Background
Storm was the first female to announce play-by-play for the first ever WNBA game. She covered almost all major US sports for various networks throughout her career.
She was born June 13, 1962 in Oak Park, Illinois. After graduating from Notre Dame with degrees in communications and political science, Storm got her start doing radio shows and television jobs in Houston. These jobs included doing half time and post game shows for the Rockets and the Astros.
After working in Houston for four years, Storm moved to Charlotte in 1988 where she worked for a local news channel before going CNN Sports in 1989.
Most of her success came when she joined NBC Sports in 1992. During her time with NBC sports, Storm covered events such as the Olympics, Wimbledon, French Open, World Figure Skating Championship and the Men's and Women's US Open.
During her career she has frequently covered the NBA, WNBA, NFL, MLB, and figure skating.
She worked at NBC until 2002 when she joined the Early Show on CBS. She remained with CBS until 2007, when she joined ESPN and is still there today.
In 2012, Storm's appearance became talked about after an accident involving a gas grill left her with second degree burns on her arms and chest and first degree burns on her face and neck. The accident also cost her about half of her hair, her eyebrows, and her eyelashes.
Accomplishments
- First female to solo host a sports package show (MLB on NBC 1994-2000)
- First female play-by-play announcer for the WNBA
- Announced the first ever WNBA game on June 21, 1997
- Hosted NBC SportsDesk
- Covered Super Bowls XLI and XXXVIII
- Won the "Celebrated Mom" award presented by LifeWorx
- Created the Hannah Storm Foundation for children with deliberating and disfiguring birthmarks
- Storm was tasking with delivering the unfortunate news that beloved longtime SportsCenter host, Stuart Scott, lost his battle with cancer.
Quotes by Hannah Storm
"I literally couldn't get anyone to hire me. Having a woman do sports was seen as too risky."
"Always remember no matter how many people say no, all you need to find is one single person to say yes. Just one person."
Quotes about Hannah Storm
"Hannah is a respected colleague who is an integral part of the success of our morning 'SportsCenter.'"- John Skipper, ESPN vice president of content
Additional Information
An Interview with Hannah Storm
Tony Kornheiser suspended for comments about Hannah Storm
(Page researched and written by Meaghan O'Donoghue.)
