SPOTY - Shortlist Monday

[Gargamel]

BBC are due to annouce the list on Monday, so who would you have ?

Personally I can't look past Mark Cavendish - super year and an amazing guy.

[5pen]

Apart from Cavendish it's golfers that spring to mind - Rory McIlroy will be one of the favourites I'd imagine along with Darren Clarke.

Mo Farah I'd expect to be in the shortlist but probably not win it.

Alastair Cook had an incredible Ashes series but that straddled 2010 & 2011 and at least part of it was before last year's ceremony.

I've probably forgotten someone amazing.

[Yiliterate]

Yep, suspect it will be a golfer, but at the moment my vote goes to Cavendish. However, the final of the Super Six is the weekend before and, were he to beat Andre Ward, I don't think there would be a more deserving winner of SPOTY than Carl Froch.

[hornetrider]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/sports_personality...

Mark Cavendish (cycling), Darren Clarke (golf), Alastair Cook (cricket), Luke Donald (golf), Mo Farah (athletics), Dai Greene (athletics), Amir Khan (boxing), Rory McIlroy (golf), Andy Murray (tennis), Andrew Strauss (cricket)

I'd pick Cav but I suspect McIlroy will get it.

[Killer2005]

I too would go for Cav but think McIlroy will win it.

[anonymous-user]

Farah for me has had an outstanding year, gold and silver in the world championships, some fantastic performances throughout theseason in the Diamond League events and he won the first competitive half marathon he entered. Cav has won 4 stages of le tour, the green jersey and the world championships. Either guy is a justified winner imho.

dont know enough about golf and cricket to make too many comments other than winning the ashes as part of a team or even as captain then getting humped in the ODIs takes the shine off it. i think some golfers have had good tournaments but has anyone won more than one "open" type event? seems to me a golfer has a good four days, wins a tournement and then gets nominated?

That Chrissie Wellington still gets ignored is a scandal. She has won 14 Ironman triathlons having entered.....14. she has brought the world record down to something like 8 hours 10 minutes and is unbeaten in the world championships since 2008....

[Megaflow]

No mention of Dario for another Indaycar title then...

[FunkyNige]

Because I'm bored and a bit frustrated none of the swimmers got a mention I tallied up the number of votes each of the people on the big list got, hope it copies and pastes OK here, the number represents the number of votes they got -

Rory McIlroy 27
Darren Clarke 26
Mo Farah 25
Mark Cavendish 23
Alastair Cook 17
Dai Green 17
Andrew Strauss 14
Andy Murray 14
Luke Donald 11
Amir Khan 7

Jenson Button 6
Rebecca Adlington 6
Graeme Swann 5
Keri-Anne Payne 5
Alistair Brownlee 4
James Anderson 4
Sam Warburton 4
Stuart Broad 4
Carl Froch 3
Chrissie Wellington 3
Gareth Bale 3
Sam Tomkins 3
Sam Waley-Cohen 3
Sarah Stevenson 3
Scott Parker 3
Wayne Rooney 3
Kath Grainger 2
Victoria Pendleton 2
Alastair Browlee 1
Ben Ainslie 1
Dario Franchitti 1
David Weir 1
Dimitar Berbatov 1
George Groves 1
George North 1
Glen Chapple 1
Hannah England 1
Hayley Turner 1
Ian Bell 1
Jamie Roberts 1
Jessica Ennis 1
Jonathan Trott 1
Judd Trump 1
Lewis Hamilton 1
Louis Smith 1
Nicola Adams 1
Patrick Vieira 1
Paul Scholes 1
Shanaze Reade 1
Stef Reid 1
Tony McCoy 1
Yaya Toure 1

[Bing o]

pablo said:

I think some golfers have had good tournaments but has anyone won more than one "open" type event? seems to me a golfer has a good four days, wins a tournement and then gets nominated?

If a 'good' tournament is humping the world's best professionals by 8 shots, posting a record low score, and being the youngest US Open champion since 1923, two months after a confidence shattering blow up in the Masters, all at the age of 22, then yes, it was a 'good' tournament.

