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Meredith Vieira Makes Television History

By now most people have either heard about or seen Bob Costas’s nasty looking eye infection, which has recently spread to his other eye. Photos of the infection made the Internet rounds last wee...
Meredith Vieira Makes Television History
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  • By now most people have either heard about or seen Bob Costas’s nasty looking eye infection, which has recently spread to his other eye. Photos of the infection made the Internet rounds last week, just a little bit after the Sochi Olympics got underway.

    And while Today Show host Matt Lauer filled in for Costas the past few nights, it seemed to be too much for him considering all the other responsibilities he has in Sochi this year, so from here on in, Meredith Vieira will be taking his place as lead commentator, as Jim Bell, NBC’s Olympic executive producer, recently announced.

    “Bob’s eye issue has improved, but he’s not quite ready to do the show,” said Bell.

    And once Vieira officially takes over, she’ll be making television history by being the first women to anchor NBC’s Olympic coverage by herself, and she couldn’t be more thrilled about it, she said.

    “It’s an honor to fill in for him,” said Vieira on the Today Show. “You think about the Olympics, and you think the athletes and then Bob Costas.”

    Vieira also joked about having an eye issue of her own, after seeing Lauer and Al Roker attempt an Olympic event. “It’s so funny, I woke up this morning and I was feeling fine, and now my eyes are killing me,” she said. “I watched you guys attempt the luge. I think I’m going blind. And I’m really worried because I have to go prime time tonight.”

    And once Vieira fills in, it’ll definitely be a nice break for Lauer, since he’s been spreading himself pretty thin since Costas left. The first thing he wants to do, he said, is catch up on some rest. “Sleep, sleep, sleep, that’s my night tonight,” he said. Additionally, he mentioned that Vieira is the perfect person to replace Costas.

    “Meredith’s fantastic,” he said. “She’ll be great, she really will, and I know she’s going to have a blast. It’s fun.”

    Image via YouTube

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