--- title: John Saunders: ESPN Broadcaster Dies at 61 description: ESPN Broadcaster John Saunders, who was the longtime host of The Sports Reporters, died on Tuesday at the age of 61. canonical: https://time.com/4446679/espn-broadcaster-john-saunders-dies/ author: Sports Illustrated article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-08-10T16:05:31.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T23:53:17.505Z article:section: Sports og:title: John Saunders, ESPN Broadcaster, Dies at 61 og:description: He was the longtime host of The Sports Reporters og:url: https://time.com/4446679/espn-broadcaster-john-saunders-dies/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt19e8c08caa544125/6988a1da8e060169cc4671a0/espn-broadcaster-john-saunders-dies.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Paley Prize Gala Honoring ESPN's 35th Anniversary Presented By Roc Nation Sports - Inside og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: John Saunders, ESPN Broadcaster, Dies at 61 twitter:description: He was the longtime host of The Sports Reporters twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt19e8c08caa544125/6988a1da8e060169cc4671a0/espn-broadcaster-john-saunders-dies.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # John Saunders, ESPN Broadcaster, Dies at 61 > Sponsored content. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account. by [SI Wire / Sports Illustrated](https://time.com/author/sports-illustrated/) ## SI Wire / Sports Illustrated Aug 10, 2016 4:05 PM UTC  ESPN host John Saunders speaks on stage at the Paley Prize Gala honoring ESPN's 35th anniversary presented by Roc Nation Sports on May 28, 2014 in New York City. ESPN host John Saunders speaks on stage at the Paley Prize Gala honoring ESPN's 35th anniversary presented by Roc Nation Sports on May 28, 2014 in New York City.Bryan Bedder—Getty Images for Paley Center for Media by [SI Wire / Sports Illustrated](https://time.com/author/sports-illustrated/) ## SI Wire / Sports Illustrated Aug 10, 2016 4:05 PM UTC ESPN broadcaster John Saunders died Tuesday. He was 61. A native of Ontario, Saunders played hockey in the Montreal junior leagues before starting his broadcasting career in 1978\. He worked for numerous local stations before joining ESPN and ABC Sports in 1986. Saunders filled numerous roles at ESPN. He was the longtime host of _The Sports Reporters_, and also anchored the network’s NHL, NBA and college football coverage at various times. Before his death, Saunders was most often seen on _Sports Reporters_, ABC’s college football studio coverage and ESPN’s college basketball studio coverage. Saunders was also a founding member of The V Foundation for Cancer Research, for which he served on the board of directors. The anchor’s cause of death has not been made public, but it was unexpected. Earlier in August, Saunders was a speaker at the National Association of Black Journalists convention. Saunders is survived by his wife Wanda and two daughters. ESPN president John Skipper released a statement about Saunders on Tuesday: _John was an extraordinary talent and his friendly, informative style has been a warm welcome to sports fans for decades. His wide range of accomplishments across numerous sports and championship events is among the most impressive this industry has ever seen. More importantly, John was a beloved and devoted family man who cared deeply about people and causes, as evidenced by his long-standing efforts as a passionate board member for The V Foundation for Cancer Research. He was one of the most significant and influential members of the ESPN family, as a colleague and mentor, and he will be sorely missed. Our thoughts are with his loved ones at this extremely difficult time._ _This_ [_article_](http://www.si.com/tech-media/2016/08/10/espn-sportscenter-anchor-john-saunders-dead-61) _originally appeared on_ [_SI.com_](http://si.com) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4446679/espn-broadcaster-john-saunders-dies/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4446679/espn-broadcaster-john-saunders-dies/"},"headline":"John Saunders, ESPN Broadcaster, Dies at 61","datePublished":"2016-08-10T16:05:31.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T23:53:17.505Z","description":"He was a longtime host and anchor for the network","url":"https://time.com/4446679/espn-broadcaster-john-saunders-dies/","keywords":["Rememberance","Media"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt19e8c08caa544125/6988a1da8e060169cc4671a0/espn-broadcaster-john-saunders-dies.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"SI Wire / Sports Illustrated"}],"articleSection":"Sports","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt19e8c08caa544125/6988a1da8e060169cc4671a0/espn-broadcaster-john-saunders-dies.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Paley Prize Gala Honoring ESPN's 35th Anniversary Presented By Roc Nation Sports - Inside","caption":"Paley Prize Gala Honoring ESPN's 35th Anniversary Presented By Roc Nation Sports - Inside","creditText":"Bryan Bedder—Getty Images for Paley Center for Media","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/sports/","name":"Sports"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/rememberance/","name":"Rememberance"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4446679/espn-broadcaster-john-saunders-dies/","name":"John Saunders, ESPN Broadcaster, Dies at 61"}}]}] ```