Pictures of the Year Internationa 83 Winners List

We are honored to announce the winners. The awards recognize the best in the field of photojournalism in 2025.

POY was hosted virtually Feb. 9 to March 2, 2026, at the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute and the Missouri School of Journalism.

Credits appear as they were submitted. Please send updates to: info@poyi.org.

Pictures of the Year International is a program of the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute and the Missouri School of Journalism.

NEWS DIVISION

General News

• First Place – Carol Guzy, ZUMA Press, "Tender Humanity"
• Finalist – Carol Guzy, ZUMA Press, "Traumatized"
• Finalist – Luis Tato, Agence France-Presse, "Mass Burial in Bukavu"
• Finalist – Ali Jadallah, Anadolu Agency, "Gaza Stands Between Ruins, Hunger, and Loss"
• Finalist – Jae C. Hong, Associated Press, "Walking Amid Destruction"
• Award of Excellence – Navesh Chitrakar, Reuters, "Nepal's 'Gen Z' Protest"
• Award of Excellence – Ali Jadallah, Anadolu Agency, "Gaza Stands Between Ruins, Hunger, and Loss"
• Award of Excellence – Saher Alghorra, The New York Times, "A Young Patient at Al-Quds Hospital"
• Award of Excellence – Eyad Baba, Agence France-Presse, "Palestinian-Israel-Cconflict"

Spot News

• First PLace – Tyrone Siu, Reuters, "Desperate Plea Amid Hong Kong's Deadliest Fire"
• Finalist – Ali Jadallah, Anadolu Agency, "At least 80 Palestinians killed and dozens injured as Israel conducts strikes in Gaza Strip"
• Finalist – Alex Kent, Independent, "Columbia University Alumna Arrested during Pro Palestine Protests"
• Finalist – Ethan Swope, Associated Press, "Wildfire Evacuation"
• Award of Excellence – Umit Bektas, Independent, "Whirling against Pepper Spray”
• Award of Excellence – Luis Tato, Agence France-Presse, "Stampede during State Funeral"
• Award of Excellence – Alexander R Kormann, The Minnesota Star Tribune, "Lockdown"

Daily Life

• First Place – Laurie Skrivan, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "Feeding the Cat"
• Finalist – RJ Sangosti, The Denver Post, "Everly"
• Finalist – Erin Schaff, The New York Times, "Adapting to Life After ICE Arrested Their Mother"
• Finalist – Carolyn Van Houten, The Washington Post, "The Ballistic and the Boy"
• Finalist – Jahi Chikwendiu, The Washington Post, "Tanner’s Song: He’s Dying. She’s Pregnant"
• Award of Excellence – Ugur Yildirim, Demirören Medya (DİA İMAGES), "Lost Generation"
• Award of Excellence – Bruno Thevenin, Independent, "“Noor” means “Light.”"
• Award of Excellence – Laurie Skrivan, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "Sleeping in the Car"
• Award of Excellence – Maho nan, Independent, "Eid Morning Day"

Daily Life Picture Story

• First Place – Noémi Napsugár Melegh, Telex, "Remains of Us"
• Finalist – Akos Stiller, Panos Pictures, "This Is Our Life Now"
• Finalist – Craig F. Walker, The Boston Globe, "The Last Middle School"
• Finalist – Ryan Garza, Detroit Free Press, "Two Square Miles"
• Finalist – Kim Kyung-Hoon, REUTERS, "A Woman Who Married an AI"
• Award of Excellence – Craig F. Walker, The Boston Globe, "In the Shadow of ICE"
• Award of Excellence – Erin Clark, The Boston Globe, "Where Music Meets the Shore"
• Award of Excellence – Ivan Kashinsky, Panos Pictures, "Spaghetti Cumbia"
• Award of Excellence – Amanda Cowan, The Columbian, "Turning Grief Into Purpose"

Local News Picture Story

• First Place – Jonah Markowitz, The New York Times, "Trauma Among NYC Subway Operators After Train Strikes"
• Finalist – UGUR YILDIRIM, Demirören Medya (DİA İMAGES), "Anatolia: Dry summer"
• Finalist – Mario Tama, Getty Images, "After the Ashes, Altadena"
• Award of Excellence – Ali Haj Suleiman, Independent, "A Fight for the Truth"
• Award of Excellence – Albert Słowiński, Independent, "Super Typhoon Ragasa hits Taiwan"
• Award of Excellence – Andres Kudacki, Commissioned by The Jersey Vindicator and Getty Images, "From Delaney Hall and beyond: The year in immigration enforcement and its human toll in NJ NY region"

Community Awareness Award

• First Place – Maddie McGarvey, Independent, "Legacy of Daughters"
• Finalist – Laetitia Vançon, The New York Times, "Rebuilding Faces, Lives and a Sense of Self"
• Finalist – Ryan Garza, Detroit Free Press, "Two Square Miles"
• Finalist – jahi chikwendiu, The Washington Post, "Tanner's Song: He's Dying. She's Pregnant"
• Award of Excellence – Elizabeth Flores, Minneapolis Star Tribune, "Fear and Esperanza (Hope)"

