David Walsh Recognised At Bt Sport Industry Awards

After a remarkable battle and one of the most groundbreaking journalistic endeavours in sport of all time, David Walsh was recognised with the prestigious Barclays Lifetime Achievement Award for his long-term fight to reveal Lance Armstrong as a drugs cheat at the BT Sport Industry Awards 2013 ceremony on Thursday, 2nd May.

On 25th July 1999, Lance Armstrong won the first of his seven Tour de France titles. Against all the celebratory headlines The Sunday Times stood alone with ‘Flawed Fairytale’ as the headline, and David Walsh as the byline. The journalist continued to question and investigate the success of the cycling legend, and plunged into a 13-year-long battle, which included libel cases and continuous threats.

Now, Walsh has seen Armstrong stripped of his seven Tour de France titles in the wake of a United States Anti-Doping Association investigation. A mark of his toils and eventual victory in print, Walsh accepted the Award in front of 1,750 industry leaders, celebrities and media. 

“Sport is so enthralling because all things are equal, a level playing field except for human endeavour, skill and desire,” said Olympic legend Sir Matthew Pinsent, who presented the Award to Walsh alongside Sir Clive Woodward. “Without that level playing field, sport becomes a circus. David Walsh led a fight for the very soul of sport. A Lifetime Achievement Award is often given for a lifetime of service to the industry – tonight’s award is for a man who put his life on hold in search of a truth.”

“This for me has been overwhelming,” said Walsh on receiving the Award. “To hear the words Matthew and Clive have said – I thought they were talking about someone else.

“This has been a defining time in my life – a story I knew would define me as a journalist. Every time I thought it wasn’t going anywhere I thought of all the people who go into sport and who compete clean. If they compete against those who dope they are being cheated, and they are the people we need to support.

“I can’t help but think about the people who gave me information, who said ‘I have something to tell you, something to get out there.’ I would tell them: ‘Giving me this will hurt you. Lance Armstrong will come after you.’ This is for them.”

Walsh joined the best of the best from the UK sport industry, as those responsible for the greatest work of an historic 2012 were presented with the coveted trophies.

Adding to his trailblazing accomplishments, Walsh is the first journalist to receive the Barclays Lifetime Achievement Award, and joins an impressive list of previous winners that include International Paralympic Committee president Sir Phil Craven (2012), McLaren executive chairman Ron Dennis (2009); Manchester United legend Sir Bobby Charlton (2008), former Sky Sports managing director Vic Wakeling (2007), and F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone (2005). 

The evening was a culmination of over 60 hours of intensive judging, with a judging process involving more than 40 key figures from across the industry – fully overseen by Deloitte, the Official Independent Scrutineer of the Sport Industry Awards.

The Official Partners of the BT Sport Industry Awards 2013 are Barclays, Deloitte and Eurosport.