The Billie Jean King Foundation, Associated Press Sports Editors and the APSE Foundation are proud to announce the finalists for the second annual Billie Jean King Award for Excellence in Women’s Sports Coverage.
The finalists were chosen from a group of 64 entries received through the month of April. More than two dozen judges read the entries to determine the finalists.
Journalists entered a portfolio of four stories, published in 2024, that include reporting about girls and women’s sports. Entries included live coverage, feature reporting and commentary about high school, college, amateur and professional sports.
This year the contest was split into the following categories:
- Pro sports
- College sports
- High school/community sports
- At-large (Olympics, combination of sports, column writing, etc.)
“Congratulations to this year’s finalists. It’s an exciting list of journalists that now includes the high school sports space,” APSE President Dan Spears said. “The Billie Jean King Award is shining a new light on women’s sports, as well as the reporters who cover them. I’m grateful that APSE and its membership have wholeheartedly embraced this endeavor with the Billie Jean King Foundation.”
The number of finalists in each category was determined by the number of entries submitted. The finalists, by category and listed in alphabetical order, are:
Pro sports:
- Charlie Eccleshare, The Athletic
- Jeff Kassouf, ESPN.com
- Hailey Salvian, The Athletic
College sports:
- Marisa Ingemi, The San Francisco Chronicle
- Eden Laase, Hoops HQ
High schools/community sports:
- Charlotte Varnes, IndyStar
At-large:
- Katie Barnes, ESPN.com
- Candace Buckner, The Washington Post
- Tess DeMeyer, The Athletic
- Emily Giambalvo, The Washington Post
- Sally Jenkins, The Washington Post
- Lindsay Schnell, USA Today Sports
The following journalists received honorable mention citation by the judges:
- Aishwarya Kumar, ESPN.com (At-large)
- Danielle Lerner, Houston Chronicle (At-large)
- Jackie Powell, Freelancer (Pro sports)
- Chip Scoggins, The Minnesota Star Tribune (At-large)
- Michael Voepel, ESPN.com (At-large)
“It is an honor to partner with the APSE and the APSE Foundation to shine a light on the media coverage of women’s sports,” said Therese O’Higgins, Executive Director of the Billie Jean King Foundation. “The Billie Jean King Award for Excellence in Women’s Sports Coverage is an initiative that is very important to Billie Jean and her namesake Foundation, and a program we want to develop and grow year after year, bringing more attention to women’s sports around the world.”
The award includes a $5,000 grant from the Billie Jean King Foundation. The winner will be announced in June.
The Billie Jean King Foundation is a living extension of the purpose-driven life of Billie Jean King, dedicated to creating an equitable future for all through the power of sports, education and activism. As a non-profit, the Foundation partners with diverse organizations to bridge unlocked human potential with equal opportunity.
This award is a continuation of APSE’s mission of annually recognizing professional excellence in sports journalism with a wide-ranging national contest. APSE’s members currently include more than 170 news organizations of all sizes from around the country.
The contest was administered by APSE through First Vice President and Contest Chair Paul Barrett.
