News

Record entry for SJA British Sports Journalism Awards 2019

The SJA British Sports Journalism Awards, sponsored by the National Lottery, has again broken records with 750 entries received by this week’s competition deadline – the highest number since the event started in 1976.

Judges will consider the qualities of the submissions over the next fortnight. Short lists will be published on this website in the following order:

  • January 29: Photography sponsored by
  • January 30: Written
  • January 31: Broadcast

The winners of the Young Sports Writer, Young Sports Photographer and Ones to Watch On Air and Off Air will be announced on the SJA website on February 3. Ones to watch replaces Young Sports Broadcaster and is open to journalists working within broadcasting / digital media who are aged 30 and under. 

There is another new broadcast award – Sports Network – designed to recognise the sports network/channel/platform that best covered sport and set the sporting agenda in 2019.

Winners will be announced by SJA President Patrick Collins at a ceremony hosted by Jim Rosenthal at the Westminster Bridge Park Plaza Hotel on February 24.

Last year The Telegraph’s Paul Hayward was named SJA Sports Writer for a fifth time, Mark Thompson of Getty Images was Sports Photographer, Rob Dorsett of Sky was Broadcast Journalist while Ed Chamberlin and Francesca Cumani were joint winners of Sports Presenter.

The Daily Mail snatched back the SJA Sports Newspaper of the Year title from The Guardian, winning it for the fifth time in six years. Mail head of sport Marc Padgett is pictured above receiving the award from Patrick Collins.