Sunrise co-host Matt Shirvington has revealed the truth behind his decision to leave Fox Sports for Channel Seven.
The former athlete enjoyed a 10-year career with Foxtel, which included stints on Sky News and Fox Sports before moving over to Seven in 2020.
Speaking to TV Tonight, the 44-year-old said that the decision came down to his desire to cover the Olympics.
‘It was simply that Seven had the rights to the Olympics and I wanted to be involved in another Olympic Games,’ he admitted.
‘I’d already been thinking, “How do I get out of [Fox]? What do I do? I’d love to spend some time at a commercial network”.’
Sunrise co-host Matt Shirvington has revealed the truth behind his decision to leave Fox Sports for Channel Seven, admitting that it came down to Seven airing the Olympics
Shirvo now says he’s found the perfect gig co-hosting Sunrise.
‘Sunrise is everything I love about TV. I get a bit of sport. I get a bit of everything. It’s great.’
Matt rose to fame in 1998 as a marathon sprinter at the Commonwealth Games in Malaysia, and later competed at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney.
In June, he was crowned David Koch’s successor at Sunrise after a three-year plan to prepare him for the top job.
The former athlete enjoyed a 10-year career with Foxtel, which included stints on Sky News and Fox Sports before moving over to Seven in 2020. (Pictured in 2017)
‘Sunrise is everything I love about TV. I get a bit of sport. I get a bit of everything. It’s great,’ he admitted
Natalie Barr, who co-hosts the morning show with the Olympic sprinter, said she’s known him for years as they ‘would see each other at events and always got along’.
‘He’s the type of guy who just fits in. He is a really nice, normal guy with a daggy-dad sense of humour,’ she said.
Natalie went on to reveal how she deals with public scrutiny and said she doesn’t feel any extra pressure being the more experienced presenter.
‘I don’t mind a bit of scrutiny. Some people will like the way I do things, some won’t. If you can’t cope with that then I guess you shouldn’t be on TV,’ she explained.
Shirvo now hosts Sunrise alongside longtime host Natalie Barr. (Pictured together in June)