The Chairman of the AFL Commission, Mike Fitzpatrick today paid tribute to former journalist and sports historian Harry Gordon who passed away last night on the Gold Coast.

Mr Fitzpatrick said:

“Harry Gordon was one of Australia’s most distinguished and respected journalists having served as Editor of The Sun News Pictorial and Editor in Chief of the Herald and Weekly Times and Queensland Newspapers.

“He was a war correspondent during the Korean War and also had a passion for Australian sport, particularly the Olympics and football as a passionate supporter of the Hawthorn Football Club.

“His interest in the Olympic Games began when he covered the Helsinki Olympics in 1952 and he went on to author some 15 books, most of them on the Olympics.

“One of his best works, however was titled ‘The Hard Way, the history of Hawthorn FC which was published in 1990 and in terms of its quality and insights into Hawthorn remains a benchmark publication for our game.

“Harry’s interest in our game saw him serve as an inaugural member of the Australian Football Hall of Fame selection committee from 1996 until his retirement in 2008.

“On behalf of the AFL community, I wish to extend our deepest sympathy to Harry’s wife Joy and children Michael, John and Sally”.