Australian sprint legend Robbie McEwen will be coming to our TV screens soon as he has been snapped up by GCN-Eurosport after losing his commentary job with SBS in Australia.
The broadcaster in his home country decided not renew his contract, which came to an end in January. SBS said at the time, much to McEwen's annoyance, that he was not being kept on as the channel intended to take a "different approach" to its cycling coverage.
However, while the news came as a surprise and shock to the three-time Tour de France green jersey winner, McEwen has landed arguably a better job with GCN and Eurosport. They have much bigger audiences than SBS and cover a vey broad range of races through the season.
McEwen said he was "extremely excited" about his new job, which he will start almost immediately as he will be part of the commentary team at Tirreno Adriatico next week.
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"I’m really looking forward to calling some of the world’s biggest races for a global audience. With such broad, year-round coverage, GCN truly is the home of cycling and I’m proud to be part of it," he said.
McEwen (49) won 12 stages in the Tour and 12 at the Giro in a career that spanned 17 years. He had been a very popular commentator in Australia and many fans in January expressed their shock at the fact he would no longer be part of the SBS commentary team.
His being dropped came just months after Mike Tomalaris, the former SBS anchor broadcaster for its cycling coverage, was dropped by the channel, where he worked for 34 years.
“I didn’t get a valid explanation and I’m assuming someone is pushing their own agenda in axing me,” McEwen said at the time. “I loved doing it and I’m really disappointed. Direct your opinions to @CyclingCentral @SBSSport and attn to the executive producer if you’d like to let them know how you feel about it.”