SPORTS AND PORTRAITS DIVISION

Sports Action

• First Place – Godofredo A. Vásquez, Associated Press, "Run Scored"
• Finalist – Steph Chambers, Getty Images, "Synchronization"
• Award of Excellence – Patrick Smith, Getty Images, "Denied"

Sports Life and Recreational Sports

• First Place – Joel Marklund, Bildbyrån Photo Agency, "Sarah Sjöström's Pregnancy"
• Finalist – Cem Genco, Anadolu Agency, "Despite everything, sports"
• Finalist – Adam Pretty, Getty Images, "Go Coco!"
• Award of Excellence – Sarah Stier, Getty Images, "A Silent Reaction"

Sports Picture Story

• First Place – Grace Smith, The Indianapolis Star, "Unmatched"
• Finalist – Scott Strazzante, San Francisco Chronicle, "Fighting for a Family"
• Finalist – Adriana Zehbrauskas, VII Foundation, "Escaramuza"
• Award of Excellence – Alexander R Kormann, The Minnesota Star Tribune, "Living a Legacy"

Portrait (Singles)

• First Place – Carol Guzy, ZUMA Press, "ICE"
• Finalist – Anna Connors, Independent, "LucaJill-Portrait"
• Finalist – David Goldman, Associated Press, "Infrared in Exile"
• Award of Excellence – James Clifford Kent, Yuma Studios, "Neisser Yoel Gálvez Tabares, Pinar del Río, Cuba, 2025."
• Award of Excellence – Craig F. Walker, The Boston Globe, "ICE"
• Award of Excellence – Jonah Markowitz, The New York Times, "Trauma Among NYC Subway Operators After Train Strikes"

Portrait Series

• First Place – Annie Flanagan, NBC News (ask about this, she was hired by them), "Jail Babies"
• Finalist – Marylise Vigneau, Anzenberger Agency Vienna, "Frontlines of Dignity, Shredded Skies and other Love Stories”
• Award of Excellence – Pavel Volkov, Izvestia, "Phoenix Rosarium"

Sports Photographer of the Year

• First Place – Tess Crowley, Deseret News
• Finalist – Joel Marklund, Bildbyran Photo Agency
• Award of Excellence – Grace Smith, The Indianapolis Star

REPORTAGE DIVISION

Science and Natural History (Singles)

• First Place – Marton Monus, Reuters, "Mayflies"
• Finalist – Elisabetta Zavoli, Independent, "Untitled"
• Award of Excellence – Loren Elliott, Independent, "San Francisco Coyotes"
• Award of Excellence – Ivan Kashinsky, Panos Pictures, "Pool"
• Award of Excellence – Justin Jin, Independent, "Untitled"
• Award of Excellence – Mark Mirko, Connecticut Public/WNPR, "Unfantastic Voyage"

Science and Natural History Picture Story

• First Place – Onur Coban, Panos Pictures, "On the Edge of the Sinkholes"
• Finalist – George Steinmetz, Independent, "China Goes Green"
• Award of Excellence – David Goldman, Associated Press, "Infrared Eye: Life Under Surveillance"
• Award of Excellence – barbara davidson, Independent, "Los Angeles On Fire: Echoes of Loss, Survival, and the Scars Left Behind"

Environmental Vision Award

• First Place – Loren Elliott, Independent, "The Coyotes of San Francisco"
• Finalist – Brais Lorenzo, Independent, "Burned Land"
• Award of Excellence – Onur Coban, Panos Pictures, "On the Edge of the Sinkholes"

World Understanding Award

• First Place – Cinzia Canneri, Independent, "Women's Bodies as Battlefields"
• Finalist – Jalal Shamsazaran, Independent, "The wind will take us away"
• Award of Excellence – Santi Donaire, Independent, "Blind Spot"
• Award of Excellence – Alessio Mamo, Independent, "The Forgotten Victim of War: Nature"

Issue Reporting Picture Story

• First Place – Carol Guzy, ZUMA Press, "Immigration Anguish”
• Finalist – George Steinmetz, Independent, "Companion Dolls get Artificial Intelligence"
• Finalist – Santiago Mesa, Panos Pictures, "Under the shadow of coca"
• Award of Excellence – Alexander Mahmoud, Dagens Nyheter, "The illegal psychologists"

National/International News Picture Story

• First Place – Saher Alghorra, Independent, "Gaza"
• Finalist – Stanislav Krupař, LAIF, "Eastern front of Ukraine"
• Finalist – David Guttenfelder, The New York Times, "New Syria"
• Award of Excellence – Moises Saman, Magnum Photos, "Sudan’s Crisis in the Shadows"

