Sondheimer Bolsters Times’ Sports Team

Eric Sondheimer, the most authoritative voice in Valley/Ventura County sports for almost two decades, joins The Times this week. His first column will appear in Wednesday’s editions.

Sondheimer comes to The Times from the Daily News, where he was deputy sports editor and the local columnist.

He will have a similar role for The Times, writing two columns a week, Wednesday and Sunday.

“The addition of Eric Sondheimer makes the best sports staff in the Valley and Ventura County even better,” said Times Valley Edition Editor John Arthur. “Eric is a terrific reporter with an encyclopedic knowledge of the local sports scene. We are thrilled to have him as part of The Times’ team.”

Sondheimer first joined the Daily News in 1980. Less than a year later, he was promoted to prep sports editor. In 1989, he joined the staff of The National, a nationally-distributed all-sports newspaper, serving as a West Coast-based reporter covering professional and college sports.

When The National folded in the summer of 1991, Sondheimer returned to the Daily News as a reporter and columnist. He became Deputy Sports Editor in 1993.

Sondheimer’s reporting has earned him several awards, including a national best news story from the Associated Press Sports Editors’ Assn. for his work on an investigative piece looking into Kentucky’s men’s basketball program.