British Personality of the year....Who woudl you vote for as a tennis fan?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/sports-personality/20466947

• Bradley Wiggins
  
• Andy Murray
  
• Ben Ainslie
  
• Chris Hoy
  
• David Weir
  
• Ellie Simmonds
  
• Jessica Ennis
  
• Mo Farah
  
• Nicola Adams
  
• Rory McIlroy
  
• Sarah Storey
  
• Katherine Grainger
  

I think it has got to be Andy actually. He won both a slam and the OG. That's 2 major wins and it makes it difficult to argue against.

On the other hand he did not win the master event : Wimbledon

SO there might be a case for B Wiggins.

Wiggo the legend, no brainer really

YOu mean anyone but Murray?

I am pretty sure ANdy will be the one though certainly not people's favourite....even amongst the Brits.

Tenez wrote:YOu mean anyone but Murray?

I am pretty sure ANdy will be the one though certainly not people's favourite....even amongst the Brits.

The bet is on!

If he had won Wimbledon then it would have been a no-brainer, Tour de France alone is bigger than both Olympic gold, silver and USO put together, plus the gold Wiggo won as well.

If ABM doesn't win you get to wear NOLEISTHEBEST t-shirt in Wimbledon. I think that's reasonable

They'll also be thinking that ABM has time on his side i.e. he'll need to win Wimbledon.
I don't know who votes, is it just a sports panel, fans or both.
Which ever way it is , Wiggo The Charming Man is winning it ( don't forget he is recovering from that accident in which that silly woman driver knocked him of his bike and left him with a broken rib, so sympathy on top and...that's it!

In fact, I even think Jessica Enis has better chances than ABM.

Now, here's a question: who do you think Tim Henman will vote for?

noleisthebest wrote:

If ABM doesn't win you get to wear NOLEISTHEBEST t-shirt in Wimbledon. I think that's reasonable

What about if he wins? Will you wear a Nadal one? One with sleeveless shirt preferably!

No problem!

I'll even work on my biceps to look the business

Though call between Mo Farah,Bradley Wiggin and Andy Murray
As much as I hate Murray,I think he deserves it the most
Wimbledon finalist
Gold medal
U.S open title

I dont give the sports personality much value..wasnt Rhyan Giggs awarded the title not too long ago?
Putting his personal life aside,his recognition had more to do with the longevity of his career and his contribution to English football rather then actually achieving something phenomenal.Giggs has no personality (or brains as he uses his other "head" to think)
Murray has no personality either...but at least he has the goods to back the award up
Maybe they should change the title of the award

noleisthebest wrote:I'll even work on my biceps to look the business

Oh...And of course a Woffie picture on the back of the Tshirt.

Tenez wrote:

noleisthebest wrote:I'll even work on my biceps to look the business

Oh...And of course a Woffie picture on the back of the Tshirt.

Fine!

You get to rip your t-shirt and do the chest thumping at the end of the day, though

noleisthebest wrote:If he had won Wimbledon then it would have been a no-brainer, Tour de France alone is bigger than both Olympic gold, silver and USO put together, plus the gold Wiggo won as well.

If ABM doesn't win you get to wear NOLEISTHEBEST t-shirt in Wimbledon. I think that's reasonable

I think Murray played really well in the Wimbledon final,he would have been in with a real shot at winning the title had it been against anyone else,but unfortunate for him it was against one of the greatest grass court players ever who also happened to be Wimbledons most successful male player
To come back 3 weeks later after such a tough loss to beat the same player to win gold it quite something,how he won it is far more impressive then the fact that he won gold.Murray had to break walls down in order to win every one of those titles,inspite of the added pressure he still managed to end the drought in all 3 categories
Tim Henman would have won this award on the back of a Wimbledon final alone

Veejay wrote:

I think Murray played really well in the Wimbledon final,he would have been in with a real shot at winning the title had it been against anyone else,but unfortunate for him it was against one of the greatest grass court players ever who also happened to be Wimbledons most successful male player
To come back 3 weeks later after such a tough loss to beat the same player to win gold it quite something,how he won it is far more impressive then the fact that he won gold.Murray had to break walls down in order to win every one of those titles,inspite of the added pressure he still managed to end the drought in all 3 categories
Tim Henman would have won this award on the back of a Wimbledon final alone

I know Murray did his best, but that's simply not enough. They all do they best, and have to get up and carry on after tough losses. In that respect Murray has been a big baby for a long time, so good that he is finally getting over his ego quickly now.

He needs to continue on the same path for another 2-3 years, and he'll start reaping the fruit of all that hard work. Right now, I don't think he has peaked either as a person or a player.

I also don't think Henman wold have won SPOTY if he had played Wimbledon final.

Murray is a year of hard slaving away from maturing properly, and it's down to him to show what he's made of. I don't expect him to back away at this stage of his career, so his best is yet to come IF he gives it a really really very hard push in the next year or two.

