Robin Roberts

Acclaimed television news personality Robin Roberts first broke ground as the first African-American host of ESPN's long-running "SportsCenter" (1979- ) before gaining even higher esteem as the host of ABC's "Wide World of Sports" (ABC, 1961-1998) and later "Good Morning America" (ABC, 1975- ). A former women's basketball star in college, Roberts worked her way up from regional television stations in the South to the overnight host of "SportsCenter" in 1990. The network was immediately impressed by both her professionalism and breadth of knowledge, and advanced her to hosting duties on "NFL PrimeTime Live." In 1996, she took over the anchor desk at "Wide World of Sports," but sought to expand her horizons beyond the sports market. An occasional contributing position at "GMA" blossomed into the anchor chair in 2005, which led to acclaimed coverage of Hurricane Katrina, among other stories. Her rocket rise to the top of her profession was halted briefly when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007; she successfully overcame that hurdle, only to be faced with pre-leukemia in 2012. Throughout her professional triumphs and personal hurdles, Roberts epitomized the intelligence, expertise and poise required for all great television journalists.