Ottawa has another reason to celebrate local talent: Martin Cleary, a journalist at Ottawa Sports Pages, has been awarded a national gold for Best Patriotic Story at a Canadian journalism awards competition.
A Local Voice Earning National Recognition
Cleary, who has long been a fixture in Ottawa's sports media landscape through his work at OttawaSportsPages.ca, earned the top honour in the patriotic storytelling category — a recognition that highlights writing which captures the spirit, identity, and pride of Canadians through sport.
It's a meaningful win not just for Cleary personally, but for independent sports journalism in Ottawa. In an era when local sports coverage is increasingly squeezed by national outlets and algorithm-driven content, a gold award at the national level is a powerful vote of confidence in what community-rooted journalism can produce.
What Makes a Patriotic Story?
The Best Patriotic Story category typically honours pieces that go beyond the scoreboard — writing that connects sports to national identity, sacrifice, pride, or the shared values that define what it means to be Canadian. Whether it's a profile of an underdog athlete, a story about a community rallying around a team, or a piece that ties sporting achievement to something larger about this country, these are the stories that linger long after the final whistle.
For a city like Ottawa — home to the Senators, the PWHL's Ottawa team, the 67's, and the RedBlacks — there's no shortage of material to draw from. The capital has a rich, layered relationship with sport and national identity, and writers like Cleary have spent years giving those stories the platform they deserve.
Ottawa Sports Pages: Punching Above Its Weight
Ottawa Sports Pages has built a loyal readership by doing something the big national outlets often skip: showing up for Ottawa fans, covering local angles in depth, and treating the capital's sports community as worthy of serious journalism.
Winning a national gold award puts that dedication on the map in a concrete way, and signals to readers — and the broader journalism industry — that independent local sports media in Ottawa is producing work that can compete with anyone in the country.
Congrats to a Deserving Ottawa Voice
For Ottawa sports fans who've followed Cleary's work over the years, this recognition will come as no surprise. It's a well-earned acknowledgment of the kind of thoughtful, passionate sports writing that makes following local teams more meaningful.
Ottawa is proud of you, Martin.
Source: Ottawa Sports Pages (OttawaSportsPages.ca) via Google News Ottawa Sport
