Funeral details have been announced for long-time sports editor with The Telegram, Robin Short.
Short passed away on the weekend following a two-year battle with brain cancer. His funeral will take place on Thursday at 11 a.m. from the Corpus Christie Parish in St. John’s.
Short, who covered sports for The Telegram for the past 35 years, was well known among his peers on the national scene but was probably the face of The Telegram—partly because of his way with words and a fearless will to put forth controversial opinions in his weekly column.
Brendan McCarthy, a long-time colleague of Robin’s, told VOCM Open Line with Paddy Daly that people often developed a misguided image of him.
He says people would think he was grumpy or obstinate but neither was the case. McCarthy says he was kind and funny—in fact, the story being played out now is the only sad story with him. “Everything else is chuckles and hopefully, we can still do that.”
Donnie Power, who began covering sports in the province around the same time as Short, was surprised to find that few people knew he was sick—not even his friends. He told Power about his illness just as he was going into hospital for the first of two operations.
Power paid him a visit a couple of weeks ago. He says Robin was in great spirits as they sat on his patio and had a couple of beers. They spoke of many things, not just sports.
Robin Short, who was 56, leaves behind his wife Kim and son Cameron.
Earlier Story
Tributes are pouring in for Robin Short, the long-time Sports Editor of The Telegram, who passed away on the weekend following a two-year battle with brain cancer.
Short is being remembered not only as a hold no punches sports reporter but also for his kind character.
Just a few months ago, when Montreal was in the Stanley Cup playoffs, Short recalled his time in the audience watching Montreal and Los Angeles in the 1993 playoff finals.
Short said the only thing that compared to the excitement of that game was being in Pittsburg when Newfoundlander Daniel Cleary won the Stanley Cup for Detroit, and Sidney Crosby’s “Golden Goal” in Vancouver.
Short broke many big stories, including the possibility of the Winnipeg Jets operating an AHL team in St. John’s, which ended up being the IceCaps.
Tributes have been pouring in from politicians, fellow journalists and those in the sports community themselves including Hockey NL and the Newfoundland Growlers.
The entire Growlers organization is devastated to learn that our dear friend and dedicated local sports editor @telyrobinshort has passed.
Robin's presence in the press box and ability to showcase local athletes and tell important sports stories will be truly missed.
— Newfoundland Growlers (@NLGrowlers) August 29, 2021
Meanwhile, former Premier Danny Williams is passing along his condolences for a man who he calls one of the province’s “most prominent journalists.”
In a statement, Williams says he always admired Short’s courage to speak his mind, noting that he was always struck by his “passion and commitment” to promoting sports in the province.
He says Short’s contributions “will never be forgotten.”
