It’s the most wonderful time of the year… Spoty season! Britain’s sporting hero or heroine of 2023 has been narrowed down to six nominees by a panel of judges, including Euro 2022 winner Ellen White, former Olympian Colin Jackson and Paralympian Ellie Simmons. The winner, determined by a public vote, will be crowned at Tuesday’s ceremony, with Clare Balding, Gary Lineker, Gabby Logan and Alex Scott presenting live from Manchester as the award celebrates its 70th anniversary. Here are the six nominees.
The bookmakers’ favorite to become just the 15th female solo winner, a win for Earps would give a second successive lioness prize, after Beth Mead claimed the 2022 prize. While personality isn’t a qualifying factor for Spoty, Earps has it in spades: she was a standout performer as she helped England to the World Cup final, producing one of the year’s most iconic sporting moments and brilliantly saving a penalty from the Spanish Jenni. Hermoso before promptly shouting “hell yeah, fuck off!” as the cameras zoomed in on her euphoric face. There was a commotion when the 30-year-old’s England goalkeeper shirt was not made available by Nike before and during the World Cup. More than 170,000 people signed a petition in protest, and Nike later reversed its decision, with the £100 shirt selling out within hours.
Rory McIlroy
McIlroy’s return to form was welcome, even if his major drought has now been extended to a tenth year. The Northern Irishman fell agonizingly short at the US Open, one shot behind winner Wyndham Clark, but has had great success on the court. McIlroy hit perhaps the shot of the year – a 2-iron into the wind to 10 feet – to birdie and win the Scottish Open on the 72nd hole, while his impeccable performance in the Ryder Cup Europe led to a tearful victory over the US. McIlroy’s return to the No. 1 ranking in February has added weight to his off-course comments against LIV and the civil war that has engulfed golf in 2023, where at the age of 34 he has become a leader, talisman and elder statesman of the game .
Katarina Johnson-Thompson
Is Katarina Johnson-Thompson the best all-round athlete in the world? The Liverpool-born heptathlete won her second world title in August, a highly unlikely comeback after injury – a ruptured Achilles tendon and torn calf – blighted the final years of her career. But the British public love an underdog story and Johnson-Thompson delivered lifetime bests in the shot put and javelin to claim victory. The 30-year-old is now aiming for her first Olympic gold in Paris next year, but knows from experience the pitfalls of elite sport, symbolized by her tattoo of a blue shell from the Mario Kart game over her Achilles scar. “If life is going too well, there can always be a blue shell floating around the corner to take you out,” she explained.
Frankie Dettori
Speaking of comebacks, here comes Frankie, the adopted son of British horse racing turned father figure. The Italian jockey is one of only two non-Britons to have climbed the Spoty podium (with New Zealand speedway star Barry Briggs, who finished second twice in the 1960s). Historically, Dettori has never come closer than his third-place finish in 1996. In 2023, Dettori has had a wild year to match his personality: a farewell tour, a U-turn in retirement and a victorious and dramatic last hurray at Champions Day at Ascot (where his newly built statue now stands), triumphed in the Champion Stakes on his last ride on British soil, adding to his wins in the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot, the Coronation Cup win at Epsom and two victories in the Classic .
Alfie Hewett
In terms of titles won, Hewett is the runaway leader here. The wheelchair tennis player is a phenomenon: he wins seven singles tournaments, including two majors, and narrowly misses a third Grand Slam title at Wimbledon. He and Gordon Reid were ranked No. 1 in singles and also claimed three of the four doubles majors on offer in Australia, France and SW19, while Hewett played a crucial role in Britain’s World Team Cup glory . Already an OBE at the age of 26, Hewett could become the first para-athlete to win Spoty – Tanni Grey-Thompson and Jonnie Peacock finished third in 2000 and 2017 respectively.
Stuart Breed
Sporting legacies are constructed not only by scores, figures and titles, but also by moments and memories, especially in cricket: Andrew Flintoff consoling Brett Lee at Edgbaston, Shane Warne’s Ball of the Century, Monty Panesar and Jimmy Anderson’s last wicket stand. Broad cemented his own legacy with a stunning farewell in the final Ashes Test after the shock announcement of his retirement. After scoring a six with his last ball as a batsman, he took the last wicket of the match and gave England victory, finishing with 604 Test wickets in his career. Broad did not have a perfect year but few can doubt his legend in an England shirt and there were no better results than at the sun-drenched Oval in July.
A nuisance…
Spoty has always been controversial. Roger Bannister was snubbed of the very first award for his pacer, Chris Chataway, in 1954. This year too, there were some omissions from the main shortlist that caused a stir. Josh Kerr, Britain’s remarkable 1500m world champion, told the Guardian last week that he was “hugely disappointed” not to have been nominated. World Athletics president Seb Coe was a little more candid: “Are you laughing, Spoty?” he tweeted. Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham has a claim after becoming arguably the best male footballer in the world, while Ronnie O’Sullivan celebrated his eighth British snooker championship three days before his 48th birthday, making him both the youngest and oldest winner of the event is.
Catch it live with Barry Glendenning on theguardian.com or watch on BBC One from 7pm GMT on Tuesday, iPlayer or the BBC Sport website. To vote, scan the QR code on the screen during the broadcast or vote online here. The main prize will be awarded around 9pm GMT.