Sports Personality of the year - Divide and Conquer

[coolhand]

I see that the BBC has decided, yet again, that they don’t want a golfer to win SPOTY.

Having been successful with the tactic last year, this year they’ve given us 3 to choose from. No doubt total votes for a golfer will be more than any other sport but on an individual basis no of them will get enough.

My guess is Mark Cavendish.

 

[Slab]

Yup, it looks a shoe in for Cavendish

Without wishing to hijack the thread in anyway but if you had to remove two golfers to consolidate the golf vote which two would fall?


For me first out would be Rory (as much as he may be the most watchable) & 2nd is tougher but Luke out too leaving Darren's Open acomplishment as the one to vote for

 

[bluewolf]

I'd leave rors in. I don't think anyone since tiger has appealed to more people outside the game. Even my 4 year old daughter watches golf when Rory is playing.

 

[Imurg]

From what I heard it's not the BBC that decide the shortlist.
They get writers, broadcasters, media and sports people to vote, then collate and publish the top 10.
No Women either in the 10.

 

[pendodave]

even if there was only one golfer, I'd still vote for Cavendish.

Mind you, when you consider the dross that wins some years (zara phillips anyone ?????), whoever loses this year could consider themselves a bit unlucky.

 

[PaulE]

Why on earth do the BBC feel the need to have Andy Murray on the list?

What has he achieved this year?
What about Dario Franchitti? Won his 4th Indycar title this year and 3rd in a row?
Or Kevin Sinfield? Model professional in his sport and helped drag his team from nowhere to Super League Champions.
Oh, and Cavendish for the win.

 

[Dodger]

Who gives a toss?

Genuinely who cares? It is a total mickey mouse award,just look at some of the folk that have won it despite doing hee haw during the year.

 

[Imurg]

From what I heard it's not the BBC that decide the shortlist.
They get writers, broadcasters, media and sports people to vote, then collate and publish the top 10.

Why on earth do the BBC feel the need to have Andy Murray on the list?

What has he achieved this year?
What about Dario Franchitti? Won his 4th Indycar title this year and 3rd in a row?
Or Kevin Sinfield? Model professional in his sport and helped drag his team from nowhere to Super League Champions.
Oh, and Cavendish for the win.

I refer the Honourable Gentleman to my previous statement.
The BBC don't choose who's on the list, the just televise it and dish out the awards.

 

[Dodger]

And why is it called 'personality of the year'?.....there have been plenty winners who have zero personality.

Mickey Moose.

 

[Hobbit]

If I could be bothered voting it would be Luke. Leading money winner both sides of the pond.

 

[pbrown7582]

How about some tactical voting? Maybe we could run a poll on here and the winner gets all the forum votes?

 

[Monty_Brown]

Taken as a whole, it looks like a way of splitting the vote...

But, in any ordinary year wouldn't each of their exploits get them nominated? Winning a major would get the nod, hence Rors and Darren, then getting to World No1 and topping both money lists is also clearly worth a nomination for Luke. So, when you break it down, and in a year where Brits have hardly set the world alight in otehr sports (Cav apart), they are logical inclusions.

Cavendish for me any way.

 

[Lawrence22]

Why on earth do the BBC feel the need to have Andy Murray on the list?

What has he achieved this year?
What about Dario Franchitti? Won his 4th Indycar title this year and 3rd in a row?
Or Kevin Sinfield? Model professional in his sport and helped drag his team from nowhere to Super League Champions.
Oh, and Cavendish for the win.

Agree totally. If Darren or Rory had finished 2nd, 3rd or 4 th in those majors they would not be nominated so why does Murray get the nod?

 

[Monty_Brown]

Agree totally. If Darren or Rory had finished 2nd, 3rd or 4 th in those majors they would not be nominated so why does Murray get the nod?

Because of his wonderful personality!

 

[Snelly]

What has Andy Murray done to be in this list? Absolutely nothing apart from lose the Australian Open final and he looks like a clinically depressed horse so hardly Mr Charisma....


The real superstar in 2011 with a racket is Nick Matthew.

Who is he? He is the number 1 squash player in the world. This year, he became only the second Englishman to become world No 1. He also won gold at the Commonwealth Games then won the World Open. This is the biggest championship in the sport and he became the first bloke to win back to back opens since Khan in 1985.
20 million people play squash globally in 185 countries and we have a genuine great in our midst in Nick. Shocking that he doesn't even make the shortlist. Good article here by Frank Keating in the Guardian on the subject - http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/2011/nov/15/nick-matthew-squash-world-open


And the fact that there are no women in the top 10 is not right either. Chrissie Wellington deserves a mention.

And Alistair Brownlee.

The two latter names being world champion triathletes.


Ever since SPOTY had a shortlist it has been a joke. Much better when you just submitted your opinion without being guided like sheep by a list derived from UK publications. Pathetic really when you consider that the Manchester Evening News put forward Toure and Berbatov as their candidates for the award!


Lastly, I forgot to say what a travesty it is to see a paragon of sporting virtue missing from the list - Mr John Terry!

 

[DaveM]

Its a case of if your face fits. I remember one year. We had done nowt in the mainstream sports field. But we had won the world campionship plus the idevidual world champ three times in a row. But guess what they never even got an invite to the event. Why because it was angling

 

[Snelly]

I guess Mike Tindall's late rush to be included wasn't enough either!?

 

[PaulE]

I refer the Honourable Gentleman to my previous statement.
The BBC don't choose who's on the list, the just televise it and dish out the awards.

Ooops, I missed that bit, but the sentiment still stands.
For many years it's been a sham.
It's nothing more than an excuse for the not so great and good of British sport to pat themselves on the back for generally under-achieving in their chosen field of mediocrity.

 

[USER1999]

I'm surprised Rob Andrew hasn't been nominated, or Jonno.

 

[tommyangles]

I’m with the Hobbit, out of the golfers it has got to be Donaldwith his achievements but not really Mr Personality.

Joke of a competition with Gary Lineker smarming for acouple of hours... although the sports review clips make a welcome break from It’s a Wonderful Life and Mary Poppins !!