Olympic Channel Names Mary Byrne Editor in Chief

The Olympic Channel has announced that Mary Byrne has joined the global digital platform in the newly created role of Editor in Chief.

Effective 4 December, Byrne will be responsible for leading the Olympic Channel’s overall editorial strategy including the editorial planning and implementation for the platform’s digital, social media and news divisions. She will be based out of the company’s headquarters in Madrid, and will report to Mark Parkman, General Manager of the IOC’s global Olympic Channel.

“We are thrilled to welcome Mary to the Olympic Channel team,” says Parkman. “Mary’s wealth of experience, combined with her keen eye for storytelling and love of the Olympic Movement, will be a tremendous asset as we expand our footprint and diversify the reach of our robust content offerings across multiple platforms.”

Byrne brings more than 25 years of journalistic experience to the Olympic Channel. Most recently, she served as senior deputy editor for ESPN Digital & Print Media where she was responsible for the editorial operations for their Digital & Print’s daily coverage in additional to overseeing cross-platform collaboration and integration.

Prior to ESPN, Byrne served as sports managing editor at USA Today for three years which included oversight of their sports pop culture site “For The Win.” Previously, she served as deputy sports editor at The Associated Press for six years where she helped with the organization’s implementation across social media.

Byrne’s experience includes leading the on-site coverage of six different Olympic Games for multiple media outlets which include a stint as USA Today’sOlympics Editor. She has also held positions with the Miami Herald, Charlotte Observer, Waterbury Republican-American and Oceanside Blade-Citizen.

Byrne has also held leadership positions with the Associated Press Sports Editors (APSE) and is an active member of the Association for Women in Sports Media (AWSM). A native of Michigan, USA, she is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Missouri-Columbia, where she earned bachelor’s degrees in journalism and Spanish.