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ESPN star Holly Rowe reveals why she dumped 'hot boyfriend' bodybuilder
By Ryan Gaydos
Published October 29, 2025
ESPN broadcaster Holly Rowe is among the faces who are seen at marquee WNBA, women’s college basketball and college football games on the network.
The longtime ESPN employee shed some light on her personal life during an appearance at the Little Rock Touchdown Club in Arkansas. She recalled dating a bodybuilder who was a Mr. Switzerland champion and revealed why the relationship didn’t pan out.
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ABC sideline reporter Holly Rowe prior to the game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the Arkansas Razorbacks at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium on Oct. 5, 2024. (Nelson Chenault/Imagn Images)
"I had a really hot boyfriend, and he was Mr. Switzerland, bodybuilder," she said. "We dated for four years. And when I say smoking hot … And the reason we broke up was we were at the ESPYs and Pat Summitt had just gotten this award, the Arthur Ashe Courage Award, because she had just been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s. And I’m in the audience, and I’m just bawling in the audience, and he asked me, ‘What’s wrong with you? She’s just a coach.’
"And so, we broke up," Rowe continued. "So I just need you to understand I gave up Mr. Switzerland because of Pat Summitt. This is a true story."
New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu is interviewed by ESPN reporter Holly Rowe after winning the three-point contest during the WNBA All Star Skills Challenge at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on July 18, 2025. (Trevor Ruszkowski/Imagn Images)
Rowe’s story received chuckles from the crowd.
She didn’t name the bodybuilder.
She has been with ESPN since 1995 and over the last 30 years has carved out a role for herself as the lead sideline reporter for the network’s coverage of college football and women’s college basketball games.
Holly Rowe during CFP National Championship Media Day at Georgia World Congress Center on Jan. 18, 2025. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
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She has also been a part of the Utah Jazz’s coverage as an analyst. She was the first woman to serve in the role for the Jazz.
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https://www.foxnews.com/sports/espn-star-holly-rowe-reveals-why-she-dumped-hot-boyfriend-bodybuilder