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Broadcaster, curling legend Colleen Jones dead at 65

Broadcaster and curling legend Colleen Jones has passed away following a battle with cancer. She was 65.

Jones’ son Luke posted to her X account Tuesday afternoon that she passed away late morning after “trying to beat back cancer over the last 3 years or so.”

“Late this morning, while looking out on the ocean from her favourite spot in Mader’s Cove, with my dad, brother and myself beside her, mom passed away,” he wrote. “Please think of your favourite Colleen Jones moment, cherish it. Hurry and love hard.”

Jones began her broadcasting career in radio sports with CHUM Halifax in 1982. She transitioned into television with CTV in 1984, before signing on with CBC Nova Scotia in 1986 as a sportscaster on First Edition with Jim Nunn and Susan Ormiston.

Concurrently, she made history in 1982 as the youngest skip, at age 22, to win the Canadian Women’s Curling Championship. She joined Don Wittman and Don Duguid on CBC Sports curling broadcasts a few years later. She went on to win a record six Canadian Curling Championships, in addition to two World Women’s Curling Championships in 2001 and 2004.

In 1993, she signed on with CBC Newsworld as the early morning weather presenter and sports reporter. She covered a total of 11 Olympic Games for the public broadcaster, among many other sporting events, and served as a curling commentator for NBC during the 2010 Winter Olympics. In 2012, she joined CBC Nova Scotia as a reporter, carving out a niche as a local storyteller. She retired after 37 years with CBC in April 2023.

Jones was named to Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame in 2016, and appointed to the Order of Canada in 2022. She penned autobiography “Throwing Rocks at Houses: My Life in and Out of Curling” after contracting bacterial meningitis in late 2010 and later undergoing brain surgery.

“Colleen Jones is a true Nova Scotia legend, making our province proud for decades throughout her athletic career and later in broadcasting,” wrote Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston, in a post to social media. “A world champion, she coached the next generation of curlers to excel in the sport. Colleen embodied what we hope to be at our very best as Nova Scotians – good humour, kindness, and a genuine dedication to others.”

In addition to her two sons, Jones leaves behind husband Scott.

Connie Thiessen
Connie Thiessenhttps://broadcastdialogue.com
Connie has worked coast-to-coast as a reporter, editor, anchor and host at CKNW and News 1130 in Vancouver, News 95.7 and CBC in Halifax, and CFCW Edmonton, among other stations. With a passion for music, film and community service, she led News 95.7 to a 2013 Atlantic Journalism Award and regional RTDNA award for Best Radio Newscast. More recently, she was nominated for Music Journalist of the Year at Canadian Music Week 2019. To report a typo or error please email - corrections@broadcastdialogue.com

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