R.I.P.: Neil MacRae, Ex-Vancouver Sports Personality

Neil MacRae

Veteran sportscaster Neil Macrae, known for a Vancouver broadcasting career that spanned decades, has died, according to the CBC.

The radio personality worked at CKNW 980 AM in Vancouver for nearly 30 years before his retirement in 2012. The station said he passed away on last Thursday at the age of 65 after a battle with cancer.

His former sports director JP McConnell said he was "absolutely shocked" by Macrae's death.

"[It's] very tough to think and talk about it — We shared 30 years together off and on at [NEWS 1130] and [CKNW] and I loved every minute of it ... He was a true talent," McConnell told CBC News in an email.

Macrae was known for his candid, fiery on-air spats — most famously taking on former Vancouver Canucks general manager Brian Burke in 1998.