Red Smith Award

Red Smith Award
Awarded for"Major contributions to sports journalism"
Presented byAssociated Press Sports Editors (APSE)
History
First award1981
First winnerRed Smith
Most recentDan Shaughnessy (2026)
WebsiteOfficial website

The Red Smith Award is awarded by the Associated Press Sports Editors (APSE) organization for outstanding contributions to sports journalism. Unlike many journalism awards, it is open to both writers and editors.

Winners of the award are traditionally announced in April and it is bestowed in June at the annual APSE convention. It is named in honor of Walter Wellesley "Red" Smith (1905–1982) whose sportswriting career spanned 1927 to 1982, and was the first recipient of the award in 1981.

List of winners

Year Winner Organization(s) Ref.
1981 Red Smith New York Herald Tribune, The New York Times
1982 Jim Murray Los Angeles Times
1983 Shirley Povich The Washington Post
1984 Fred Russell Nashville Banner
1985 Blackie Sherrod The Dallas Morning News
1986 Si Burick Dayton Daily News
1987 Will Grimsley Associated Press
1988 Furman Bisher The Atlanta Journal
1989 Edwin Pope Miami Herald
1990 Dave Smith‡ The Dallas Morning News
1991 Dave Kindred The National Sports Daily
1992 Ed Storin Miami Herald
1993 Tom McEwen The Tampa Tribune
1994 Dave Anderson The New York Times
1995 Richard Sandler† Newsday
1996 Bill Dwyre‡ Los Angeles Times
1997 Jerome Holtzman Chicago Tribune
1998 Sam Lacy Baltimore Afro-American
1999 Bud Collins The Boston Globe
2000 Jerry Izenberg The Newark Star-Ledger
2001 John Steadman† The Baltimore Sun
2002 Dick Schaap† ESPN, The Sports Reporters
2003 George Solomon The Washington Post
2004 Jimmy Cannon† New York Post, New York Journal American
2005 Mary Garber Winston-Salem Journal
2006 Joe McGuff†‡ The Kansas City Star
2007 Van McKenzie†‡ Orlando Sentinel
2008 W. C. Heinz† The New York Sun
2009 Vince Doria‡ ESPN
2010 Mitch Albom Detroit Free Press
2011 Bill Millsaps‡ Richmond Times-Dispatch
2012 Frank Deford Sports Illustrated
2013 Dan Jenkins Sports Illustrated
2014 Wendell Smith† Pittsburgh Courier, Chicago Herald-American, Chicago Sun-Times
2015 Bob Ryan The Boston Globe
2016 Leigh Montville The Boston Globe, Sports Illustrated
2017 Henry Freeman‡ USA Today
2018 Terry R. Taylor Associated Press
2019 Sandy Rosenbush The Washington Post, Sports Illustrated
2020 Christine Brennan USA Today
2021 Sally Jenkins The Washington Post
2022 Leon Carter Sports Journalism Institute
2023 Claire Smith Hartford Courant, The New York Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer
2024 Bill Plaschke Los Angeles Times
2025 Thomas Boswell The Washington Post
2026 Dan Shaughnessy The Boston Globe

