Daily Telegraph launches competition to find UK’s best young sports writer in memory of David Welch

The Daily Telegraph has launched a new competition for young sports writer in commemoration of its former sports editor David Welch

It’s aimed at finding the ‘finest young sports writer in the country’and is open to all students aged between 16-25 in full-time education at school, college or university.

All entrants must submit three pieces of writing no longer than 800 words each on the subject of sport, which can take a variety of forms including columns, features and reportage.

The entries will be judged by a panel of sports journalists who worked with Welch, and the top two nominees will be invited with a guest to the Sports Journalists’ Association’s British Sports Journalism Awards at the Connaught Rooms, London, on 12 March 2012.

The winner will be announced in the The Daily Telegraph and will have one of their submissions published its website, as well as being offered a week’s unpaid work experience and the opportunity to attend a sports event to write their own report accompanied by one of the newspaper’s journalists.

Welch edited the sports pages of the Daily Telegraph from 1989 to 2004 and was described by the paper as ‘an inspirational editor who believed in the promotion of young talent as part of a mix in the ground-breaking sports section he created”:

He nurtured the careers of many of Britain’s greatest sportswriters from Paul Hayward and Henry Winterof The Telegraph to Sam Wallace (The Independent) and Martin Johnson (The Sunday Times).

The competition is designed to continue in that great tradition, offering encouragement to ambitious young writers – and for the successful, a platform.

David, who died in June 2011, is credited by Lord Coe as helping to bring the Olympics to London with a well-judged Telegraph campaign.

To augment that legacy with on-going encouragement to the sports journalists of the future is a fitting memorial.

Entries to the David Welch Competition must be emailed to entries@davidwelchcompetition.co.uk by 6 February 2012.

Entries must begin with name, address, age, and contact number. Also include details of your educational establishment, a referee from the school/university and their contact details.
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