Jen Lada is an award-winning American journalist, ESPN presenter, and content writer. She is known for her work on ESPN’s Sports Center and other programs such as College GameDay, Mike and Mike, and Baseball Tonight.
Jen Lada Bio
Her date of birth is January 14, 1981, she was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, and grew up with her parents and three siblings. As with many recent celebrities, not much is known about her family. What is known, however, is that Jen aspired to be a journalist as a child. She was/is also an athlete who likes running and cycling.
ALSO READ: Kate Prusack Bio, Relationship with Gary Johnson, Family, Quick Facts
In an interview, the ESPN presenter talked about her favorite moments from her childhood. According to her, she remembers with such joy the traditional St. Patrick’s Day of her family and her unforgettable trip to Atlanta for the 1996 Summer Olympics. Speaking of her favorite season, Jen is the typical summer girl. They used to go boating, swimming, tubing, and skiing.
As for her education, Jen was a student at Marian Central Catholic H.S. in Woodstock, IL, where she made a name for herself in both cross-country skiing and athletics. At the age of 22, she graduated from the College of Communications at Marquette University, where she earned a degree in broadcast electronics. Her athletic abilities earned her a scholarship to the university. During the following year, the sports enthusiast worked as an unpaid sports intern. To make ends meet while waiting for her dream job, she also worked as a waitress.
Even after finding her dream job in sports broadcasting, Jen still takes time to attend outdoor sporting events. She has participated in several triathlons and has run three times in the Chicago Marathon. Jen lives in suburban Bristol, Connecticut.
Is She Married? Husband, Divorce
Jen Lada is a married woman and mother of one child. Her husband, Dario Melendez, is a former ESPN presenter for the SportsCenter show. It’s not clear where and how they met, but we speculate that they used to be work colleagues since they both have a work history at ESPN. The sports-mad couple married in 2006 in a silent ceremony attended by family and friends.
Dario Melendez, now a soccer coach, was once a soccer player who played for Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut. He worked for Fox Sports Radio and other sports broadcasting platforms. Before joining ESPN, Dario spent three years (2010-2013) as a sports presenter and reporter for WISN-TV, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Jen and Dario have a son, Chase. The happy family enjoys going to baseball games together. From time to time, Jen uploads beautiful family moments in pictures on Instagram. There is no information indicating a rupture or possible divorce in the marriage of Jen and Dario. They are still together.
Jen Lada ESPN Career
During her school days, Jen Lada took a job at a local newspaper. She then worked as a reporter for the Fox subsidiary in Milwaukee for the first time in 2006. For the next six years, Jen Lada covered general news and special events such as the Packers of the NFL, NBA Bucks, Brewers (MLB), Admirals (AHL), Wave (MISL), and athletics in schools and universities. She has also worked with the pros of the White Sox and the Bears Sports Beat. In 2013 Jen was offered another position with Comcast SportsNet where she worked for more than two years. She hosted shows such as SportsNet Central and High School Lights.
In 2015, the sports journalist joined ESPN as an employee of College GameDay and digital radio platforms where she is a content creator. She also works on programs such as ESPN’s Highlights, Mike and Mike, and SportsCenter. Jen still works at ESPN.
She describes her previous work experience as a dream come true. But in 2016, the beautiful radio announcer shared her unfortunate experience at her first interview. In the heat of the sexual scandals in the American media, Jen withheld the TV station’s name and went to Twitter to tell how an unnamed sports director had sexually harassed her in an allegedly official job interview. She resisted in the best possible way at the time and eventually did not get the job. With annual earnings of $85,000, the currently successful media personality has an estimated net worth of $1 million.
ALSO READ: Liz Cho Bio, Husband, Family, Age, Net Worth, Salary, Ethnicity, Quick Facts
In 2011, Jen Lada won the WITI-TV Honorary Award for Best Sportscast 1st Place from the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association for her contribution to WITI-TV. The quite popular sportscasting diva has more than 38k followers on Twitter, over 7k on Facebook, and more than 14k followers on Instagram.
Body Measurements
Jen Lada’s body measurements and statistics are not available on the Internet. The only thing known is that Jen has a height of 5 ft 7 inches.
