Rick Westhead
Rick Westhead is a two-time winner of Canadian Sportswriter of the Year, presented by Sport Media Canada. Canadian Journalists for Freedom of Expression recognized him in 2023 with the Arnold Amber Award for Investigative Journalism. He has won six Canadian Screen Awards for his original features for TSN. In 2025, he was recognized for his fearless reporting by The Hockey News in its list of 100 People of Power and Influence. Prior to joining TSN, Westhead served as a foreign correspondent for the Toronto Star, where he reported on the ground in countries including Afghanistan, China, and Saudi Arabia. He lives in Toronto.
Writers & Books
Award History
2026 - Finalist
Balsillie Prize for Public Policy
forWe Breed Lions: Confronting Canada's Troubled Hockey Culture
Jury Citation
“Hockey has long stood as a cornerstone of Canadian identity. Our national and Olympic hockey teams inspire deep national pride, and local rinks are the heart of communities across the country. But the sport itself and the culture it produces have been in trouble for years. When horrendous actions of young players surface, as they did in a London, Ontario courtroom in the summer of 2025, the reaction is familiar: a flicker of outrage, a collective shrug, and then we quickly move on. But not veteran sports journalist Rick Westhead who confronts Canada’s hockey culture with clarity, rigorous evidence, and unflinching purpose. What emerges is not just an indictment of a sport, but a reckoning we can no longer afford to postpone. We Breed Lions is not about saving the game of hockey; it is about exposing how cultures of power and silence take root in team environments and how we must act to protect the kids who play the national sport.”—2026 Balsillie Prize for Public Policy Jury (Raymond B. Blake, Samantha Nutt, and Scott Young)Works Recognized by WT