Sandy Roberts

Sandy Roberts
Born	(1950-02-22) February 22, 1950 Australia
Occupation(s)	Sports broadcaster, commentator, television presenter
Years active	1971–2018
Known for	Sports broadcasting, Olympic coverage, AFL commentary

Sandy Roberts (born 22 February 1950) is a seasoned Australian sports broadcaster and commentator, previously associated with Fox Sports Australia and the radio network Crocmedia. He was a key personality at the Seven Network for nearly 40 years, where he notably anchored Seven Sport's Olympic broadcasts for over two decades.

Career

Roberts launched his professional journey at Perth’s radio station 6PM before briefly working as a copyboy for the Adelaide News. After spending two years traveling across Europe, he returned to Australia and took up an announcer role at Radio 3CS in Colac. In 1971, he transitioned to television, presenting news at BCV8-TV in Bendigo, and by 1973 had joined the Seven Network in Adelaide as a general announcer and presenter.

In 1980, Roberts was appointed as a commentator for the Moscow Olympics, which prompted his move to Melbourne to continue his career with Seven. Throughout his extensive tenure, he provided commentary for over 700 Australian Football League (AFL) games, along with National Basketball League (NBL) fixtures, the Australian Open, the Spring Racing Carnival, and significant golf events. His Olympic coverage spanned every Summer Games from 1980 through to 2008, including the Sydney 2000 Olympics, as well as several Winter Olympics.

Roberts also hosted Seven Network’s coverage of the Bathurst 1000 on four occasions between 1991 and 1997. He is particularly remembered for co-calling the infamous 1993 AFL match alongside Dennis Cometti, which featured the well-known "pig at full-forward" incident during the Sydney versus St Kilda game.

In January 2005, following Beverley O'Connor’s departure, Roberts joined Seven News Melbourne. Beyond his sports broadcasting duties, he contributed annually to Seven's Good Friday Appeal telethon and hosted game shows such as It's Academic and The $1,000,000 Chance of a Lifetime.

A memorable moment in Roberts’ career occurred in 1981 when he made an on-air mistake while introducing Miss Australia Leanne Dick.

Speculation about his departure from Seven surfaced in early 2013, with reports suggesting a move to Fox Footy. Later that year, Roberts confirmed this transition after four decades with Seven in both Melbourne and Adelaide. Tim Watson took over his role as weekday sports newsreader. Roberts’ final day presenting sport was on 29 November 2013, followed by his last hosting appearance at the Australian Open golf tournament on 1 December 2013. He officially retired from television in 2018.

In recognition of his contributions as a sports commentator, Roberts received the Medal of the Order of Australia in the 2024 King's Birthday Honours.

Personal life

Raised on a sheep farm near Lucindale, South Australia, Roberts is married to Carolyn, who formerly served as Vice President at international sports management firm IMG. Together they have a son named Angus. From a previous marriage, Roberts has another son, Ben, who is married with three daughters. That earlier marriage ended after the tragic loss of their 15-year-old son.

In May 2023, Roberts disclosed that he had been diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer, in May 2022. He currently acts as an ambassador for Myeloma Australia.

Community work

Since July 2013, Roberts has represented The Beehive Foundation as an ambassador—a charitable organisation offering free resilience-building programs to youth through junior sports clubs. Additionally, he supports Myeloma Australia in an ambassadorial capacity.