It is official! Stomp is the number one social networking and citizen media website.

This affirmation came at the inaugural Best in Online Media Award at the 7th IFRA Asia Media Awards held in Macau last night.

IFRA is a worldwide research and service organisation for the news publishing industry. As the only international organisation of its kind, more than 3000 members in about 70 countries utilize IFRA's concentrated know-how in the areas of organisation and process optimisation.

And the fight was not easy, for the less than two-year-old Singapore Press Holdings website was up against more experiences and established players like Australia's Fairfax Digital and Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post.

"I am gratified and glad that the hard work put in by the team has paid off," says Stomp editor Serene Siew, who received the award on behalf of the team.

"This will definitely spur us on to deliver even better content to our Stompers."

The Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) stable bagged 10 medals in all - six gold, two silvers and two bronzes, making it the newspaper's biggest haul.

SPH papers - The Business Times and Lianhe Zaobao, won awards for colour quality, a key indicator of excellence in printing.

Icon Singapore, published by SPH Magazines, won gold for being the Best Magazine Overall Design.

Journalists from the Straits Times picked up two awards for photography and one for writing.

Photojournalist Lim Wui Liang, received a gold award in Best In Photojournalism (Spot News) for his photograph of the aftermath of a traffic accident.

Alan Lim, won a silver award in the Feature Photography category for his picture of a jockey and horse at the Turf Club.

Lastly, China Correspondent Sim Chi Yin, picked up the bronze for a special report she wrote on Indonesian women who leave home to be maids abroad.