'Don't get me crying now': Legendary cycling commentator Phil Liggett says Paris will be his last Olympics
Legendary cycling commentator Phil Liggett has called his last Olympic race, confirming that Paris 2024 will be his last Games in the commentary booth.
The 80-year-old made the announcement on Nine's day nine coverage hours after calling the women's road race, saying he'll be too old to commentate on the action once Los Angeles 2028 comes around.
"Another four years from now, I'll be 85," he said.
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Phil Liggett has confirmed Paris 2024 will be his last Olympics in the commentary booth. Nine
"And I think that's too old to spoil the viewers' fun. But boy, I'll miss it."
Liggett was emotional before announcing the news, telling host Eddie Maguire "don't get me crying now", but said it was the right time to pull stumps on an Olympics career that has spanned 17 Games.
"The last thing I ever want to do is annoy the viewers," he said.
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"My mailbag was great after the tour de France. It's been exceptional during this week on the road events.
"All the people writing to me from Australia, they all say the same thing: 'don't ever think of retiring'.
"But hey, I'm not invincible and I don't want to, as I say, bore everybody.
"I shall miss it desperately."
Liggett has called 17 different Olympic Games. Damian White
Liggett's first Olympics was in Moscow 1980, which he revealed had some strange arrangements in place.
"Everybody was so happy they had finally broken the Iron Curtain barrier and gone to Moscow," he said.
"But we were followed everywhere by KGB plainclothes policemen. And if you went left or right off the main road, they were on you like to say 'it's not safe for you here, so go that way'.
"They steered you out, so you never saw Russia at all. That was not really a great memory, but it was a memory where I met a lot of people that looked after my career in the future."
