Acclaimed sports presenter and journalist Mike Gibson has died aged 75.
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After a start in print journalism as a newspaper writer and contributor to The Australian Women’s Weekly, he anchored Channel Nine’s Wide World of Sports.
Gibson hosted The Back Page for 16 years from 1997, missing just one episode before he and hosting partner Billy Birmingham were controversially moved on when the show’s producers made a decision to revamp the program. WWOS. Back Page, Vale, Mike, ‘ posted Fairfax journalist and former rugby union great Peter Fitzsimons.
Fellow Channel Nine reporter Ken Sutcliffe, a friend and work colleague, says he was a pioneer of longer form sports shows.
Gibson was popular with viewers and a died-in-the-wool sports fan who wore his heart on his sleeve.
Others have turned to social media to express their grief, and the hashtag #RIPGibbo began trending soon after news of Gibson’s death broke.
‘He was a very quiet and shy guy, who had this wonderful ability to reach out to people, and have a bit of fun, and know how to talk in a common language, ‘ Sandra Sully said on 2GB radio on Wednesday afternoon.
“Very sad to hear of the passing of Mike Gibson”.
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“What I love about the show (The Back Page) is that it is one of the few sports shows in the country that covers all sports”, he said.
