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Regionals face nationals in bid to find best sporting supplement

Two regional newspapers will go head-to-head with national competition as they bid to win an award for sporting specials they produced.

Both the Bath Chronicle and Cambridge News have been nominated for the Special Sports Edition category at the forthcoming British Sports Journalism Awards, where they will face entries from the Daily Mirror, Rugby World, Sunday Times and the Daily Telegraph.

The Chronicle was nominated for a stand-alone 104-page supplement, pictured below, on the history of Bath, one of English rugby union’s oldest and most famous clubs.

The News was shortlisted for a 20-page football pullout on Cambridge United’s FA Cup tie against Manchester United last season.

Bath rugby supplement

In the Regional Journalist category, five-time winner Jon Colman, of the CN Group, has been nominated yet again.

He faces competition from Mark Douglas, of Newcastle dailies The Chronicle and The Journal, Phil Hay, of the Yorkshire Evening Post, Chris Wathan, of Media Wales, Will Watt, of Blackpool daily The Gazette, and James Olley, of London’s Evening Standard.

The winners and highly commended entries in all of the categories will be announced during a gala awards dinner at the Lancaster London on Monday, February 22, hosted by organiser the Sports Journalists’ Association.

Tom Clarke, the chairman of the judges, said: “In the shortlists for the 15 categories, there are many familiar names but, happily, there are almost as many new ones,” Clarke says.

“There has been a record response of 219 entries – which means more than a thousand pieces of work, in print, online and in the packages which combine written and spoken words with still and moving pictures.

“It’s been very demanding and exciting for the judges, all 94 of them.”

The full shortlist can be found on the SJA’s website.