NORFOLK, Va. — Friends and colleagues of iconic Hampton Roads sports broadcaster Tony Mercurio say he passed Saturday afternoon.
Billy Harrison, a friend with access to Mercurio's Facebook page, posted that Mercurio passed away around 3:30 p.m. on Saturday.
Another colleague of Mercurio, Matthew Hatfield, said: "Heartbroken to report the passing of one of my mentors that got me started in sports broadcasting - Tony Mercurio - has passed at the age of 75."
Mercurio was an important voice in local sports for over 35 years, his sports talk show debuted in 1986, "several years before WGH-AM became one of the nation's first all-sports stations," according to the Hampton Roads Sports Hall of Fame, which was established by Mercurio in 2008 to pay tribute to athletes, coaches administrators, etc who made contributions to sports in the area.
Mercurio was well known for his associations with the Norfolk Tides and Old Dominion University.