Anthony Hanc: capturing movement

The Englishman participated to the Rhine-Ruhr 2025 FISU World University Games as a Young Photographer. He picked one of his pictures to enter the Young Reporter – Photographer category of the AIPS Sport Media Awards and finished fifth. Let’s see who holds the camera.

Anthony Hanc is a sports and photography lover from England. Like everyone his age, he comes across life changing opportunities on social media. That is how he found out about the FISU Young Photographers Programme and covered the Rhine-Ruhr 2025 FISU World University Games. Let’s press rewind and play…

Anthony, tell us a few words about yourself, your love of sports and photography…

My name is Anthony Hanc, although many people know me by my nickname, Antosh. Growing up, I enjoyed playing a variety of sports, including football and field hockey, as well as watching all kinds of sports on television or in person. My love of photography developed a little later. Whether I was on holiday or simply exploring my local area, I would often borrow my parents’ old DSLR camera and take photos of whatever caught my eye.

According to you, what makes a sports picture stand out?

It needs to immediately grab your attention and make you wonder how it was taken. Composition and perspective play a huge role. The choice of angle, framing, and timing can completely change how a moment is viewed. Sometimes it’s about being in the right position to capture an unusual perspective, while other times it’s about using the surroundings, light, or background to add more context to the image. These elements can turn a good action shot into something much more memorable.

How did you learn your art? Self-taught? Practice? Mentoring?

It started out as a largely self-taught journey. It was just me and a camera, learning what all the buttons did, how the different settings worked, and developing an understanding of composition and photography fundamentals through trial and error. That growing interest eventually led me to study photography at university.

By the second year of my degree, I had decided to focus primarily on sports photography. To gain experience, I photographed matches at my local non-league football club, covered fixtures for Oxford Brookes University BUCS teams, and took on as many opportunities as I could. Each experience taught me something new, helping me learn from my mistakes, refine my workflow, and continue improving as a photographer.

Some of Anthony Hanc's work at the Rhine-Ruhr 2025 FISU World University Games

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How did you hear about the FISU Young Photographers Programme?

While scrolling through Instagram stories, I saw Lukas Schulze (the future mentor) share the opportunity. I spent the next few days gathering my portfolio, updating the required materials, and making sure all the application details were in order. Looking back, I’m incredibly glad I saw that Instagram story when I did, as it ultimately led to all of this!

Had you heard about FISU and the World University Games before that?

I first became aware of FISU while studying at university. Through volunteering as a sports photographer at Oxford Brookes I was exposed to BUCS (British Universities & Colleges Sport), the national governing body for university sport in the United Kingdom. I would occasionally come across references to FISU, but at the time, it was only a passing awareness. After seeing and hearing about the Young Reporters Programme, I understood that FISU events were huge within university sport.

How was your experience in Germany?

Nearly nine months on from the Games, it remains, without a doubt, one of my greatest experiences to this day. It’s not every day that you get the opportunity to travel to another country and immerse yourself in an international sporting event, all while developing your sports photography skills alongside an experienced tutor and nine other talented young photographers.



I still have so many fond memories of my time in Essen and the surrounding areas—from spending time with my fellow photographers and the Young Sports Media Talents from the other programmes, to visiting the Zollverein UNESCO World Heritage Site, and taking part in our late-night image review sessions after each day’s events.



Every day brought something new. Whether it was photographing sporting disciplines I had never encountered before and learning the rules on the fly, or tackling the daily photographic challenges set by our mentor, Lukas, which encouraged us to think creatively, step outside our comfort zones, and avoid becoming too fixated on a single idea or perspective.

The experiences, friendships, and countless memorable moments made the programme truly unique and unforgettable.

What motivated you to enter the AIPS competition?

My application for the AIPS Young Reporters Photography category can be traced back to our group chat in Germany, where Lukas shared various competitions and opportunities that we could apply for. Among them was the AIPS Young Reporters Photography category, so I decided to submit an entry.

Choosing which image to enter proved to be the hardest part. After much deliberation, I eventually chose the photograph that had been selected as Photo of the Day during the Games. Even then, I never expected it to progress very far. To be longlisted was already a huge surprise, but to ultimately finish in the Top 5 of the category was beyond anything I had imagined.

Will this be a hobby or your career do you think?

At the moment, it is still very much a hobby, but I hope that one day I can turn it into a career. There is still plenty for me to learn and improve on, as a photographer, in the work I produce, and individually, but that’s all part of the journey.

My focus is on continuing to gain experience, enjoying the opportunities that come my way, and constantly challenging myself to improve. With every shoot, I try to learn something new and produce work that is better than what I’ve done before. That’s what motivates me to keep developing and pushing myself forward.

What would be your advice for anyone wanting to follow your footsteps?

My piece of advice would be to just get started and make the most of every opportunity available to you. When I first began, I wasn’t covering major sporting events or working with professional teams. I was photographing local non-league football matches, university sports, and anything else I could gain access to. Every event, no matter how small, was an opportunity to learn and improve.

Don’t be afraid to make mistakes either. Some of my biggest improvements have come from looking back at photographs that didn’t quite work and understanding why. Photography is a constant learning process, and there is always something new to develop, whether that’s your technical skills, creativity, or workflow.

I’d also recommend being curious, asking questions, connecting with photographers, and being open and friendly to others. Many of the opportunities I’ve had have come through people I’ve met along the way.