Remembering Ron Reed

Dear reader,

The Wilkinson Publishing team had the pleasure of working with and knowing author Ron Reed over many years and books. We are saddened to share the news of his passing today and are grateful we could help him share so many stories through his books.

Ron was one of Australia’s most experienced and acclaimed sports journalists with a career that spanned more than 50 years. He brought us the magic moments from major sporting events including the Olympic and Commonwealth Games, the Tour de France, cricket tours, tennis and golf tournaments, swimming, horse racing, football and more. His passion for sports was contagious, whether talking or writing about it, his words transported you to the sidelines and brought you closer to the athletes he was profiling.

His books about Australian tennis champion and World No. 1 Ash Barty charted her success right up to her retirement with the most recent edition Barty: Arise, Queen of Oz releasing in February this year.

His most personal book, War Games, combines highlights from his sports journalism career with the story of his father’s time as a prisoner of war in Japan during World War II. Prior to the pandemic, Ron had intended to visit Japan for the 2020 Olympics to bookend the experiences of father and son in the country that held an unlikely connection for them.

His latest book Captain Pat is due for release this July. He was a self-described cricket tragic and was excited to finally write his first book on the sport — and the first book about Australian Test Captain Pat Cummins. It’s a must-read for cricket and sports fans and was Ron’s eighth and final book.

We are thankful Ron left us with so much of himself in the words he wrote and will think of him whenever we’re enjoying a footy match or tuning in to the latest sporting event on TV.

Our thoughts are with his family at this difficult time.

Kindest regards,

Michael, Jess, Sue-Ann and Cassie