TRIPLE crown tournament commentator Hazel Irvine has one of the voices of the BBC for more than three decades..
She is among a number of familiar faces hosting the 2024 Olympics and has been a fixture on snooker coverage since the turn of the century.
Who is Hazel Irvine?
Hazel Jane Irvine is a Scottish sports presenter, born on May 24, 1965.
She is considered one of the very first female sports presenters in the country, making history aged 28 as the youngest presenter of the BBC‘s leading sports show, Grandstand, on June 19, 1993.
The broadcaster competed in golf, netball and athletics while studying art history at the University of St Andrews.
She joined Radio Clyde in 1986 before transitioning to Scottish television in 1988 as a continuity announcer.
In 1988 she co-presented ITV coverage of the 1988 Olympics with Dickie Davies.
She also reported from the Scotlandfootball team’s training camp during the 1990 World Cup.
That same year, the reporter moved to the BBC, serving as a presenter for BBC Scotland’s Sportscene programme.
What's happening today at The Games?
WHAT TO WATCH TODAY...
TODAY’S BRIT MEDAL HOPES
Water takes centre stage on Day 6 as Joe Clarke eyes canoe slalom kayak gold (4.30pm).
In the rowing, the women’s four should claim gold while the men’s four and women’s double sculls will know they can get on the podium, too (10.15am).
And after our men won the 4x200m freestyle relay, the women could add a medal in the pool tonight (8.48pm).
BRITS TO WATCH
Defending champ Beth Shriever and Tokyo silver medallist Kye Whyte begin their BMX racing event at the quarter-finals (from 7pm).
Bryony Pitman (9am), Penny Healey (4.14pm) and Alex Wise (5.05pm) are all in archery action.
Andy Murray’s swansong with Dan Evans continues – they face Americans Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul in the quarter-finals (3.30pm).
And the golf starts today, meaning Tommy Fleetwood and Matt Fitzpatrick will tee off for GB, with Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry flying the flag for Ireland (from 8am).
GLOBAL STARS TODAY
World No1 Scottie Scheffler leads an all-star USA golf team, though, alongside Open champ Xander Schauffele, Collin Morikawa and Wyndham Clark.
French Open champ Iga Swiatek is the heavy favourite for the women’s tennis singles gold ahead of her semi-final before Carlos Alcaraz then Novak Djokovic go in the men’s quarters (from 11am).
FANCY SOMETHING DIFFERENT?
Volleyball is an ever-present throughout the Olympics, running from Day 1 all the way to Day 16, all of it in the catchy-named South Paris Arena 1.
Tokyo runners-up Brazil face Japan (12pm) and hosts France vs China (8pm) in the pick of the clashes.
STATS MAD
3:50 – Who doesn’t love a competitive brisk walk?
The athletics officially begins with the men’s and women’s 20km race walks today (6.30am and 8.20am).
The world record is a staggering 1:16.36 – that’s an average of 3m50s per km while WALKING.
Follow all the action as it unfolds with our Paris 2024 Olympics LIVE blog.
In 1999, she won the RTS Regional Sports Presenter award.
In the 2024 New Year Honours, she was awarded the title of Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for her contributions to sports and charitable activities.
What other shows has Hazel Irvine presented?
In 1995, Hazel began hosting coverage of the FIFAWomen’s World Cup and started reporting for Football Focus.
She has been a presenter for the BBC at every Summer Olympics since Barcelona 1992, and commentated on the opening and closing ceremonies at the London 2012 Olympics.
In addition she has covered five Winter Olympics and four FIFA World Cup tournaments, as well as fronting the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.
She has also been the face of Ski Sunday and the Women’s British Golf Open.
Hazel not only presents sports, but has also fronted coverage of historic occasions, such as the 60th anniversary of the D-Day landings and VE Day celebrations.
The rules of snooker
THE aim of snooker is to clear the table of all balls - and achieving it in an incredible 147 break is the ultimate goal.
The rectangular table features green baize, a baulk line and semi-circle, known as the D.
It has six pockets, four in each corner and two midway down both long sides.
There are 15 red balls which are arranged in a triangular shape.
There are also six colour balls, and the white cue ball.
Each colour sits on its own designated spot at the start of the game.
While red balls are worth one point when potted, the colours all have a different value.
In ascending order these are:
- Yellow – two points
- Green – three points
- Brown – four points
- Blue – five points
- Pink – six points
- Black – seven points
The first player will cue off and must hit at least one of the red balls in the triangle.
If they pot a red, they can then continue by potting a colour.
However, if no red is potted then their opponent will play the next shot – going for a red first.
Each player must first pot a red ball when it’s their turn to play. If nothing is pocketed it is the other player’s turn at the table.
After each red is potted they must then follow with a colour, then a red, then a colour, and so on.
Whilst there are still red balls on the table, the potted colour balls are returned to their designated spot.
Once all the red balls are pocketed, the player at the table must pot the colours in the order as outlined above.
If they miss then their opponent will have the opportunity to clear the table.
A 147 is a maximum break when all reds are potted by one player in one stint at the table.
In order to achieve 147, the player must pot all 15 reds with 15 blacks for 120 points.
They must then clear all the colours, concluding with the black for 27 points.
During play the rules state that the cue must only touch the white cue ball.
The cue ball also must hit the correct colour ball – reds or colours in order.
If it hits the incorrect colour then a foul is called.
If the cue ball fails to hit any ball or is pocketed it is also a foul.
The player’s turn at the table ends if they play a foul shot.
Players are also penalised if they touch any ball on the table with their person.
The commentator also anchored BBC Scotland’s coverage of Children In Need for ten years.
Irvine also led the presentation of the BBC’s Bafta award-winning athletics coverage in 2009.
The Royal Television Society described her as “the consummate all-rounder” in 2007.
They added: “She knows her sport, she puts in the homework and she is a formidable asset.”
Who is Hazel Irvine’s husband?
Irvine wed her long-term partner, whose identity has always been kept secret, in a private Scottish ceremony in 2008.
The couple resides in London with their daughter, who was born the same year.
At the time of her big wedding day, her agent confirmed to the Daily Express that the couple were “very happy”.
In a statement, they shared: “I can confirm that she married her long-term partner a few months ago.
“It was a small and very private affair, and she and her husband are very happy.”
She added that the pair wanted to keep the details private.
Her BBC colleagues were reportedly delighted to hear the news, adding that she generally kept her personal life private.
What is Hazel Irvine’s net worth?
Unsurprisingly, not much is known about Hazel’s net worth.
However in 2017, it was revealed that despite her success, Irvine did not earn above £150,000 unlike some of her male counterparts.
She joined the likes of Newsnight’s Emily Maitlis and BBC Breakfast‘s Louise Minchin, who also did not earn above the threshold.