Impact 2025 Picture Story: The Political Divide

• First Place – Mark Abramson, Independent, "Emotional Glimpses of an Immigration Crackdown in a San Diego Courthouse"
• Finalist – Matt McClain, The Washington Post, "America 2025"
• Award of Excellence – Jessica Rinaldi, The Boston Globe, "A Reluctant Goodbye"
• Award of Excellence – Victor Blue, Independent, "ICE Falls on New York"

TEAM DIVISION

Newspaper Picture Editing

• First Place – Mona Boshnaq, The New York Times, "Exploring a New Syria"
• Finalist – Matej Leskovsek, The New York Times, "How Did the C.I.A. Lose A Nuclear Device Here?"
• Award of Excellence – Olivier Laurent, The Washington Post, "Crossroads of Conflict"
• Award of Excellence – Eve Edelheit, The New York Times, "Trump's War on Immigration"

Magazine Picture Editing

• First Place – Alexa Keefe, National Geographic, "Wildlife Trade"
• Finalist – Julie Hau, National Geographic, "Wood Ants"
• Finalist – Jessica Dimson, The New York Times Magazine, "The 36 Who Fought Back"
• Award of Excellence – Samantha Clark, National Geographic, "Sierra Nevada Climate"

Visual Editor of the Year

• First Place – Mona Boshnaq, The New York Times
• Finalist – Julie Hau, National Geographic
• Award of Excellence – Natalia Jiménez, The Washington Post

Angus McDougall Excellence in Editing Award

• First Place – The New York Times, DOP - Meaghan Looram
• Finalist – The Washington Post, DOP – Robert Miller
• Finalist – National Geographic, DOP - Alex Pollack
• Award of Excellence – Boston Globe, DOP - Bill Greene
• Award of Excellence – CNN, Deputy DOP - Brett Roegiers

Online Storytelling: Daily Life

• First Place – Laura Oliverio, Brett Roegiers nan, CNN, "The Scars of War"
• Finalist – Matt McCann, The New York Times, "Saving Children’s Eyesight and Their Future in Mozambique"
• Finalist – Jolie Ruben, The New York Times, "Time for ‘The Nutcracker’ and Brat Winter"
• Award of Excellence – Jennifer Pritheeva Samuel, The Washington Post, "She Came to the US for safety. Under Trump, she's gone back home."
• Award of Excellence – Kevin Martin, The Boston Globe, "Fiddle Island"
• Award of Excellence – Emily Jan, San Francisco Chronicle, "‘Answer to our ancestors’ prayers’"

Online Storytelling: News Reporting

• First Place – Jessica Dimson, The New York Times Magazine, "The 36 Who Fought Back"
• Finalist – Adam Dean, The New York Times, "Ravaged by War: Trying to Survive Gaza’s Present, Hoping for a Future"
• Finalist – Marie Monteleone, Bloomberg News, "Migrant Family Questions American Dream Under Trump"
• Award of Excellence – Olivier Laurent, The Washington Post, "Russia bombs Ukraine almost every night. This is what it sounds like."
• Award of Excellence – Emily Jan, San Francisco Chronicle, "A broken system is keeping California homes underinsured. Millions have no idea they’re at risk"

Photographer of the Year

• First Place – Erin Clark, The Boston Globe
• Finalist – Adriana Loureiro Fernandez, Independent
• Finalist – Craig F. Walker, The Boston Globe
• Finalist – Brontë Wittpenn, San Francisco Chronicle
• Award of Excellence – Matt McClain, The Washington Post
• Award of Excellence – Mario Tama, Getty Images

International Photographer of the Year

• First Place – David Guttenfelder, The New York Times
• Finalist – Emile Ducke, Independent
• Award of Excellence – Stanislav Krupař, LAIF
• Award of Excellence – Salwan Georges, Independent

DOCUMENTARY DIVISION

Documentary News Reporting (video)

• First Place – Beckey Bright, Independent, "How Los Angeles Police Officers Broke Protocols and Injured Protesters"
• Finalist – Elles van Gelder, NOS/Nieuwsuur, "A home lost: Sudanese return to their shattered capital"
• Award of Excellence – Julianne Varacchi, The Boston Globe, "Milford rallies around Marcelo Gomes after ICE detention"

Documentary Daily Life

• First Place – Brontë Wittpenn, San Francisco Chronicle, "Answer to Our Ancestors Prayers"
• Finalist – Ryan Caron King, Connecticut Public, "Band of Boomboxes"
• Award of Excellence – Kathleen Flynn, Independent, "A Child of Katrina Remembers Who Saved Him"

Documentary of the Year

• First Place – Beckey Bright, Independent, "How 'Turn and Burn' Immigration Operations Unleash Chaos — and Sweep Up U.S. Citizens"
• Finalist – Craig Renaud, HBO, "Armed Only With A Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud"
• Finalist – Andrea Cornejo, The Washington Post, "Facing terminal cancer with a baby on the way" Award of Excellence – Mauricio Rodríguez Pons, ProPublica, "Status: Venezuelan"