I wasnt really trying to prove that Murray did his best,doing your best doesnt automatically equate to winning titles,you have to achieve something great to be up for such awards
I was just trying to put what he achieved into perspective
Its a terrible time to be a tennis player,Federer has just won his 17th major and 302 week at no1,Djokovic had an unbelievable season last year,Nadal over took Borg's record on clay and all 3 of them have won 3 majors in 1 season
All that makes a season like the one Murray has had look so mediocre and forgettable that its not even worth recognition,but the truth is,its a season most players can only ever dream of having.Its an incredible season by any standard and he achieved it under immense media pressure and the weight if a nation.
I think he would be a very worthy winner

As for Tim Henman,I recall there was talk of him being in contention for the award and his best result at a grand slam was still only a semi final.Unfortunately for Murray he is once again up against some stiff competition,double gold and a Tour de France title + gold medal....doesnt get any bigger then that

Is Federer a shoe in for International SPOTY?

As a Murray fan, he has a strong case for it. I don't want to see Wiggins win it as we have had enough chuffing cyclists win the damn thing and in light of LA, might swing in Murray's favour.

For me Farrah would get my vote purely because at least he does have a personality. Murray made me laugh when at the US Open presentation he looked like he had to force a smile out!

Veejay wrote:
I was just trying to put what he achieved into perspective

yes, singles gold and doubles silver plus a maiden slam are a huge achievement, for anyone and I am sure mean the world to Murray, I don't think he'd care for SPOTY as he himself knows what stiff competition he is facing.

2012 was an Olympic year, so some athletes' only chance to get SPOTY, whereas tennis players can do it every other year.

Anyone going to this?

http://www.winterwhitesgala.com/

"Tennis greats John McEnroe, Bjorn Borg, Boris Becker, Ivan Lendl and Chris Evert
have all confirmed their attendance. McEnroe will play a match, with
Lendl, Borg, Becker and Evert in attendance to lend their support. Goran Ivanisevic and Tim Henman,
who featured in one of the most memorable Wimbledon semifinals in 2001,
will meet in singles action and world No.1 tennis player Novak Djokovic will be presented with a special Centrepoint award by HRH The Duke of Cambridge."

Just saw SN online poll result, Murray came 4th with 12% of votes behind Farah, Ennis and who else at the top but Wiggo the legend

Well, somebody is going to look smart next Wimbledon....Sunday evening can't come quick enough!

Not fair that Ennis is ahead of Murray...its about sport not sex appeal ggrrr !!

luvsports! wrote:http://richard-mills-sports.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/mo-farah-or-bradley-wiggins-for-sports.html

http://richard-mills-sports.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/isnt-it-about-time-paralympian-won.html

had a quick scan....just can't work out what is it that makes people go mad about Farah? To me, he's behind both Wiggo, Ennis and Murray.
As for the paraolympian winning sportsman of the year, I just don't get this country's obsession with disabled.

why is he behind ennis and murray?

can you expand on that last comment please?

luvsports! wrote:why is he behind ennis and murray?

can you expand on that last comment please?

In my opinion his achievement is behind Wiggo's, Ennis's and Murray's.
What about you, why do you think Faroh's two medals are more deserving than what the above three achieved?

haha i kinda wrote my views a while back in those blogs, but i will say this.

For me Ennis is not even top 5. She was the golden, trophy girl, the face of the games. Yes she won her event, major kudos to her, but she won one gold compared to many other athletes who won multiple golds.

I wrote the article between Farah and wiggo because i thought they were the best, check it out . Farah won two golds and joined an elite club of very few to win the double!
murray did very well yes but i would never vote for him over a farah or wiggins because he is still the 3rd best in his sport, not the best, which usually signifies a spoty winner, bar when nobody does anything (rusedski).

This year is so jam packed with amazing talent and champions from london 2012 and until i hear a good reason why they should win it over wiggo or farah i will not see them as more deserving.

luvsports! wrote:haha i kinda wrote my views a while back in those blogs, but i will say this.

For me Ennis is not even top 5. She was the golden, trophy girl, the face of the games. Yes she won her event, major kudos to her, but she won one gold compared to many other athletes who won multiple golds.

I wrote the article between Farah and wiggo because i thought they were the best, check it out . Farah won two golds and joined an elite club of very few to win the double!
murray did very well yes but i would never vote for him over a farah or wiggins because he is still the 3rd best in his sport, not the best, which usually signifies a spoty winner, bar when nobody does anything (rusedski).

This year is so jam packed with amazing talent and champions from london 2012 and until i hear a good reason why they should win it over wiggo or farah i will not see them as more deserving.

In Murrays defence (never thought I'd be saying that) he is the best British player in his sport and he did end the drought for British tennis in 3 different categories
I think him,Farah and Wiggins are all deservig of the title...
Ennis should win "sexiest sports female of the year"

I don't count medals when I value an achievement, just the competition and how hard it is to do it.
What is more difficult: to win US Open in today's era or a 10000/5000m race?
Most sports don't offer multiple medal opportunity and it does not devalue the athletes, on the contrary, they get to have only one crack at it and if they stuff it that's it.
Not like swimmers, gymnasts etc.
To be good at 7 different athletic skills means you are an all-rounder, so a gold in heptathlon is a great achievement in my books.
What Wiggo did, is out of this world, not the medals but winning Tour de France. Hats off.

