Colm Murray - Courage was inspirational

The warm, kind and very generous tributes that followed news of broadcaster Colm Murray’s death yesterday said everything about a man who was admired and loved by so many people.

RTÉ’s voice of horse racing for many years, it was his incredibly brave battle with motor neurone disease that made a such deep and memorable impact and touched people in a profound way.

But for many years before that he had been a much-loved national figure since he joined RTÉ in 1978 as a continuity announcer.

Five years later, he switched to the newsroom and shared duties as a newscaster with the late Charles Mitchell, who had been the voice of Irish news since the opening of RTÉ in 1961. Mr Murray moved on to become a sportscaster, and covered some of the more iconic events.

With his enthusiasm for horse racing he became synonymous with Irish racing. In the process, he earned not only public respect but also public affection.

In 2000, he was presented with the Media Award as Sports Broadcaster of the year for his coverage of Irish participation at the Sydney Paralympics Games.

But in Mar 2010, he was diagnosed with motor neuron disease. Rather than become morose and introspective, he decided to try to make the best of his condition. He spoke publicly about his illness on the Late Late Show and in a moving documentary MND — The Inside Track, which was broadcast on RTÉ last year.

His courage in facing his illness became one of his defining characteristics. He demonstrated his desire to be of service by partaking in medical trials in the search for a cure that would help future sufferers from this debilitating illness.

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.