The annual awards season has started. On Saturday I attended the British Athletics Writers’ Association (BAWA) awards dinner where journalists who have spent all year following and reporting on athletics recognised their 'Athletes of the Year' and celebrated their achievements. This year there was a lot to celebrate.
Back in March, Birmingham hosted a very successful European Indoor Championships where Great Britain topped the medal table. It’s a great example of how well we Brits can stage major sporting events and the huge positive effect of a home crowd.
The awards for 'Junior Athletes of the Year' suggest the future of British sprinting is in good hands with the male award going to European Junior 200 metres champion, Alex Nelson. The female award went to Asha Philip who, at the age of 16, became the first British woman to win a global 100 metres title when she won the World Youth Games. Asha has already run faster over 100 metres than I did in my entire career!
Almost at the other extreme was the 'Senior Male Athlete of the Year' award which went to 31 year old Marlon Devonish for his consistently world class 100 metre performances and for becoming the first man to successfully defend his 100/200 metre double victories at successive national championships.
For the senior women there was an abundance of choice. In any other year the award could easily have gone to European indoor 400m champion and World outdoor silver medallist, Nicola Sanders; Kelly Sotherton for her World heptathlon bronze; Jessica Ennis for World heptathlon 4th place, Goldie Sayers who broke the British javelin record or even the 4 x 400 metre relay team who broke the 16 year old British record. But this year’s winner was Christine Ohuruogu, World 400 metres champion after a dramatic and traumatic year which saw her banned from the sport for a year after missing three out-of-competition tests. Christine also received an award for 'Best Performance in a British Vest'.
With Beijing just around the corner, and London looming fast on the horizon, British athletics has a lot to look forward to.
