Some children find it hard living up to their parents’ legacies while some others not only live up to these lofty heights but go on to make a name for themselves. If there is one person who firmly belongs in the latter category, it is Antonietta Collins. The scion of an internationally-renowned journalist, Collins first caught the journalism bug from her mother and subsequently delved into the field. She has now grown to become one of the most prominent Latina sportscasters in America, stealing hearts with her good looks, comportment, analytical style, and in-depth knowledge of sports.
Her Humble Beginnings in Mexico City
Antonietta González-Collins, or Toni as she is fondly called, was born on November 22, 1985, in Mexico City. She spent the first eight years of her life in her hometown before her family relocated to Miami in 1992. As a child, the young girl played sports such as football and softball. She specifically continued to play football for the various schools she attended.
A midfielder, Antonietta got so good in her teenage years that she received an invite to join the Mexican Women Under-19 team. The whole experience opened her eyes to how demanding professional sports can be and she realized that it wasn’t something she could see through on a long term basis. She, therefore, decided to try a new path that involved telling the stories of athletes.
Having reached that decision, Antonietta Collins enrolled at Mount Union College, Alliance, Ohio for her college degree. While there, she majored in media studies and minored in sports management. She further undertook internships at several sports organizations, including the Cleveland Cavaliers of the NBA. These internships majorly comprised of doing odd duties, such as selling tickets, dressing up as mascots, and preparing props, but Antonietta soaked it all up knowing that this would prepare her for her future career.
Getting a Head start in the Broadcast Industry
Antonietta Collins’ journalism career began in 2007, with her first job being a production assistant at Univision in Miami. During her year-long stint in this role, she helped the network produce two award ceremonies and shows like Premios Juventud, Premios Lo Nuestro, Nuestra Belleza Latina, and Primer Impacto.
Following such a productive outing, the bilingual beauty joined a CBS sports radio affiliate in St. Petersburg, Florida as a production assistant. She later worked up her way to sports reporter where she covered various local teams such as the University of South Florida football team, the Tampa Bay Lightning, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
In 2009, Antonietta Collins simultaneously joined two TV stations; KNVO TV 48 Univision and FOX2 News. She served as a Spanish-language news reporter for the former while anchoring English news shows for the latter. She covered hard news items such as drug trafficking, immigration, shootings, and kidnappings, and all this taught her the responsibility that came along with being a reporter. The young lady, however, did not forget her true passion for sportscasting and so, she remained on the lookout for opportunities in that regard. That opportunity finally came after a slot for a sports reporter opened up at Univision Deportes 23 in Dallas in 2010.
Antonietta Collins Joining the Big Leagues
Antonietta Collins applied for the Deportes job without much ado and luckily landed the role. She proceeded to spend one year with the network during which she covered the NBA postseason and finals, and the MLB ALDS, ALCS, and World Series. She also kept a close eye on the Dallas Cowboys, FC Dallas, and Dallas Stars.
Collins subsequently moved on to join the Univision national network where she anchored sports shows such as Despierta America, Primer Impacto, and Accion Deportiva Extra. This particular role lasted for two years, after which she finally made it to the big leagues by joining the ranks of ESPN in 2013. She started out on the network by anchoring news and conducting interview segments on ESPN.com. She later gained promotion to an on-air role, hosting shows such as Baseball Tonight and One Nacion.
Through it all, Collins did not allow herself to get distracted from her ultimate goal of working on ESPN’s flagship program, SportsCenter. She kept her eye on the ball and all of her hard work paid off in 2016 when she was promoted to the position of an anchor on the show. Collins has remained at this position since then and doesn’t take it lightly as she views herself as an ambassador for Latinos on the network.
Details of Her Family and How Her Mother was a Huge Influence on Her Career
Antonietta Collins hails from a family of four that comprises of her mom, Maria Antonietta Collins, her stepfather, Fabio Fajardo (now late), and an older sister. The older Antonietta is a veteran television reporter of international repute.
Maria commenced her career in Mexico in the 70s and has gone on to work for several well-known networks in a career that spans about 40 years. She has won multiple Emmy awards for her work, including a 2017 Emmy Award for outstanding coverage of a breaking news story. Her other accolades include a 1999 Emmy for outstanding instant coverage of a news story program, a 1982 Emmy for outstanding instant coverage of a news story in a regularly scheduled format, and the Edward R. Murrow award for outstanding achievements in electronic journalism.
Maria’s daughter has revealed that it was her mother’s passion and joy for journalism that first attracted her to the field. She has also disclosed that her mother never lets her slack off but always pushed her to work harder.
Feliz cumpleaños a mi todo, @collinsoficial ❤️ No hay palabras suficientes para expresar lo cuanto te amo, lo orgullosa que estoy diario de ti y lo afortunada que soy por tener el privilegio de llamarte mi mamá. Te amo hoy y siempre. Feliz Cumple mi queen!love you!! TQM 🎂🎁 🍰 pic.twitter.com/WALfj5MsZl
— Antonietta Collins (@AntoniettaESPN) May 12, 2020
Is Antonietta Collins Married?
Being exceptionally beautiful and having a place on one of the biggest networks in America has raised questions about Antonietta Collins’ personal life. The sportscaster, on the other hand, seems to enjoy keeping her fans guessing on this topic as there are no reports about her ever being in a relationship. On social media sites like Twitter and Instagram, the anchor only shares pictures of herself, especially ones that connect to her career. There has never been a time she shared pictures of herself with any member of the opposite sex that she tagged as her boyfriend or husband.
See Also: Who is Molly Qerim’s Boyfriend or Is She Married?
She Leads an Active Lifestyle
Aside from her outstanding performance in the field of journalism, Antonietta Collins is known for her facial beauty as well as an enviable body structure. The ESPN reporter is 5 feet 8 inches tall and has a well-toned and slim body that weighs around 54 kg. Her chest measures 32 inches while her waist and hip further measures 25 inches and 34 inches, respectively. This gives her an amazing body figure of 32-25-34.
Collins maintains her physique through running. The young lady is an avid runner as a simple scroll through her social media handles would reveal. She, however, does not only resort to running as a means of keeping in shape but also in a bid to support several charities close to her heart.
