[Other Sport] BBC Sports Personality 2023

[hans kraay fan club]

Was and drew past tense. Very much tomorrows chips papers now. That said I don't know one bloke who watched any of the womens world cup so I'm not sure I agree men were that interested in it. It seemed to me to be watched by the part time sports fans that appear for two weeks during Wimbledon fortnight and for the four weeks the Olympics is on. The rest of the time no one follows tennis or athletics over here. What are the viewing figures for the WSL each week? Few thousand if that?

Domestically it's still a niche sport IMO. It gets far more media coverage than it should based on it's popularity and that is down to England doing well in the world cup/euros and it still isn't taking off. You've only got to look at our own club, what do they get at Crawley? Couple of thousand if that. Certainly not viable to warrant playing at the Amex.



I don't disagree and I've no issue if this Earps woman wins it. The point I was making was compared to what sports personality was to what it is now it's a real shame. 20 years ago I would never have looked at the list and not known half the people on it. We used to watch it down the pub. I can't remember the last time I bothered.

It's a bit like Christmas number one these days....does anyone still care?

Seb Coe, Steve Ovett, Paula Radcliffe, Daley Thompson, Fatima Whitbread amongst others all won it, during the ‘golden era’ of SPOTY you’re reminiscing about. So did John Curry, Torvill and Dean, and Virginia Wade.

NOBODY watches domestic athletics, ice skating or tennis in this country - neither then, nor now. They’d all be delighted to pull in even the type of crowds the Albion women get at Crawley. They all won the award because they achieved great things at one single high profile event (Olympics / World Championship / etc) - no different really to Earps getting to the World Cup final and winning the FIFA goalkeeper of the year award

 

[Flagship]

There's only one true winner for me and he's not on the shortlist. He won a special award last year but how much does a person need to do to win the accolade he deserves.

KEVIN SINFIELD - rugby league legend, international rugby union coach, ultra marathon runner, fundraiser extraordinaire, admired internationally, loved by everyone. A true British hero, self depreciating, humble, understated and a proper sporting and civil roll model.

 

[Iggle Piggle]

Why is Frankie Dettori on the list? Forgive my ignorance but he is not British is he? He moved here as a kid but I don’t think he ever became a citizen. Shouldn’t he win overseas? Or are we claiming him as British? Please don’t go down an immigration/brexit etc chat - I am just curious.

Mary Earps will win.

Frankie is as Italian as an Italian can be. Born in Milan to Italian parents, he is Italian as Expresso, emotional outbursts and chasing women. I guess everyone's forgotten. That said, his list of achievements is something else albeit he took part in sports washing before sports washing was a thing riding for Sheik Mo. It's as rags to riches as the Bournemouth tale.

As for SPOTY it used to be must watch telly but I don't really know why. Princess Anne and Zara Philips have won it FFS. I guess it's always been a bit shit but I've only just realised it

 

[Bodian]

Her campaign is going well…..

Or maybe she is just a nice person!?

 

[dazzer6666]

Or maybe she is just a nice person!?

Yep, think so

 

[Brovion]

I don't remember Broad doing much of particular note in the last year other than bowling a load of no balls that cost us the first test against Australia.

Agreed. 'Lifetime Achievement' award, yes, 100% deserved. Sports personality of 2023? No. Well he IS a 'personality', I suppose and there is that whole debate about whether it's the personality or the achievement that matters most (factoring in the sport and the level of competition), but he really shouldn't win it.

Earps for me. I appreciate that ultimately she comes under the heading of 'plucky loser', but blimey, Gazza won it in 1990 and all he really did was burst into tears.

 

[Hugo Rune]

This is the best line up for years. Actual Sports Stars with personality.

I’m very much in the camp of giving the award to the best achievement in British sport, I think this was the intention 70 years ago when the award was divised but clearly the word ‘personality’ positions these awards more in the ‘celebrity jungle’ area than sporting achievement.

On that basis, the line up is very, very poor this year. Where are world champions, the gold medal winners, the record breakers?

I appreciate it’s a brilliant line-up under your metric but I’d take sporting achievement over ‘personality’ every time.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

I’m torn between Mary Earps and Alfie Hewitt. Both deserve it imo, and I won’t be disappointed if either win.

 

[Littlemo]

I’m very much in the camp of giving the award to the best achievement in British sport, I think this was the intention 70 years ago when the award was divised but clearly the word ‘personality’ positions these awards more in the ‘celebrity jungle’ area than sporting achievement.

On that basis, the line up is very, very poor this year. Where are world champions, the gold medal winners, the record breakers?

I appreciate it’s a brilliant line-up under your metric but I’d take sporting achievement over ‘personality’ every time.

I agree, I prefer it to be done on sporting achievement really. I would have liked to have seen Josh Kerr at least in the line up, he won the World Championships at 1500m and beat the Olympic Champion in doing so, a pretty decent achievement.

