Jim McKay, who was a fixture for American sports, died today at 86 (some reports say 87). McKay was best known for his reporting when the Israeli athletes were murdered by the terrorist Black September group in the 1972 Munich Olympics.
He won an Emmy, along with the coveted George Polk award for his Munich coverage.
For decades Jim McKay covered sports for ABC's "Wide World of Sports," and brought just about every sport to the small screen.
McKay was known as the consumate gentleman and a great communicator and friend. It's fitting that he died on the day of the sport he loved best: horse racing, which will present the Belmont Stakes today, where Big Brown will attempt to become the first horse to win it in 30 years.
Over his long career, which spanned four decades, McKay won 12 Emmy Awards, also being the first sportscaster to get that honor. It's estimated that McKay covered over 100 different sports and traveled over 4 1/2 million miles over the course of his career. He is also a member of the Olympic Hall of Fame.
He was born Jim McManus, and is the father of the president of CBS News and Sports, Sean McManus.
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