By Ashley R. Williams, CNN
(CNN) — Greg Gumbel, a longtime sports broadcaster, has died following a battle with cancer, his wife and daughter announced in a statement shared by CBS Sports on X. He was 78.
“It is with profound sadness that we share the passing of our beloved husband and father, Greg Gumbel,” the statement read. “He passed away peacefully surrounded by much love after a courageous battle with cancer.”
The Gumbels said Greg, who was a CBS Sports studio host and play-by-play announcer, including five Super Bowls and the NCAA men’s basketball tournament for 25 years, faced his illness with “stoicism, grace and positivity.”
“He was universally well-liked,” broadcaster Bob Costas told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer. “He was consistently excellent at his job.”
CBS Sports said in a statement it is “devastated by the passing of Greg Gumbel.”
“There has never been a finer gentleman in all of television. He was beloved and respected by those of us who had the honor to call him a friend and colleague,” said David Berson, the president and CEO of CBS Sports, in the statement.
There was an outpouring of support for Gumbel on Friday, with Harold Bryant, CBS Sports executive producer and executive vice president of production, calling the late announcer a “role model and a pioneer” in a statement.
“He broke barriers being one of the few Black broadcasters covering sports at the highest levels. He set a high bar for others to follow. His work was beyond reproach as he became one of the most respected broadcasters in the industry,” Bryant said.
“Whether it was play-by-play, studio host, or interviewing elite athletes, Greg was as smooth and trustworthy as could be. Greg loved his family, loved The Rolling Stones, and loved CBS. He treated everybody with respect and gratitude. Greg – you will be missed,” Bryant’s statement continued.
Clark Kellogg, a college basketball analyst for CBS and a former professional basketball player, said he enjoyed nearly 25 years of Gumbel’s “friendship, goodness, humor, partnership, professionalism and wisdom.”
“He was excellent in his work and exemplary in his caring and character,” Kellogg said in a statement.
Gumbel, born on May 3, 1946, in New Orleans, grew up in Chicago, according to a biography from CBS News.
In January 1998, Gumbel returned to CBS Sports as a play-by-play announcer and host after previously working for the network from October 1989 to May 1994, according to the biography.
Before joining CBS, Gumbel hosted for the NBA’s New York Knicks and the MLB’s New York Yankees for the Madison Square Garden Network, according to CBS.
His career, spanning more than 50 years, also included anchoring ESPN’s SportsCenter while working with the network for more than five years, hosting the NCAA men’s basketball tournament and CBS football program “The NFL Today,” the Hollywood Reporter reported.
The three-time Emmy Award winner was a CBS Sports primetime anchor for 1994 Olympic Winter Games coverage and co-anchored weekday morning CBS broadcasts of the 1992 Olympic Winter Games, according to CBS.
Gumbel celebrated 50 years of broadcasting in 2022, CBS reported.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
