SPORTS WRITING
Sports
writing or sports journalism is a special form of journalism that deals with
sports topics and events.
While
there are different approaches in writing a sports story, the typical sports
piece, a short game story resembles the structure
of a news article, starting with a lead followed by the body of the
article.
Even though it follows the
conventions of news writing, sports writing or sports reporting is considered
as a specialized field because it requires
a certain level of knowledge of sports to become a good sportswriter.
STORY
LEAD TECHNIQUES
The
sports lead has the same purpose as the news lead, that is, to draw the reader
in. The classic 5 W’s and 1 H usually
appear in the sports lead as follows:
1.
Who won?
2.
How did they win?
3.
Against whom?
4.
By what score?
5.
Where? And;
6.
When?
SUMMARY
LEAD
In a classic
summary lead emphasis is given on the
‘who’ (who won the game versus whom?) and
the ‘how’ (how was the game won?) of the game. It also contains
the final score which should not be repeated anywhere else in the story.
BACKGROUND
INFORMATION LEAD
The background
information lead is a type of lead that utilizes
insider information regarding the teams or the players to draw the reader’s
attention. Because many readers usually
already know the final outcome of the games in advance by watching them, this
type of lead is now used by many sportswriters.
Other
information to highlight in the lead:
· The
key play – the main reason for the team’s win
· The
outstanding player – the most valuable player for that particular game
· The
analytical approach – the tactics employed by the winning team that led
them to victory or the pitfalls of the losing team
· The
reaction – quotes from the coach or the outstanding player
· The
record – the unexpected outcome of a game, such as the victory of a team
after years of consecutive losses, or the consecutive championship of a team or
person.
ELEMENTS OF THE BODY
· Team and/or individual
standing – if a particular event is part of a series of games,
team or individual standings should be included in the story
· Decisive plays – the play that gives a team or individual the winning margin
· Best scores for the day – the top scorer for the event, especially in a team game
· Play-by-play – a condensed description of the pivotal moments in the game
· Quotations – afterthoughts from the outstanding player, coach, etc.
GENERAL GUIDELINES WHEN WRITING A SPORTS STORY
· Be objective.
· Know your players.
· Know your sport.
· Be accurate.
· Know the specialized style of
writing of your sport.
· Write for the readers, not for
yourself.
P.S. This is just a sneak
peek. You can download the full version (complete with tips, explanations, DO’s
and DONT’s, and examples, yay!) from the Downloads and Printables tab. Keep
writing! J