 

[rippleman]

But insulting our intelligence by adopting an Emperor's New Clothes attendance approach isn't likely to help.

You mean like Barber inflated the attendences at the Amex for years? That kind of insult to our intelligence?

 

[Arthur]

Seb Coe, Steve Ovett, Paula Radcliffe, Daley Thompson, Fatima Whitbread amongst others all won it, during the ‘golden era’ of SPOTY you’re reminiscing about. So did John Curry, Torvill and Dean, and Virginia Wade.

All won stuff at the Olympics. Which in some peoples eyes is the greatest sporting event in the world. So not really seeing your point. Especially given the point you make below.

Also it was a much better era for athletics because they were portrayed in the media as superheroes. If you asked the average person to name a British olympian they would be the names you've mentioned above and not Johnson-Thompson or whatever her name is.

NOBODY watches domestic athletics, ice skating or tennis in this country - neither then, nor now. They’d all be delighted to pull in even the type of crowds the Albion women get at Crawley. They all won the award because they achieved great things at one single high profile event (Olympics / World Championship / etc) - no different really to Earps getting to the World Cup final and winning the FIFA goalkeeper of the year award

Correct. Pretty much exactly what I said.

 

[hart's shirt]

You mean like Barber inflated the attendences at the Amex for years? That kind of insult to our intelligence?

Yes, the pretendances were faintly ridiculous IMHO. They weren't likely to result in anything other than fan eye rolling disbelief.

That said, at least the official numbers were announced on the same day rather than trying to conceal the inconvenient ones!

 

[hans kraay fan club]

All won stuff at the Olympics. Which in some peoples eyes is the greatest sporting event in the world. So not really seeing your point. Especially given the point you make below.

Also it was a much better era for athletics because they were portrayed in the media as superheroes. If you asked the average person to name a British olympian they would be the names you've mentioned above and not Johnson-Thompson or whatever her name is.

That's not true. Neither Fatima Whitbread or Paula Radcliffe ever won an Olympic title. Radcliffe never won an Olympic medal of any colour. The year she won SPOTY (2002) she won a Commonwealth Games title, though.

It wasn't so much a 'much better' era for athletics - it just had a higher media profile, in comparison to other sports, because the mass sports-specific media that we have now did not exist. Now there is infinitely more competition for media attention, and much more sports media space to fill - and the public's attention will be grabbed by the sports (and sportspersons) that the media they consume, choose to promote.

That was every bit as true of each of those past SPOTY winners I listed from your 'golden era' as it would be of Mary Earps as a winner now.

 

[Arthur]

That's not true. Neither Fatima Whitbread or Paula Radcliffe ever won an Olympic title. Radcliffe never won an Olympic medal of any colour. The year she won SPOTY (2002) she won a Commonwealth Games title, though.

I bow down to your superior knowledge of running, jumping and throwing.

It wasn't so much a 'much better' era for athletics - it just had a higher media profile, in comparison to other sports, because the mass sports-specific media that we have now did not exist. Now there is infinitely more competition for media attention, and much more sports media space to fill - and the public's attention will be grabbed by the sports (and sportspersons) that the media they consume, choose to promote.

Well you've just repeated what I said but surely a higher media profile is a good thing for any sport......a bit like womens football currently?

That was every bit as true of each of those past SPOTY winners I listed from your 'golden era' as it would be of Mary Earps as a winner now.

The difference being I've heard of Fatima Whitbread and Paula Radcliff. I'd never heard of Mary Earps or any of the other women footballers in the list (and it's a lot of them) until the other day when I googled them. Likewise the wheelchair tennis bloke and one other who was equally unmemorable.

 

[Mo Gosfield]

Mary Earps....1/14 on to win it......geez.....have they forgotten her recent howler that played a big part in them not making the semi's or Olympics?
Has there ever been a poorer year for potential candidates.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Fatboy Slim getting royalties as the opener features Right Here, Right Now.

 

[Randy McNob]

Mary Earps....1/14 on to win it......geez.....have they forgotten her recent howler that played a big part in them not making the semi's or Olympics?
Has there ever been a poorer year for potential candidates.

been worse winners

Zara Tindall
Mark Cavendish
Ryan Giggs

 

[Eeyore]

I’m torn between Mary Earps and Alfie Hewitt. Both deserve it imo, and I won’t be disappointed if either win.

I didn't know who Alfie Hewitt was, but having looked him up he's won a lot this year. Two majors.

 

[dazzer6666]

been worse winners

Zara Tindall
Mark Cavendish
Ryan Giggs

Cavendish won the world championship the year he got SPOTY, and the TdeF Green Jersey

 

[KZNSeagull]

been worse winners

Zara Tindall
Mark Cavendish
Ryan Giggs

And Beckham beating Ellen MacArthur.