Every medal won at the olympics is special but this SPOTY is not only about Olympics. Even if Murray won Wimbledon, I'd still possibly vote for Wiggo.

how much do you know about long distance running and its competitors, because by the sound of it, sorry to say, but it sounds like you dont have much appreciation for it and sound a bit biased towards tennis.
soz just my opinion, dont wanna come out being a douche there so im sorry if i did.
Jack of all trades, master of none? Also how can you measure the strength of a heptathlon field? Where would you begin? Kluft is no longer there, is it a weak era ?

Wiggo for me should win it. TDF and then like 2 weeks later wins TT gold against 2 amazing TT's in spartacus and martin.

I would put murray in top 3-5

luvsports! wrote:how much do you know about long distance running and its competitors,

quite a lot, in fact, back in the days when I followed athletics with passion and athletes didn't wear braces...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JziXi_NS3YY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ovnkzJP7us

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Dppdcy1pyM
and a bit of gymnastics magic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odTtfnWdfGU

if bekele was at his best and mo had beaten him would you have given him higher praise?

luvsports! wrote:if bekele was at his best and mo had beaten him would you have given him higher praise?

this has got nothing to do with Mo and praising him, it's about how he fits among the other Brit sports achievements in 2012.

Many people are obsessed with Usain Bolt, but for me, he is nothing special, just a big bloke with longer stride, not a natural born sprinter like Ben Johnson was.
I don't have much respect for athletics these days as they are all on something, legal or illegal.

The real athletic gem competed 70 years ago, Jesse Owens, his long jump record stood decades until modern medicine allowed it to be broken almost at will.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qWQb3oK5Ak

I remember how desperate Carl Lewis was to equal Owen's 4 Olympic gold medals haul, I think my love for athletic died when that happened as it was obvious he was a cheat.

a natural born sprinter like ben johnson, wow sorry that is just wrong.

luvsports! wrote:a natural born sprinter like ben johnson, wow sorry that is just wrong.

it' not worng whether you like it or not. Watch his legs and how fast he is out of the blocks:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBul90qgM9c

he was on drugs, so i am not wrong.
Technically asafa powell is one of the best ever, everyone says it.

luvsports! wrote:he was on drugs, so i am not wrong.
Technically asafa powell is one of the best ever, everyone says it.

Yes he was drugged, but one can see beyond drugs he was an awesome sprinter.
As for "everyone says it", he,he....you didn't think that was going to convince me did you?

experts in their fields who study every single facet of sprinting right down to the mm in aerodynamics all agree technically powell has an almost perfect running style.
Bolt was more awesome, I cannot figure out your train of thought here.

luvsports! wrote:experts in their fields who study every single facet of sprinting right down to the mm in aerodynamics all agree technically powell has an almost perfect running style.
Bolt was more awesome, I cannot figure out your train of thoughthere.

That's probably because it's my train of thought, not the experts'.

i guess we will agree to disagree

Sports Personality of the Year tonight on BBC at 19.30

GO WIGGO!!!

What are the odds on Murray winning it?

murray is 4th fav. http://www.oddschecker.com/awards/sports-personality-of-the-year/sports-personality-of-the-year/winner

Tenez wrote:What are the odds on Murray winning it?

Here's how to increase Murray's odds

www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/sports-personality/20719101

Surprised to see Murray 4th fav.

I am not very interested about who's going to win anyway...

Is that an opinion poll?
If so,to come in fourth after making the final at Wimbledon,winning gold and winning a grand slam-that REALLY says something

Just watching SPOTY at the moment, and saw Murray appear "live" from Miami.
Obviously couldn't be bothered to turn up, and that's understandable. I think he's given up on winning any popularity contests in UK.
It hasn't escaped me that this is actually a sports PERSONALITY of the year ceremony, and Murray just falls short in the little department of charm.
The thing that stands out about him to me is that he finds it so, so hard to smile. Even once. Life must be really tough for him...
When Wiggo came on the stage and stole the show from Sue Barker, you could see why Murray is so unloved here.

He is a strange sort, I suppose he is good for inspiring tennis juniors, but he knows he's on his own and does the bare minimum to fulfill his PR duties. Fair enough.

He's still got a good 3-4 years of prime ahead of him and it will be interesting to follow his career especially from the "personality" point of view.
I am not holding my breath much will change however many trophies he may win. He may end up being a Scot and not a Brit if Scotland separates in the meantime. That would be interesting

You are very generous to project 3/4 years of prime tennis for Murray....(and Djoko) but I doubt he/they will be top 4 after 2013.

Happy to take the bets now.

i will take that bet tenez