Steven Downes
Encyclopedia
Steven Downes is a British sports journalist, television producer and a contributing writer for the Sunday Herald
.
in 1986 in Edinburgh
, for the South London Press
as deputy sports editor. He was also assigned to the Olympic Games
in Seoul
in 1988 as a correspondent of The Times
.
In 1989, Downes left The Times and became the editor at Athletics Weekly
, the youngest editor in the title's history.
After leaving Athletics Weekly in 1991, Downes wrote for a variety of publications including the Sunday Times and Reuters, while also working as a researcher or producer on television sports documentaries such as the BBC's On the Line and Fair Game, and the Channel 4 series presented by Greg Dyke
.
Downes conducted an investigation for Channel 4 News into the involvement of Andy Norman in the suicide of athletics writer Cliff Temple
.
Downes is co-author of the 1996 book, Running Scared which details scandals within international athletics.
One of the other television programmes to which Downes contributed is an investigation of Olympic gold medal-winning swimmer Michelle Smith de Bruin.
In 1999, following a series of investigative articles for the Sydney-based magazine Inside Sport, Downes was named Writer of the Year by the Australian magazine publishers' awards.
Before the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, when working for Agence France-Presse
, Downes broke the story about American track and field team members failing drug tests in the previous two years.
At the beginning of 2000, Downes left the Sunday Times, where he had worked as athletics correspondent and football reporter, to become deputy editor at Worldsport.com. After leaving Worldsport.com the same year, Downes worked at Times Online, where he was business editor from 2003 until 2008.
He has worked for the Sunday Herald and reported for sports websites including IAAF.org, and AroundTheRings.com as well as wrting Olympic sports tips for the Racing Post.
for Croydon Central
, Gavin Barwell
for claiming on his blog Inside Croydon that Barwell was using public money to pay Conservative councillors to do his research work. The claim was strongly denied by Barwell, who threatened legal action against Downes. Downes' apology stated that "elements of the article were unclear".,
Sunday Herald
The Sunday Herald is a Scottish Sunday newspaper launched on 7 February 1999. The ABC audited circulation in April 2011 showed sales of 31,123.From the start it has combined a centre-left stance with support for Scottish devolution...
.
Career
As a sports journalist Downes has covered track and field athletics and other Olympic sports. He covered the Commonwealth GamesCommonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games is an international, multi-sport event involving athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930 and takes place every four years....
in 1986 in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, for the South London Press
South London Press
The South London Press is a bi-weekly tabloid newspaper based in Streatham, South London, covering local news within the London boroughs of Lambeth, Southwark, Lewisham and Wandsworth....
as deputy sports editor. He was also assigned to the Olympic Games
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
in Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
in 1988 as a correspondent of The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
.
In 1989, Downes left The Times and became the editor at Athletics Weekly
Athletics Weekly
Athletics Weekly is the world's only weekly athletics magazine.It is published in the United Kingdom by Athletics Weekly Limited and covers news, results, fixtures, coaching and product advice for all aspects of athletics, including track and field, cross-country, road racing and race walking.-...
, the youngest editor in the title's history.
After leaving Athletics Weekly in 1991, Downes wrote for a variety of publications including the Sunday Times and Reuters, while also working as a researcher or producer on television sports documentaries such as the BBC's On the Line and Fair Game, and the Channel 4 series presented by Greg Dyke
Greg Dyke
Gregory "Greg" Dyke is a British media executive, journalist and broadcaster. Since the 1960s, Dyke has a long career in the UK in print and then broadcast journalism. He is credited with introducing 'tabloid' television to British broadcasting, and reviving the ratings of TV-am...
.
Downes conducted an investigation for Channel 4 News into the involvement of Andy Norman in the suicide of athletics writer Cliff Temple
Cliff Temple
Cliff Temple was a leading UK athletics journalist, author, commentator and coach. For many years he was the athletics correspondent of The Sunday Times. He was the son of science fiction author William F...
.
Downes is co-author of the 1996 book, Running Scared which details scandals within international athletics.
One of the other television programmes to which Downes contributed is an investigation of Olympic gold medal-winning swimmer Michelle Smith de Bruin.
In 1999, following a series of investigative articles for the Sydney-based magazine Inside Sport, Downes was named Writer of the Year by the Australian magazine publishers' awards.
Before the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, when working for Agence France-Presse
Agence France-Presse
Agence France-Presse is a French news agency, the oldest one in the world, and one of the three largest with Associated Press and Reuters. It is also the largest French news agency. Currently, its CEO is Emmanuel Hoog and its news director Philippe Massonnet...
, Downes broke the story about American track and field team members failing drug tests in the previous two years.
At the beginning of 2000, Downes left the Sunday Times, where he had worked as athletics correspondent and football reporter, to become deputy editor at Worldsport.com. After leaving Worldsport.com the same year, Downes worked at Times Online, where he was business editor from 2003 until 2008.
He has worked for the Sunday Herald and reported for sports websites including IAAF.org, and AroundTheRings.com as well as wrting Olympic sports tips for the Racing Post.
Apology to Gavin Barwell MP
In late May 2011, Downes was forced to back down on accusations that the Conservative Member of ParliamentMember of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Croydon Central
Croydon Central (UK Parliament constituency)
The comparison is with the notional 2005 result for the new boundaries which made Croydon Central a Labour defence.-Elections in the 2000s:-Elections in the 1990s:- Notes and references :...
, Gavin Barwell
Gavin Barwell
Gavin Laurence Barwell is a British Conservative Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Croydon Central since the 2010 general election.He is also the Head Governor of Trinity School in Croydon.-Education:...
for claiming on his blog Inside Croydon that Barwell was using public money to pay Conservative councillors to do his research work. The claim was strongly denied by Barwell, who threatened legal action against Downes. Downes' apology stated that "elements of the article were unclear".,