Former ABC and ESPN reporter and ‘Dean of American Motorsports’, Chris Economaki dies at 91

The ESPN family expresses its deepest condolences to the family and friends of former ABC and ESPN motorsports reporter, Chris Economacki, who passed away early this morning at the age of 91.

Economacki, a Brooklyn, NY native, worked on ABC’s Wide World of Sports auto racing coverage and was part of ABC’s first telecast from Daytona International Speedway in 1961. For ABC, Economaki covered several Indianapolis 500s, Daytona 500s, Formula 1 Grand Prixes and other motorsports events. Two decades later, he moved on to CBS Sports and later contributed to ESPN and TBS motorsports programming. He is a member of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America.

ESPN’s Ryan McGee caught up with Economaki two years ago on the occasion of his 90th birthday. In that story, Economaki said, “Television is a strange and wonderful thing. My life literally changed overnight. I know people like to tell horror stories about how being on television ruined their lives and took away all their privacy. I am not one of those people. It opened doors I could have never opened on my own.”