Anousha Angineer, a Parsee journalist from Dawn.com, has made history as the first Pakistani to win first place in the “Young Reporter – Writing” category at the 2024 AIPS Sport Media Awards, a leading international competition recognizing excellence in sports journalism.
The award ceremony took place in Rabat, Morocco, as announced in a press release issued on Tuesday.
Anousha earned the top honor for her article titled “All or Nothing for Arshad Nadeem in Paris,” which was selected over submissions by fellow finalists Louis Boulay (France) and Izzy Ronald (United Kingdom). The finalists were shortlisted from 37 entries, chosen from a much larger pool of global submissions.
In addition to the award, Anousha also received an AIPS scholarship to attend a major international sporting event.
Her winning story follows the journey of Pakistani javelin thrower Arshad Nadeem, whose calm and focused approach has become his trademark. At the Stade de France during the Paris Olympics in August, Nadeem delivered a stunning second throw of 92.97 meters, capturing the gold medal and making history for Pakistan.
Arshad Nadeem’s gold medal at the Paris Olympics came with a new Olympic record throw of 92.97 meters, breaking the previous record of 90.57 meters set by Andreas Thorkildsen at the 2008 Beijing Games. This achievement marked the most remarkable moment for Pakistan’s Olympic team in decades.
Nadeem’s victory is Pakistan’s only individual Olympic gold medal outside of field hockey and the country’s first Olympic medal of any kind since 1992.
Anousha Angineer’s award-winning report highlighted the numerous obstacles and challenges Nadeem faced on his journey to this historic win, emphasizing his perseverance and determination.
The award was presented by jury members Andreas Schirmer and Vincent Amalvy, head of sports at Agence France-Presse (AFP), with Amalvy describing her report as “an outstanding story.”
Overwhelmed by the honor, Anousha expressed that she was at a loss for words. Reflecting on her decision to cover the story in 2023, she said,
“I had no idea what was going to happen. I simply decided to write the story and followed through.”