[Cheib]

IMHO Cavendish should win it....in winning the World Road Race Championship he did something that no UK cyclist has done for a generation. He's also right up there as one of the greatest ever cyclists.....he could very well end up with the record for most stage wins on Le Tour. Greatest sprinter ever ? Quite possibly. Trouble is most members of the UK public don't understand that...

After that Mo Farah...if athletics was followed as closely in the UK as it was in the 80's and 90's I think he'd win it.

Of the golfers Luke Donald's achievements surpass those of Clarke and McIlroy IMHO....he's World No 1 and won the US and European money list. Not as box office as winning a major though.

Strauss is an odd one....did a phenominal job as captain of the side but had an indifferent time himself with the bat. England Cricket team should walk team of the year.

[hornetrider]

Bing o said:

If a 'good' tournament is humping the world's best professionals by 8 shots, posting a record low score, and being the youngest US Open champion since 1923, two months after a confidence shattering blow up in the Masters, all at the age of 22, then yes, it was a 'good' tournament.

Indeed. Which is why I think McIlroy will get it - along with a bit of halo leftover love from the Ryder Cup. I would love Cav to get it for picking up the green jersey and yet more stage wins - however I don't know how much that resonates with the general public.

Mo is a reasonable shout but I think he would need an Olympic Gold next year to pick it up.

[anonymous-user]

Bing o said:

pablo said:

I think some golfers have had good tournaments but has anyone won more than one "open" type event? seems to me a golfer has a good four days, wins a tournement and then gets nominated?

If a 'good' tournament is humping the world's best professionals by 8 shots, posting a record low score, and being the youngest US Open champion since 1923, two months after a confidence shattering blow up in the Masters, all at the age of 22, then yes, it was a 'good' tournament.

My argument is one "good" tournament does not make a season. I appreciate thats a stunning achievement but its not like he has repeated it again and again throughout the year.... has he? if not, compare four days of golf to Cav or Farah's 2011....

[Cheib]

pablo said:

Bing o said:

pablo said:

I think some golfers have had good tournaments but has anyone won more than one "open" type event? seems to me a golfer has a good four days, wins a tournement and then gets nominated?

If a 'good' tournament is humping the world's best professionals by 8 shots, posting a record low score, and being the youngest US Open champion since 1923, two months after a confidence shattering blow up in the Masters, all at the age of 22, then yes, it was a 'good' tournament.

My argument is one "good" tournament does not make a season. I appreciate thats a stunning achievement but its not like he has repeated it again and again throughout the year.... has he? if not, compare four days of golf to Cav or Farah's 2011....

But Donald's season does...he may not have won a major but he set some freakish stats for consistancy. Winning both money lists is pretty unususal...no idea if it's been done before.

[Bing o]

Cheib said:

But Donald's season does...he may not have won a major but he set some freakish stats for consistancy. Winning both money lists is pretty unususal...no idea if it's been done before.

It hasn't, and is arguably a better achievement than McIroys.

[anonymous-user]

fair enough, its difficult to appreciate the achievements of those whose sport you do not actively follow or participate in.

[unrepentant]

Disappointed not to see a posthumous nomination for Dan Wheldon and Dario is ignored again. Dan won the Indy 500 for the second time this year and was a great ambassador for the UK and Dario again won the Indycar title. Makes the award very parochial IMO.

[hornetrider]

unrepentant said:

Disappointed not to see a posthumous nomination for Dan Wheldon

I think they will do a 'thing' for Dan (and probably Marco too). They'll also do something for Speedo I think.

[ewenm]

Rather predictably I'd vote for Mo with Cav second. I expect a golfist to get it this year though.

Hopefully Mo will have an even better year in 2012 and be a better bet for next year's award.

Edit: Ridiculous that Chrissy Wellington hasn't been nominated.

Edited by ewenm on Tuesday 29th November 19:39

[central]

Cav to win.

Don't forget, Tom Simpson won it in '65 after winning the World Pro Road Race.

[MK1 GIT]

Been a bit bhy today that no women were nominated.

I heard that the Manchester evening news voted for viera, toure and berbatov. Shows how pointless giving some publication a vote is.