Winmar mediation case 'resolved' but more to be done
Nicky Winmar said mediation in his race case with three prominent AFL figures had gone well but there was more to be done before the issue was settled.
Veteran journalist Mike Sheahan, television personality Sam Newman and former Hawthorn captain Don Scott appeared in a mediation session which lasted almost six hours on Friday after Winmar, the St Kilda great, and photographer Wayne Ludbey were outraged by the comments the three men had made on their podcast, questioning why Winmar had lifted his guernsey in a 1993 clash against Collingwood at Victoria Park.
Nicky Winmar arrives on Friday.Credit:Joe Armao
"I am happy it's resolved but we still have to work on a few things," Winmar said.
Sheahan, Newman and Scott had drafted apologies and the episode in question on their podcast will be removed. They will also make a formal apology on their next episode, although Sheahan this week apologised on air and quit his role.
“I just wanna say I’m black and I’m proud and I want to thank the rest of Australia for supporting this,” Winmar said.
‘I was very disappointed [with the comments]. It’s been a very emotional last few weeks. I believe in what I said.”
Stan Grant, the prominent broadcaster and Indigenous leader, and retired Federal Court judge Raymond Finkelstein led the mediation at the offices of Arnold Bloch Leibler, where lawyer Leon Zwier, representing Winmar and Ludbey, is based.
Winmar's jumper-lifting moment is regarded as one of the iconic moments in VFL-AFL history, coming as the Indigenous star took a stand against racial abuse. However, Sheahan, Newman and Scott had questioned on their podcast whether his actions were more about the Saints enjoying a breakthrough win at the venue.
Don Scott and Sam Newman on Friday.Credit:Joe Armao
Winmar was angry that he had been subjected to this questioning all these years later. He and Ludbey had threatened legal action, potentially arguing defamation.
Ludbey's photograph of Winmar lifting his guernsey and pointing at his skin – originally published in The Sunday Age – has become one of the famous images in VFL-AFL history.
Bruce Guthrie, the former Sunday Age editor, took to social media to reinforce Ludbey's stance.
"Wayne Ludbey has been absolutely consistent on this for 27 years: Nicky Winmar was very definitely making a statement about racism that day. Wayne saw it, heard it and snapped it. It’s why I put the image on page one of The Sunday Age the next day," he wrote on Twitter.
Sheahan has apologised for his remarks and has quit the podcast.
Ludbey and Sheahan worked together at The Sunday Age and later at the Herald Sun, where Sheahan was the long-time chief AFL reporter.