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“I was initially not confident enough to pursue a career in journalism,” a modest Salim Valji stated from his newly furnished Calgary apartment. Amidst a pandemic, he moved across the country from Montreal to his home province of Alberta. There, he’ll now serve TSN as their latest Calgary Bureau Reporter. Publishing his first article in junior high school, Salim always possessed the journalistic abilities to bring him success.
Despite an undisputable aptitude for the medium, a lack of confidence dissuaded him from any journalistic aspirations. Instead, he focused his undergraduate studies on Education at MacEwan University and insisted writing was merely a leisurely activity.
“Being a teacher was always my number two, but I went to school to become a teacher anyway. I was freelancing for a website called The Hockey Writers and on my 19th birthday, I was at a Hockey Canada Event and I ended up meeting Mike Babcock. And you know, he gave me some really good practical advice; that my heart will always be a lot more into the writing and into sports journalism than teaching.”
Since that encounter, Salim Valji has contributed to The New York Times, The Montreal Gazette, CBC National News, CTV News, Concordia, and McGill University. Yet, by no means any of that would have ensued if not for that engagement with Mike Babcock. Internalizing Babcock’s advice, Salim took his studies to Concordia University in Montreal. Days off were scarce amid his period at Concordia. While in school, he worked in a museum’s communication department, Canada’s Aboriginals Affairs, Rogers Media, as an intern for the New York Rangers, and even briefly lived in France as an English Language Assistant and reporter for WAN-IRFA.
Regardless of where his work outside of school took him, or how many communities he engaged with, Montreal was now his home. Salim’s newfound residence soon overwhelmed his heart as he described his passion for the city on the phone.
“No matter the work, I always wanted to go back to Montreal. I just felt really comfortable there. I love the culture of Montreal and getting to speak a different language. The city is just so exciting to see with all of its festivals and pretty summers.”
Over a three-year span, Salim repaid his love to Montreal by reporting for nearly every publication the city has to offer. He worked for CBC News, CTV News, and The Montreal Gazette. While each experience was unlike the other, every opportunity provided a new way to evolve his broad range of skills. In 2017, Salim also began writing for The New York Times.
“I just reached out to The New York Times saying, hey, I’m a Canadian journalist, and I’m going to be in Paris from this date to this date. The World Hockey Championships are going to be there. So, I gave the Times a few ideas, and they didn’t take those ideas. Instead, they said, ‘Hey, we have a story that one of our contributors in Germany is working on, but we need help getting interviews in Paris with players and whatnot.’ So, it was really just a matter of finding the email address for the editor and cold pitching her, and it worked out.”
Shortly after he arrived in France, Salim covered the French Presidential Elections, the World Hockey Championship, and the Olympic negotiations with the International Ice Hockey Federation all in a single day. In addition to conducting over a dozen interviews for not only The New York Times but additionally for Concordia Reports, he co-wrote a story and spent 40 minutes on air. This round-the-clock coverage Salim experienced was only a glimpse into the contributions he later provided to The New York Times. Salim illustrates issues that no one else in hockey is covering. He meticulously blends the traits of an investigative reporter with a sports journalist, producing a unique take on sports in pieces like The Expensive Cost of Minor Hockey, The Formation of the Hockey Diversity Alliance, and an NHL Game’s First-ever Broadcast in Plains Cree.
“It isn’t just about the games anymore. It’s a lot more complicated. And I know for a lot of people that want to be sports journalists, they might not want to write about news or other things that aren’t sports. Just kind of racism and inclusively. That kind of stuff hasn’t really been covered in sports journalism consistently. It’s definitely a passion for me, just being a darker-skinned person covering a lot of sports. You feel like you’re in the minority, and the Montreal media is full of a lot of great people, but it’s not a particularly diverse group. So, I definitely noticed that early on in my career. I sort of built that niche for myself, and I think people noticed, and that led to more opportunities.”
In 2020, TSN appointed Salim as their Calgary Bureau Reporter. Starting as an Associate Producer & Statistician, his adaptability and awareness for a story have garnered him the recognition he deserves. As countless other reporters plainly recap last night’s game, Salim dives deeper into the hockey world. With a diverse understanding of hockey and the people in it, Salim Valji uses his platform to broadcast the stories that matter most to the hockey community and the ones that deserve the spotlight.
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