Chris Kamara, a 24-year Sky Sports veteran, will leave the broadcaster at the end of the 2021/22 football season.
“My lengthy tenure at Sky Sports has never felt like work. “I’ve had a fantastic 24 years at Sky and will leave with the best memories,” Kamara said in a statement.
Kamara’s Sky Sports teammates paid tribute to him during this weekend’s Soccer Saturday (30 April).
Kamara is a singer who has released two Christmas albums and a charity single in addition to his roles on the pitch and in front of the camera.
Illness
The 64-year-old presenter and former player recently revealed that he suffers from speech apraxia.
Kamara revealed his diagnosis in March, after causing concern with an appearance on Soccer Saturday in which he appeared to slur his words on camera.
Kamara explained that the speech disorder developed alongside an existing thyroid problem.
“Just wanted to let a few of you who tweeted me today know that I am ok ish,” he tweeted. “In addition to my thyroid problem, I developed apraxia of speech and have been working to restore my speech to normal.”
Kamara described the public’s reaction to his diagnosis as “incredible,” but doctors are unsure whether he will recover in time.
“Some days can be slow, and some days are normal.” “Hopefully, I’ll be able to beat this!” he added.
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Why Is He Leaving Sky Sports?
Chris Kamara has left Sky Sports due to illness.
Chris, as previously reported, is on his way out of Sky Sports after 24 years. The former footballer, 64, revealed he had a speech apraxia disorder in addition to an existing thyroid problem.
After 24years at Sky Sports we have announced my departure.I have loved every minute & the memories will live with me forever.Working with Jeff & the boys has been Unbelievable!And the special days on Goals on Sunday with Ben Shephard who has become a great pal. I’ve had a blast!
— Chris Kamara (@chris_kammy) April 30, 2022
When will he be leaving Sky Sports?
Kamara will leave Sky Sports at the end of the football season in 2021/22.
“My time on Soccer AM, Goals on Sunday, and, of course, Soccer Saturday with Jeff has been incredible,” he said.
“I’ve had the time of my life and look forward to tuning in as a fan every Saturday.”
What is speech apraxia?
Apraxia is defined by the NHS Speech and Language Therapy Department as “difficulty in carrying out planned movements.”
It explains that apraxia patients can perform automatic movements like yawning but not planned movements like opening their mouth when asked.
“Speaking involves a complex set of muscle movement patterns,” it continues, and “apraxia of speech is thought to be caused by a problem in the brain area responsible for planning these movements.”
Speech apraxia can be extremely frustrating. Usually, the person knows exactly what they want to say. When they try to say it, it may come out incorrectly or not at all. They may be able to say a word correctly one minute and then completely mispronounce it the next.”
