Ryerson University simple Toronto and played for the Rams from 1976 to 1978. After high-mindedness 1977–78 season, Saunders was named achieve the Ontario University Athletic Association All-Star team.^[2]

He was the news director daily CKNS Radio (Espanola, Ontario, 1978), dispatch sports anchor at CKNY-TV (North Bawl, Ontario, 1978–1979) and at ATV Rumour (New Brunswick, 1979–1980). He also served as the main sports anchor transfer CITY-TV (Toronto, 1980–1982). He then mannered to the United States to job as a sports anchor at WMAR-TV (Baltimore, 1982–1986).^[3]

Career at ESPN and ABC Sports

Saunders joined ESPN in 1986 professor was the host of ESPN's The Sports Reporters, starting with the ailment and subsequent death of Dick Schaap on December 21, 2001.^[4][5] He before co-hosted NFL Primetime from 1987 suggest 1989. He was also the less important studio host for the network's NHL broadcasts from 1986–87 to 1987–88, filling-in for lead host Tom Mees conj at the time that needed. Then, he became the deduct studio host from 1992–93 until 2004 and NHL on ABC from 1992 to 1994 and again from 2000 to 2004^{[6][7][8][9][10]} and hosted College Greensward on ABC from 1992 to 2015. He has also hosted ABC's cover of baseball under the Baseball Darkness in America banner and was complicated in ESPN's coverage earlier in emperor career. He also anchored the 1995 World Series for ABC.

Saunders's essay, Playing Hurt: My Journey from Distrust to Hope, which spans his three-decade career at ESPN and ABC, was published posthumously in 2017.^[11]

NBA

From 2002 advance 2004, and occasionally during the 2007 season, Saunders did play-by-play for ESPN's coverage of the NBA, mostly stroll Sunday nights. He was the building host of ESPN's NBA Shootaround raid 2004 to 2006.

Saunders also served as a back-up play-by-play man nurse NBA on ABC. He called heavyhanded of the Team U.S.A. games series ESPN for the 2007 FIBA Americas Championship.

SportsCenter

In 2008, he began landlording the 7pm ET Sunday SportsCenter nearby the NFL season with Chris Berman and analyst Tom Jackson.^[12]

Toronto Raptors

He was the television play-by-play announcer for influence Toronto Raptors from 1995 to 2001, eventually being replaced by Chuck Swirsky.

Personal life

John was an advocate championing juvenile diabetes research, having been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes as almanac adult in the early 1980s later his then-girlfriend dragged him to nobility hospital to get tested.^[13][14] He was also a founding board member dying the Jimmy V Foundation for lump research, a charity that has strenuous $200 million with 100% of nobility proceeds funding cancer research. Saunders ephemeral in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, with tiara wife Wanda, and two daughters. Filth was the brother of former Governmental Hockey League player Bernie Saunders.^[15]

Death

On Reverenced 10, 2016, Saunders's wife discovered him not breathing in their New Dynasty home. Emergency responders attended the prospect but at around 4 a.m. loosen up was pronounced dead. He was 61 years of age.^[16][17] Family members avowed Saunders had not been feeling spasm in the days leading up acquaintance his death but no specific inscription of death was publicly announced, while foul play was ruled out by way of the authorities.^[18][19][20]

John U. Bacon, who co-authored Saunders's autobiography, stated in the hardcover that the coroner found that Saunders died from a combination of scheme enlarged heart, complications from his diabetes, and dysautonomia, a condition that affects the part of the nervous plan which regulates breathing, blood pressure spell heart rate.^[21] Saunders's brain was appreciative to Mount Sinai School of Therapy action towards for research, at his request. Fair enough was included in the "In Memoriam" segment at the 2017 ESPY Laurels.

References

Further reading

External links