Source : the age
Senior sports writer Michael Gleeson has been named the Harry Gordon Australian Sports Journalist of the Year at the Melbourne Press Club’s Quill Awards for Journalistic Excellence.
Gleeson’s award was one of six won by The Age’s editorial team, with 10 highly commended, at last night’s event, which recognised work published in 2025.
The judges said Gleeson’s coverage of the rise of young Australian athlete Gout Gout was the best in the country.
“Michael followed the Queensland sprinter from Stawell to Tokyo, taking readers along for the ride – with outstanding features, analysis and an exclusive interview,” they wrote.
“Judges were also impressed by Michael’s peerless columns on AFL, including a prescient piece on Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin and criticism of the AFL for its indulgence of Bailey Smith and hypocrisy behind hiring Snoop Dogg for grand final entertainment.”
Chris Vedelago, Cameron Houston and Danny Russell took home the Sports News Quill for their coverage of the resignation of Melbourne Racing Club chairman John Kanga, with judges saying the choice was unanimous due to the standout quality of the reporting.
“Its impact was undeniable, forcing the resignation of one of the racing industry’s key powerbrokers at its most important time of the year,” they said.
“If one of journalism’s key tenets is to hold powerful people and organisations to account, this months-long investigation from The Age is a shining example of the power of old-fashioned, hard-nosed journalism.”
For the second year running, The Age columnist Waleed Aly won the Keith Dunstan Quill for commentary for his column, “Let’s Be Clear”.
“Waleed Aly takes complex issues, often the most wicked and controversial problems in our community today. He tackles them with courage and takes the heat out of them with a different point of view and supremely rational argument, presenting these issues in a light we may not have considered before,” the judges said.
Melissa Fyfe won in the Feature Writing category for her Good Weekend magazine feature, “Wedlocked”, a story about the experiences of those subjected to forced marriage in Australia, which the judges praised as “an example of the sort of journalism that is crucial”.
“In a fragmented media landscape, it is a powerful reminder of the value of long-form feature writing – and of the commitment and resources required to produce it.”
Cartoonist Matt Golding also won for his work, “Nighthawks”, which recreated one of American artist Edward Hopper’s most iconic paintings. Set in the days following the 2025 federal election, the judges said they were unanimous in selecting the work, calling it a standout in the field.
“His creative use of Edward Hopper’s original artwork as a visual metaphor for the woes of the friendless Liberal Party in the aftermath of the 2025 election loss is quite brilliant. Each caricature, their placement and expression, and the more subtle background elements all combine to become an entertaining and astute piece of commentary.”
Neary Ty took home the Multicultural Affairs and Media Quill for “Surviving Pol Pot – My Father’s Heartbreaking Journey”, which the judging panel said had been selected “for its outstanding public-interest journalism, narrative power, and ethical storytelling”.
“This list of winners perfectly encapsulates the quality and versatility of The Age team across investigative journalism, commentary, writing, artwork and sport reporting,” The Age editor Patrick Elligett said.
“I’m particularly thrilled that Michael Gleeson has been recognised as the country’s top sports journalist after a long period at the top of his game, particularly with his coverage of athletics and footy.”
The ABC’s Adele Ferguson won the Graham Perkin Journalist of the Year award for her reporting on Australia’s broken childcare system, and ABC journalist Heather Ewart received the Lifetime Achievement Award for her long career as a political reporter, overseas correspondent, and presenter, most recently on Backroads.
The Herald Sun’s Robyn Riley won the Gold Quill for her story about an IVF mix-up that led to a woman unknowingly giving birth to a stranger’s baby.
The Age picked up 36 nominations across 31 categories.
In the Investigative Journalism category, The Age’s Bidding Blind series (Aisha Dow, Nigel Gladstone, Lucy Macken and the Visual Stories Team) and Exclusive Brethren series (Michael Bachelard, Max Maddison, Kieran Rooney and Sumeyya Ilanbey) were highly commended.
Bidding Blind was also highly commended in the Innovation in Journalism category, while the Exclusive Brethren reporting was also highly commended in the News Report in Writing category.
Previous Gold Quill winner Nick McKenzie, Sarah Danckert and Amelia Ballinger were highly commended for their look into how the Victorian government failed to stop CFMEU-linked organised crime infiltrating the Big Build infrastructure scheme in the business reporting category.
Michael Bachelard, Charlotte Grieve and Mark Stehle were highly commended in the Excellence in Science, Medical and Health reporting category for their piece on whether outback scrub is really saving the planet.
For his work, “Power and Influence in America”, The Age columnist Cory Alpert also was highly commended, and Good Weekend writer Konrad Marshall was highly commended for his feature on Michelle Payne, “Back in the Saddle”.
Having previously won Young Journalist of the Year, Carla Jaeger was highly commended for her reporting throughout the year, while artist Matt Willis was commended for his work, Darling Harbour papercraft.
Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.
