NEW YORK -- Dick Joyce, a sportswriter with The Associated Press for nearly 20 years, died Sunday of complications following a stroke. He was 53.
Joyce covered horse racing most recently, with his last assignment at the Kentucky Derby. He earlier covered college basketball, and he also was a supervisor on the New York desk.
Joyce died in South Nassau Communities Hospital in Oceanside, N.Y., where he had been confined since suffering a massive stroke in his home in Rockville Centre May 12.
'Dick was a great comfort on the desk,' AP sports editor Darrell Christian said. 'His wry wit always put things into perspective even under the most difficult circumstances. His professional dedication was a steadying influence. He will be greatly missed.'
A graduate of St. Bonaventure, Joyce joined AP as a sportswriter in the broadcast department in July 1968 and moved to the sports department less than a year later. He previously worked for UPI, NBC, the New York World Telegram and Sun, the New York Post and the Long Island Press.
The wake is Monday from 7-9 p.m. and Tuesday from 2-4 and 7-9 at Macken Mortuary, Rockville Centre. The funeral is scheduled for Wednesday at 10 a.m. at St. Agnes Cathedral, Rockville Centre.
Joyce is survived by his wife Bea and five children.