Sports found Vic Lombardi. And he has spent his adult life finding ways to make it more fun and interesting for the rest of us.
The son of Italian immigrants Ezio and Bambina, Lombardi did not speak English until around the age of 7. He remembers watching neighborhood kids play football, not knowing the rules, but joining the game anyway.
“It was my way to assimilate into the culture. A way to be American,” recalled Lombardi, a TV and radio host for Altitude Sports. “It made me want to be part of something bigger. I thank sports for giving me a light.”
By the age of 12, Lombardi found his purpose, enthralled by watching nightly sportscasts of Ron Zappolo, Les Shapiro and Tom Green. Sitting in front of his TV in North Denver, he promised himself that he would pursue a career in broadcasting.
After more than three decades in the media, it is clear Lombardi made the right decision. Beyond having what he calls “the most punchable face in the Denver media for 25 years running” is a fearless interviewer, a journalist with a passion for storytelling and a reporter with a slapstick sense of humor.
Lombardi’s excellence and longevity were honored as he was recently inducted into the Silver Circle of the Heartland Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. It recognizes 25 years in the industry with a meaningful and significant contribution to broadcasting. Lombardi is the first sports-exclusive anchor in the group — an honor revealed to him by the Altitude crew in a surprise ceremony last week.
What is it like to achieve the status of living legend?
“I had no idea. I thought I was going to a cookout, so I was wearing cookout clothes,” Lombardi said. “I am humbled and flattered.”
Lombardi’s greatest strength is being driven without losing his identity. He makes people laugh, he makes them mad and he makes them feel like they would like to hang out with him.
“One of the most authentic TV anchors I have ever worked with, and someone who loved to get involved in his stories. Sometimes too involved,” said Tim Wieland, president and general manager of CBS Colorado. “His stories often included buying or breaking something. I eventually just created a line in my expense budget titled ‘Vic’ because I knew I’d need it for something.”
Lombardi, 55, remains busy as the husband to wife, Terri, and father to son, Dante, and daughters Alexis and Isabella. Sports are never far from his reach. He golfs and plays a mean game of pick-up hoops — competitiveness and versatility that define his career.
“He engages with all audiences. He can tell a story like others can’t,” said Matt Krol, vice president and general manager of Altitude Sports. “He can interview Charles Barkley or a fan at a Nuggets game, whoever it is, it is entertaining.”
During his freshman year at the University of Colorado in 1987, Lombardi walked into the campus radio station and asked to broadcast sporting events and host a talk show. One problem. KUCB played alternative music, dabbling only in sports with the station’s ultimate frisbee intramural team. Undaunted, he borrowed equipment to do play-by-play, while securing a press pass from longtime sports information director David Plati, whom Lombardi worked for part-time.
When he got accepted into Notre Dame, Lombardi continued his broadcasting path with the Irish. As a student, he called some of the biggest games with the biggest names. Upon graduation, he had a job lined up as a researcher for NBC Sports for the upcoming Olympics.
“It was then I was asked, ‘Do you want to be behind the scenes or in front of the camera?’ I am a ham,” Lombardi said. “I got hired by WSJV in Elkhart, Indiana. I lived with the other sports guy at the station and he had seven cats. And I was allergic. But he was so kind.”
Talent does not operate on traditional timelines. Lombardi quickly landed in Austin, Texas, then Phoenix before returning home to anchor weekends for CBS4. It was in Austin where Lombardi began distinguishing himself. Covering the Dallas Cowboys at training camp, he put a uniform and a mic on the athletic weatherman.
“He went through the entire practice with the punters. Coaches had no idea who he was. Players didn’t know who he was,” Lombardi said with a laugh. “It was the most ridiculous story I have been a part of. (Cowboys owner) Jerry Jones loved it.”
Current 9News sports producer Brian Olson worked in the area at the time and remembers the piece.
“It was like George Plimpton’s Paper Lion,” Olson said. “Vic always had great energy and was full of ideas. You could tell then he was ready to do big things.”
Working in Denver was Lombardi’s dream. And the stage, to his surprise, was almost too big for him. No longer was his audience nameless and faceless. His family and friends were watching.
“I dealt with anxiety. I had to overcome that,” Lombardi admitted. “I believe that if you don’t have some nervous energy when speaking to a crowd or an audience, there is something wrong with the presentation.”
At CBS4, Lombardi found his way, eventually becoming a major sports personality in Denver. His sportscasts were contagious, his commentaries biting. He colored outside the lines, like the time at Broncos training camp when he conducted interviews without a microphone.
“He used a spoon when talking to the players,” Denver7’s Lionel Bienvenu said. “They didn’t (notice.). It’s a hilarious clip. He was always looking for creative ways to be different.”
At Altitude, Lombardi fills a variety of roles from pre and postgame host to sideline reporter. He also served as emcee of the Nuggets championship parade last summer, with the former Nuggets ballboy producing one of the event’s most memorable moments when he declared coach Michael Malone the “Lakers’ Daddy.”
“I made a fundamental error. I crawled into my 12-year-old body. The Lakers owned us for 40 years. And when I say us, I mean those of us fans that grew up here in Denver,” Lombardi said. “We finally hit the bully in the mouth. My intent was never to be part of the story.”
It came from a place of passion, like so many things throughout his illustrious broadcasting career.
Nearly every big Colorado sporting event over the past 30 years has included Lombardi’s stamp. He has done it while making a lot of friends, a few enemies and winning a lot of Emmys.
“You have to give people a reason to react, to respond,” Lombardi said. “I am not afraid. That comes from not knowing any better. I am born of immigrant parents. I am not supposed to be here. I have already won.”
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