- The former Sky Sports broadcaster had a storied career over two decades long
- But issues with his speech forced the 67-year-old to give up his much-loved job
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Legendary sports reporter Chris Kamara made his triumphant return to broadcasting on Boxing Day two years after stepping back from his Soccer Saturday duties due to a speech condition.
The 67-year-old was one of the game’s most amusing and beloved personalities during his 20-year tenure in front of the cameras, coining well-known phrases from banter with Sky Sports host Jeff Stelling such as ‘unbelievable Jeff!’ and ‘I don’t know Jeff’ in memorable on-screen moments.
But 2022 saw Kamara forced to give up his profession after he received a diagnosis for speech apraxia, a rare neurological disorder which left him slurring his words.
Apraxia is a little-understood condition that affects the body’s ability to perform natural motor functions.
Speech therapy has helped Kamara to recover, allowing him to announce his triumphant return to TV earlier this year in an upcoming travel series with his former Goals On Sunday co-host Ben Shephard.
It has also allowed Kamara to return to his true passion – reporting on live football – with the broadcaster gracing Amazon Prime’s screens ahead of kick-off between Nottingham Forest and Tottenham.
Stelling, presenting Every Game Every Goal for the channel, looked delighted to welcome back his old partner.
‘It’s a very good afternoon, happy Christmas, and a belated happy birthday to Chris Kamara,’ Stelling told viewers.
‘Thank you Jeff,’ Kamara said, looking visibly overcome with emotion. ‘I have got the best game of the day.
‘When Amazon rang me up, I thought they wanted me to deliver parcels, but they said the game – yes!’
‘Hey Kammy, I was going to ask you how your health is, but we can see you’re in fantastic health,’ Stelling responded.
Kamara added: ‘I’m great Jeff. To get that call, to say I was doing this game was the biggest fill-up ever.’
The broadcaster – who previously played for clubs including Swindon, Stoke, and Leeds – previously announced that he would be joining the boxing day set-up on social media site X.
But ahead of making strides with speech therapy to regain his speaking confidence, Kamara admitted that the condition had taken him to rock bottom.
Speaking in November to Brentford, the club he played for in the 1980s, Kamara admitted that he had suicidal thoughts after he left Soccer Saturday as he didn’t want to be a ‘burden to his family’.
‘I felt sorry for myself when the condition came along and I didn’t know what to do or how to cope with it,’ he said. ‘You have stupid thoughts. You think you’ve got Alzheimer’s or dementia.
‘I didn’t want to be a burden to my family, so you think about taking yourself out of the game.’
He clarified that he no longer has those dark thoughts since he started getting better.
‘How could I ever have thought of not being in this world with my grandkids? I love them and I appreciate life,’ he added.
Earlier this month, Kamara shared that although he is still not back to his best, his health has improved considerably and he is starting to feel more like his old self.
‘Of course I’m not 100 per cent, but I’m 70 per cent better than when I first disclosed my condition in public and I feel like I’ve got the old Kammy back,’ Kamara added.
