Simon Bruty

2016 Honoree / Achievement In Sports

Preparation or luck? Simon Bruty often asks himself this question when he makes a good photograph, whether he is at a local kids soccer game or the end zone at an NFL game. Thirty years ago he joined Allsport, a boutique sports agency based in London and Santa Monica, where he learned from some of the best photographers in Britain. It was there he made the “rugby punch” picture at a local rugby game that would launch his career by being chosen as a year-end picture in Sports Illustrated in 1989. Assignments quickly followed: Grand Slam tennis, every Olympic Games since Seoul, Zambian soccer, World Cup soccer, Ryder Cup golf, golf in Greenland, the NFL season, and on and on. Mr. Bruty was an original member of  The European, a full-color weekly newspaper. In 1994 Mr. Bruty moved to the United States to cover the World Cup tournament that year. In 1998 he accepted a staff position with Sports Illustrated where he honed his portraiture skills and his documentarian approach. Michael Phelps has been a frequent subject, from the depths of the Baltimore Aquarium to the infamous portrait of Phelps with his record-breaking eight gold medals. Along with his 82 Sports Illustrated covers, Mr. Bruty has earned awards from the World Press Foundation, Pictures of the Year International, and the International Olympic Committee.