JEREMIAS M.

MALBAS, MED
Activity 1. Identifying Sports through Jargons

1. Sicilian Defense
2. Spike
3. Knock-out
4. Aqua bell
5. Libero
6. Goal Tending
7. Three-seconds violation
8. Goalie
9. Axe Kick
10. Tekong
Activity 2.
Four Pics
One Word
Sports writing is a form of news
writing – an action story. However,
a sport writer does something more
than a news writer. He has the
privilege to use colorful words with
quick tempo, lively and informal
style that is usually centered around
a conflict.
Here are some differences between Straight News and
Sport Writing
In news writing, the journalist uses short words, short
sentences, short paragraphs.
The sports writer has more freedom in his writing style
than the news reporter. His writing has more pep, more
enthusiasm.
A news reporter is not permitted to write his opinion
about persons or events. The sports writer can do this to
a certain extent. He can even use slang which is
discourages in the news page.
The sports writer uses figures of speech like:
Simile – Ben Johnson, the world’s fastest man,
ran like a demon-possessed.
Metaphor – Jaworski, the living legend was a
tiger at both ends of the court
Synecdoche—All eyes were on the court during
the last 30 seconds of the game.
Metonymy—Team A snatches the champion
trophy from Team B.
Personification—The water beckons the
swimmers.
CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD SPORTS WRITER
Must have nose for news and has interest
in all sports events.
Must know the rules and regulation.
Must have a working knowledge of the
language and jargons of sports writing
usually referred to as sports lingo.
Should avoid clichés ( tired old phrases)
 Clichés are the opposite of freshly
coined phrases. Rather than being
the product of thought, they are
substitutes for thought. They are not
unexpected; they are foreseen.
They don't delight the reader; they
put the reader to sleep.
Look at these examples: Splashed the
nets, Went through the competition
unscathed, Dent the scoring column.
Launched a three-point attempt.
Drained a three-pointer, Scoreless
stanza. Iced the putt, Survived a
shootout, A backup net minder.
Rounded out the scoring, Coming like
the proverbial house afire.
GUIDELINES FOR SPORTS WRITING
Take down notes, don’t trust your
memory.
Report the reaction of the spectators at
some point of the game. But this is
secondary.
 Read a lot. Learn how other sports writers
practice their craft.
WRITING THE SPORTS STORY
A. LEAD – the first part, the attention getter, the
news in a nutshell.
1. The classic “ Five W’s : A ( Who won? B. )
Against whom? C.) By what score? D.) When?
e.g. The San Mateo Blazzers ( 1 ) poured 10
baskets in the last 10 minutes to edge out the
Rodriguez Unit I (2) 65-63 (3) at the opponent
home ground (4) yesterday afternoon.
2. The Key Play
The National HS Sluggers bombed the
Roosevelt batters with six runs in third inning
to subdue a nerve fuzzling Roosevelt’s rally
14-12 as they clinched the invitation game
here in connection with the celebration of
Roosevelt Foundation Day
3. The Outstanding Player
Rikki Mae Barros of Justice Vicente
Santiago Elementary School, after
almost four hours of battle over the
chessboard copped the most coveted
YMCA Trophy after outwitting San Mateo
Elem. School chesser William Santos in 27
moves of Sicilian defense.
4. The Analytical Approach ( The outcome of
the game is the result of a particular key play
in action)
Ridding high on sizzling spikes and trickly
placing, the Banaba netters blasted the Dona
Pepeng Hi- Killers in the crucial third set to win
15-10, 11-15, 15-7 in a mini District Meet August
10 at the San Mateo Elementary School
Quadrangle to celebrate the Thanksgiving
Day.
2. BODY
After the lead the other elements in descending order follow.
This will include :
 Team/ or individual standing
 Decisive plays-the most crucial part of the game that give
a certain team the winning margin.
 Best score for the day – the score usually appear in the
headline and the lead. The writer must not neglected the
top scorer of the day.
 Play – by- play account- set – by- set, quarter-by quarter,
innings-by-innings, round- by –round. etc., describe the
progress of the games or events in detail.
 Quotation, sentiment of the hero or coach recorded for
prosperity.
 Writing the Headline
What is a striking headline? -The headline of a sports
coverage story should tell right away who or which team won
over whom or whose team and whenever whom or whose
team(and whenever appropriate or applicable, by what
score). Appropriate action words should be used to indicate
who won depending on how the event unfolded.
Examples: Beermen dump Gins, 106-93
Fil-Am sprints for gold in 100m, sets new record in SEA
Games sets new record in SEA Games

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SPORTS TERMS
To sound more authoritative and convincing to the
reader, the sports writer must have a full stocks of sports
language. However, appropriate terms must be used for
each game and situation. The following words/ phrases
are commonly used in sports”
To win by a big margin – battered , clovered, crush,
humbled, overwhelmed, overpowered, rooted,
swamped, ripped, walloped, pulverized
To win by one or three points – shaded, edged,
nipped, nosedott, ekedout