† Awarded posthumously
‡ Served as president of APSE

References

  1. ↑ "Red Smith Award Winners". apsportseditors.com. Associated Press Sports Editors. Archived from the original on January 14, 2020. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
  2. ↑ "Smith recipient of award". The Post-Crescent. Appleton, Wisconsin. AP. June 9, 1981. p. D-4. Retrieved March 3, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ "1981: Red Smith – Red Smith Award".
  4. ↑ "1982: Jim Murray – Red Smith Award".
  5. ↑ "1983: Shirley Povich – Red Smith Award".
  6. ↑ "1984: Fred Russell – Red Smith Award".
  7. ↑ "1985: Blackie Sherrod – Red Smith Award".
  8. ↑ "1986: Si Burick – Red Smith Award".
  9. ↑ "1987: Will Grimsley – Red Smith Award".
  10. ↑ "Will Grimsley, 88, A.P. Sportswriter". The New York Times. AP. November 6, 2002. p. C-13. Retrieved March 3, 2021 – via nytimes.com.
  11. ↑ "1988: Furman Bisher – Red Smith Award".
  12. ↑ "1989: Edwin Pope – Red Smith Award".
  13. ↑ "1990 Dave Smith – Red Smith Award".
  14. ↑ "1991: Dave Kindred – Red Smith Award".
  15. ↑ "1992: Ed Storin – Red Smith Award".
  16. ↑ "Ed Storin Obituary". Legacy.com. April 2022. Retrieved October 13, 2022.
  17. ↑ "1993: Tom McEwen". October 14, 2019.
  18. ↑ "1994: Dave Anderson". February 2, 2020.
  19. ↑ "1995: Richard Sandler". November 25, 2019.
  20. ↑ "Richard Sandler, 50, An Editor at Newsday". The New York Times. September 5, 1989. p. B-6. Retrieved March 3, 2021 – via nytimes.com.
  21. ↑ "1996: Bill Dwyre". December 6, 2019.
  22. ↑ "1997: Jerome Holtzman". October 14, 2019.
  23. ↑ "1998: Sam Lacy". December 25, 2019.
  24. ↑ "1999: Bud Collins". November 29, 2019.
  25. ↑ "2000: Jerry Izenberg". December 23, 2019.
  26. ↑ "2001: John Steadman". November 29, 2019.
  27. ↑ "2002: Dick Schaap". November 30, 2019.
  28. ↑ "2003: George Solomon". July 9, 2019.
  29. ↑ "2004: Jimmy Cannon". July 8, 2019.
  30. ↑ "2005: Mary Garber". June 4, 2019.
  31. ↑ "2006: Joe McGuff". June 4, 2019.
  32. ↑ "2007: Van McKenzie". June 4, 2019.
  33. ↑ "A Man Ahead of His Time. Pioneering Sports Editor Van Mckenzie Dies at 61". New York Daily News. January 27, 2007. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
  34. ↑ "2008: W.C. Heinz". June 4, 2019.
  35. ↑ "2009: Vince Doria". May 29, 2019.
  36. ↑ "2010: Mitch Albom". May 29, 2019.
  37. ↑ "2011: Bill Millsaps". May 29, 2019.
  38. ↑ O'Connor, John (April 11, 2020). "William H. Millsaps, celebrated sports writer and popular executive at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, dies at 77". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Richmond, Virginia. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
  39. ↑ "2012: Frank Deford". May 29, 2019.
  40. ↑ "2013: Dan Jenkins". May 29, 2019.
  41. ↑ "2014: Wendell Smith". May 29, 2019.
  42. ↑ "2015: Bob Ryan". May 29, 2019.
  43. ↑ "2016: Leigh Montville". May 29, 2019.
  44. ↑ "2017: Henry Freeman". May 10, 2019.
  45. ↑ "2018: Terry Taylor". May 29, 2019.
  46. ↑ "2019: Sandy Rosenbush". May 29, 2019.
  47. ↑ "Christine Brennan wins 2020 award". March 4, 2020.
  48. ↑ Banaszynski, Jacqui (March 17, 2021). "An emotional award for Sally Jenkins after a lifetime of awards; The Washington Post sports journalist is named the 2021 Red Smith Award winner, following in the footsteps of her father". Nieman Storyboard.
  49. ↑ Wilson, Lisa (April 7, 2022). "Leon Carter wins 2022 Red Smith Award". apsportseditors.com. Retrieved October 13, 2022.
  50. ↑ Lucia, Joe (April 7, 2023). "Claire Smith is the 2023 Red Smith Award winner". Awful Announcing. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  51. ↑ Romero, Iliana Limón (April 14, 2024). "Veteran Times columnist Bill Plaschke wins prestigious Red Smith Award". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 10, 2024.
  52. ↑ Keys, Perryn. "Washington Post sports writer Thomas Boswell wins 2025 Red Smith Award". AP Sports Editors. Retrieved April 9, 2025.
  53. ↑ Sullivan, Joe (March 19, 2026). "Boston Globe columnist Dan Shaughnessy wins 2026 Red Smith Award". The Boston Globe. Retrieved March 19, 2026.
  54. ↑ Barrett, Paul (March 19, 2026). "Boston Globe's Dan Shaughnessy wins 2026 Red Smith Award". apsportseditors.com. Retrieved March 19, 2026.
  55. ↑ "Past Presidents". apsportseditors.com. Retrieved March 3, 2021.