Sadness at passing of RTÉ broadcaster Colm Murray

There is much sadness this morning at the news that RTÉ broadcaster and Moate native Colm Murray passed away.
Aged 61, Colm had been diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease in March 2010. He is survived by his wife, Anne, daughters Kate and Patricia and his sister, Mary.
Colm’s sister Cathy, who also worked for RTÉ, passed away suddenly earlier this year.
Colm was a teacher before joining RTÉ as a continuity announcer. He graduated from University College Galway in 1972 with a BA degree in French, English and History. He taught in Athlone, Tullamore and Dublin before joining RTÉ Radio as a continuity announcer.
In 1983 he became a news broadcaster and in 1988 when RTÉ introduced its hour-long Six One News format, he moved into sports broadcasting as a sports presenter and a founding member of the sports news unit on the Six One News. Colm together with his late friend Vere Wynne Jones pioneered sports coverage for RTÉ and remained an integral part of the unit until illness forced him to stand aside in 2012.
In the course of his sports broadcasting career, he has covered a large number of national and international events, including the Cheltenham Festival since 1990 and the Olympics and Paralympics in Sydney, Athens, and Beijing.
In 2010 Colm was honoured with an industry award by  Horse Racing Ireland in 2010 for “his engaging and eloquent reports, illuminating the sport in a constantly positive and entertaining manner”.
After his diagnosis with Motor Neurone disease three years ago, he embarked on an RTÉ documentary to highlight MND and assist in developing treatment for those diagnosed. Such was the impact of the programme and his tireless efforts on behalf of those with MND that Colm was further honoured by receiving a People of the Year award in September 2012 in recognition of his efforts to further medical research into the debilitating disease.