John Anderson, best known as the referee in the television series Gladiators, has died at the age of 92.
The Scottish sports coach appeared in the original broadcast of the game show on ITV, which aired from 1992 to 2000, and the short-lived revival on Sky in 2008.
He lent his voice to the famous hit: “Contender, ready! Gladiator, ready!”
He also trained over 100 Olympic athletes, including former 5,000m world record holder David Moorcroft.
“I can’t praise John enough,” said Mr Moorcroft, adding to Athletics Weekly that the Glasgow coach “just got the best out of people”.
“I’m sure I would never have become a good athlete without John,” he said.
A statement from the show, quoted by the Press Association, said: “We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of our beloved referee John Anderson at the age of 92.”
“Our condolences go out to his friends and family. John will forever be remembered as the iconic voice that brought us ‘Gladiators Ready! Contenders Ready!'”
Former professional football referee Mark Clattenburg, who took over as referee on the current BBC version of Gladiators earlier this year, said Mr Anderson had “one of the most iconic voices”.
In a social media post, he said: “The hardest part for me was following him in the new season of Gladiators and seeing him make sure the Gladiators follow the rules will always stay with me.”
When he first took on his role in Gladiators, Mr Clattenburg told the BBC: “When I watched the show in the 90s, everyone knew who the referee was – John Anderson.”
“Getting the call to be the new referee on Gladiators was just incredible and probably one of the best things I’ve ever done in my life.”
Mr Anderson has also served as head coach of the Amateur Athletics Association of England and as Scottish national coach.
He trained dozens of Olympians, including Sheila Carey, Liz McColgan and Judy Simpson, who starred as Nightshade on Gladiators in the 1990s.
He was inducted into the Coaching Hall of Fame in 2002.
Olympic sprinter Jennifer Stoute, known as Rebel in Gladiators, wrote on social media: “He was the best. He knew how to make us laugh and also freak out. The best memories.”
