Gordon Timothy Bray AM (born 23 June 1949) is an

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal A ...

sports commentator and sports journalist. He is colloquially known as "The Voice of Rugby".Voice of rugby Gordon Bray joins Ten , The Australian 12 April 2013. Retrieved 17 April 2013
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Early life

Brought up in the

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

suburb of

Canada Bay The Canada Bay is an estuarine bay on the Parramatta River, in the inner-west of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is the innermost inlet of the larger Hen and Chicken Bay. Two other bays to the north of Canada Bay are two ...

and educated at

Homebush Boys High School ''(Latin for ''Upright and strong'') , established = 1936 , type = Public, secondary, single-sex, day school , free_label = Sister school , free_text = Strathfield Girls High School , principal = Kevin Elgood (2018) , address = ...

, Bray was a talented schoolboy rugby union footballer representing NSW Combined High Schools and subsequently Eastern Suburbs. While not pursuing a full-time career in rugby, he subsequently made cameo appearances at several tournaments, including the Ettamogah Pub Sevens competition in

Albury Albury () is a major regional city in New South Wales, Australia. It is located on the Hume Highway and the northern side of the Murray River. Albury is the seat of local government for the council area which also bears the city's name – the ...

, the Hong Kong Tens and the World Classics in

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = " Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , e ...

Career

Bray's broadcasting career began in 1969 with

ABC Sport ABC Sport is the name given to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's sport programming broadcasts on ABC Television and ABC Radio. From November 2020 the brand includes the former ABC Radio Grandstand. , ABC Sport is a section of the ABC ...

in Sydney. He spent 25 years commentating for the ABC in Sydney and Hobart, then 16 months at the

Network Ten Network 10 (commonly known as Ten Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network owned by Ten Network Holdings, a division of the Paramount Networks UK & Australia subsidiary of Paramount Global. One of five ...

followed by 16 years at the

Seven Network The Seven Network (commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is a major Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, and is one of ...

. He has also worked for

Fox Sports Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The ''Fox Sports'' name has since been used for other sports media assets. These assets are held mainly by the Fo ...

. Bray has commentated at nine

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

, five

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

, and nearly 400 rugby internationals, including all nine

Rugby World Cup The Rugby World Cup is a men's rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams. The tournament is administered by World Rugby, the sport's international governing body. The winners are awarded the Webb E ...

s. In April 2013, Bray joined Network Ten as its chief rugby commentator, after Ten acquired the rugby free-to-air broadcast rights for three years, starting 2013. Bray has written six books on rugby, including best sellers 'The Australian Rugby Companion' and 'From the Ruck'. He is an active public speaker and master of ceremonies and also provides media training and mentoring. In 2022, Bray provided a voice cameo for an episode of children's show '' Bluey'', entitled "The Decider", in which he voiced himself commentating a fictional rugby game between

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

Honours and awards

In 2000 Gordon Bray was awarded an

Australian Sports Medal The Australian Sports Medal is an award given to recognise achievements in Australian sport to commemorate Australian participation in major sporting events. Original recipients of the award included competitors, coaches, sports scientists, offi ...

for his services to rugby through refereeing and for being a long time supporter via television broadcasting. In the June 2005 Queen's Birthday Honours List he was made a Member of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

"For service to broadcasting as a sports commentator, to the promotion of Rugby Union football, and to the community". He is also a past recipient of the prestigious Penguin Award for sports broadcasting. In 1999 Gordon had a street named after him in Lidcombe NSW: Gordon Bray Circuit.

Community work

Bray is an ambassador for

Legacy Australia Legacy is an Australian non-profit organisation established in 1923 by ex-servicemen. Legacy provides support to the families of Australian Defence Force men and women who have lost their life or health in conflicts such as World War I, World ...

, a charity which supports war widows and their families. Legacy supported Gordon as a child after he lost his parents at an early age. In 2012, Bray was an

Australia Day Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Observed annually on 26 January, it marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove and raising of the Union Flag by Arthur Phillip following days of exploration of Port Ja ...

Ambassador in

NSW ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

.Gordon Bray AM is Parkes Shire's 2012 Australia Day Ambassador , Parkes Shire Council. Retrieved 17 April 2013
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bray, Gordon Australian sportswriters Members of the Order of Australia 1949 births Living people Australian rugby union commentators