A Summer Olympics without Bob Costas is OK with the legendary broadcaster
The story of sports, especially television broadcasting, can’t be told without mentioning Bob Costas.
For an entire generation, tuning into just about any sporting event on NBC meant seeing Costas’ youthful mug, guiding viewers through not only the nuisances of the games, but occasionally chiming in with clear-headed commentary
A jack-of-all-trades, to say the least.
Need a hosting gig? Dial up Costas.
Need a sharp, sometimes critical in-your-face interview with the today’s biggest newsmakers. You’re up Vince McMahon and Jerry Sandusky.
Need someone to guide NBA Finals viewers through the O.J. Simpson slow-speed chase. Check.
Need some levity, Costas has that on his resume too. Or maybe you don't recall him swilling vodka on air with Mary Carillo after he contracted pink eye at the 2014 Sochi Olympics.
“It was full-blown viral conjunctivitis, not just generic pink eye,” he said in 2016. “It actually affected my eyesight for a few months afterward.”
Costas stepped away as NBC's prime-time host for the Olympics four years ago, a role he held through 11 Games from 1992 in Barcelona to 2016 in Rio. The Tokyo Olympics are the first Summer Games without Costas in the lead role since 1988, with Mike Tirico taking over for the Pyeongchang Games in 2018.
“I am going to let Mike have his time, He deserves it,” Costas told USA TODAY Sports. “I know they will do a good job under very difficult circumstances. I have many, many friends there at NBC and I wish them much success.”
While he won’t seen on NBC during the Tokyo Games, Costas can be found in a variety of other places, including commentating for CNN.
“They call on me when they think I might have something to say about some sports-related thing or other,” Costas said when describing his duties, which can include political and social injustice issue.
He also handles play by play on baseball games and contributes to studio programming and special event coverage for the MLB Network and will return to HBO after a decade-long hiatus with a new sports interview series.
“Back on the Record With Bob Costas” will debut on Friday on HBO, as a follow-up to his successful HBO stint which ended in 2009.
Originally set to be a quarterly show starting in March, COVID-19 and the ongoing pandemic changed things in a hurry. “Back on the Record” will now air for four consecutive months starting with the premiere with the expectations of returning to a quarterly cycle in 2022.
HBO says the new program will feature the “biggest names in sports” and will include “signature commentaries from Costas himself that capture his distinctive voice and point of view.”
Costas will also be a part of Ken Burns’ Muhammad Ali documentary, set to air in four parts beginning Sept. 19 on PBS.
There is also his role in the Concussion Legacy Foundation’s media project for journalists who want a more thorough education for brain injuries.
“That’s it. That’s enough,” he says on if he plans on adding more duties or programs on his plate in the future.
Costas, 69, has more accolades that can fill multiple trophy cases, having won 28 Emmys and eight National Sportscaster of the Year awards. but he said he believes he has plenty left in the tank and isn’t looking to ride off into the sunset just yet.
“I’m not looking to retire. I am just looking to do just a few things that interests me and don’t have myself beating coming and going,” he said.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 2021 Olympics: Summer Games sans Bob Costas is OK with the broadcaster
