The most popular BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award winners of all time
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We now know the six sports stars who could be crowned as the BBC Sports Personality of the Year. Ben Stokes, Dina Asher-Smith, Raheem Sterling, Alun Wyn Jones, Lewis Hamilton and Katarina Johnson-Thompson are the six nominees for this year’s award, but do any of them compare to the most popular SPOTY Award winners? A poll, conducted by Radio Times to celebrate 65 years of the award, saw members of the British public vote for their favourite ever winner of the famous accolade. Over 11,000 votes were cast for some of the most iconic athletes ever and here’s who made the top 25:
25: Sir Sterling Moss (SPOTY 1961)
Sir Stirling Moss has been described as “the greatest driver never to win the World Championship”. The Formula One star finished as championship runner-up four times and third the other three times in the years 1955 to 1961.
Joint 23: Dame Mary Peters (SPOTY 1972)
Having finished 4th in the 1964 Olympic Pentathlon and 9th in 1968, Mary Peters finally became an Olympic champion in 1972 as she broke the world record at the Munich games.
Joint 23: Ryan Giggs (SPOTY 2009)
Ryan Giggs, now the manager of Wales, was rewarded for his fantastic career in 2009 when he won the award. The former Manchester United winger won a staggering 13 league titles during his career.
22: Sir Chris Chataway (SPOTY 1954)
In 1954, Chris Chataway (right on image) broke the world record for the 5000m in an event that was televised across the nation. It made him a household name and it was no shock when he was voted as the Sports Personality winner later that year.
Joint 18: John Surtees (SPOTY 1959)
The late John Surtees remains the only person to have won world championships on both two and four wheels. He won the 500cc motorcycle World Championship four times, before becoming the Formula One World Champion in 1964. His 1959 SPOTY award came on the back of him winning three motorcycle world championships in four years.
Joint 18: Lord Sebastian Coe (SPOTY 1979)
Sebastian Coe went on to become a two-time Olympic champion but his SPOTY award win in 1979 came after a remarkable streak where he set three world records in 41 days. He broke the 800m, the mile and 1500m records in a span of just over a month, becoming the first person to hold all three records at the same time.
Joint 18: Dame Kelly Holmes (SPOTY 2004)
It was no shock to see Kelly Holmes recognised in 2004 after she won both the 800m and the 1500m gold medals at the Athens Olympics.
Joint 18: Joe Calzaghe (SPOTY 2007)
Boxer Joe Calzaghe competed from 1993 to 2008 and never lost a single fight, winning all 46 of his bouts. He was a two-weight champion and is still the longest-reigning super-middleweight world champion in boxing history, having held the WBO title for over 10 years.
17: Sir Bradley Wiggins (SPOTY 2012)
Bradley Wiggins’ 2012 was one of the greatest ever years for a British athlete. He became the first cyclist to win an Olympic gold medal and the Tour de France in the same year.
16: Andrew Flintoff (SPOTY 2005)
Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff became the hero of a nation in 2005 as he was the spearhead for England as they finally defeated Australia to win the Ashes for the first time since 1989.
15: Paula Radcliffe (SPOTY 2002)
In 2002, Radcliffe made the move up in distances to compete in marathons. She claimed a famous victory on her debut in that year’s London Marathon in a world’s best time for a women’s only race, and later that year, she set a world record at the Chicago Marathon, breaking the previous record by a minute and a half. Radcliffe became the first female SPOTY winner in over a decade when she won in 2002. She also won gold in the Women’s 5000m final at the City of Manchester Stadium during the 2002 Commonwealth Games.
14: Sir Henry Cooper (SPOTY 1967, 1970)
Coming off his loss to Muhammad Ali in 1966, Henry Cooper won three fights in 1967, beating Boston Jacobs, Jack Bodell and Billy Walker, and that earned him his first SPOTY award. He won another in 1970 after wins against Bodell again and Jose Manuel Urtain.
13: AP McCoy (SPOTY 2010)
AP McCoy became the first jockey to win the SPOTY award in 2010 after his win in the 2010 Grand National on Don’t Push It at his 15th attempt.
12: Jonny Wilkinson (SPOTY 2003)
Jonny Wilkinson kicked the England Ruby Union team to World Cup glory in 2003, with his drop-goal in the final sealing a famous victory.
Joint 10: Sir Ian Botham (SPOTY 1981)
The 1981 Ashes are commonly known as “Botham’s Ashes” thanks to some amazing all-around displays from the England star. He stepped down as captain but went on to produce some memorable performances with bat and ball as England defied the odds to beat Australia.
Joint 10: Paul Gascoigne (SPOTY 1990)
Paul ‘Gazza’ Gascoigne was widely accepted as one of the world’s best players in 1990. He helped England make the World Cup semi-finals, whilst also coming fourth in the Ballon d’Or voting.
9: Jane Torvill and Christopher Dean (SPOTY 1984)
Jane Torvill and Christopher Dean captured the hearts of the nation as they won gold at the Winter Olympics in Yugoslavia back in 1984. Their Bolero routine is still regarded as one of the best of all time.
8: David Beckham (SPOTY 2001)
In 2001, David Beckham was named Sports Personality of the Year after he scored a free kick in the final few minutes against Greece to seal England’s place at the 2002 World Cup finals. Beckham’s Man United side also won the league title again in 2001, his fifth title win.
7: Daley Thompson (SPOTY 1982)
Having won Olympic gold in 1980, decathlete Daley Thompson took his performances up to another level in 1982. He broke the world record on two occasions as he won the European Championships and the Commonwealth Games.
6: Sir Mo Farah (SPOTY 2017)
By the time 2017 came around, Mo Farah was already a four-time Olympic champion. Farah announced that he would switch from track events to the marathon after the 2017 World Championships. He won the 10,000m and came second in the 5,000m and was voted SPOTY.
5: Sir Chris Hoy (SPOTY 2008)
Chris Hoy became the first British athlete for 100 years to win three golds at one Olympic Games in 2008. He won gold in the men’s keirin, the men’s team sprint and the men’s individual sprint.
4: Sir Steve Redgrave (SPOTY 2000)
Steve Redgrave was rightly recognised after he won his fifth Olympic gold in 2000. He’d already won golds in 1884, 1988, 1992 and 1996 before another victory, alongside James Cracknell, Tim Foster and Matthew Pinsent, in Sydney.
3: Lewis Hamilton (SPOTY 2014)
Lewis Hamilton won his second Formula 1 World Championship in 2014. He’s since gone on to win four more and as such, he’s widely regarded as one of the greatest drivers in the history of F1.
2: Sir Andy Murray (SPOTY 2013, 2015, 2016)
Andy Murray’s Wimbledon victory in 2013 made him a national hero and it was no shock to see him win the SPOTY award. He went on to win it two more times, firstly in 2015 after helping Great Britain win the Davis Cup and again in 2016 after another great year in which he won both Wimbledon and the Olympic Games.
1: Bobby Moore (SPOTY 1966)
Bobby Moore was voted as the greatest Sports Personality of the Year winner of all time by the British public. Moore, widely regarded as one of the best defenders of all time, captained England to World Cup glory in 1966.