Sports Personality of the Year 2009

[andypat]

I suppose the argument would be (rightly or wrongly I should add) that womens cricket is not played at the same level professionally ie - theres less competition so winning "the ashes" is not in fact the same as the mens team winning "same" competition.

Dont get me started on womens tennis now......

[Mrs H]

I think there was a case for awarding the team award to British Cricket per se. I think there was a precedent for this after a recent Olympics when everyone in a boat seemed to be included in the team prize, whether they were canoeists, sailors or rowers, men or women.

[seabird]

I suppose the argument would be (rightly or wrongly I should add) that womens cricket is not played at the same level professionally ie - theres less competition so winning "the ashes" is not in fact the same as the mens team winning "same" competition.

Doesn't strike me that Men's cricket has much more competition than Women's cricket. There's precious little international competition in either. The Ashes have a totemic significance out of all proportion to its worth. England just scraped through and were useless in the single innings game against the same opposition.

I was quite amazed they were even in the final pot. The women's achievement, of which I have to admit I was previously ignorant , seemed far more profound.

[Tatty]

Must agree re the women's cricket team. what more could they do. No way should it have gone to the men's team, for one flukey series win

[AndyC]

I think it is about expectations -we know our ladies are the best around (not just at cricket- in general) but we know that for the men "England Middle order collapse" is one word- so when they win something we're amazed.

[AMc]

Had there been an award for lifetime achievement then he should have been entered there.

But there is a lifetime achievement award. Why wasn't he entered for that?

[SYO Member]

It may be for this reason that he got the top prize. The BBC are moving 2,500 staff from Television Centre, London to Salford Quays in 2011 and this includes BBC Sport, most of whom don't want to go.

So they'll be within a couple of miles of Old Trafford, home of Manchester United, the most well known football club in the world. But they won't be welcome there or able to interview anyone as the BBC is banned after including Fergie's son in a program about football agents 4 years ago.

So to curry favour with Old Trafford, they included Ryan Giggs in the 10 candidates knowing that the vast majority of people who vote in these things would be watching X-Factor. But diehard Manchester United fans, and there are enough of them whether they're X-Factor fans or not, would ensure one of their players became SPOTY.

In addition, if or when Giggs is a panellist at the World Cup next summer, the BBC can boast that they have the SPOTY on their panel.

So the voter manipulation isn't much different from when you filled in a form in the Radio Times for whoever you wanted, even though the winner would be a champion from the 'sport' of angling who had been nominated by angling magazines. And this was always suppressed by the BBC so that the person with the second highest number of votes became SPOTY!

[Dave]

yes. that is obiously the reason. well done you.

[awk]

Gave up watching ages ago. This year just underlined why. A great lifetime achievement by Giggs, no arguments. Of the Year? Shouldn't have even been on the shortlist.

England men's cricket team, team of the year. A joke.

Loads and loads of coverage for BBC sports (that's what it's really about). Nothing if you aren't one of the privileged few.

Achievement of the year? Well, Wiggins was superb, and he's one of my heroes, but for me, he and the other short listers were outstripped by Steve Peat winning the World Downhill. After 16 years at the top and as one of the oldest competitors on the circuit, that WAS an achievement, and culmination of a great sporting career.
At least someone got it right: http://www.stevepeat.com/?p=378#more-378

[geomorph]

Had there been an award for lifetime achievement then he should have been entered there.

But there is a lifetime achievement award. Why wasn't he entered for that?

whoops
should have checked that out. Even worse than my navigation