By Elliott West
Introduction
The BBC Sports Personality of the Year dates back to 1954, the first award being won by Christopher Chataway, a long-distance runner with Roger Bannister receiving a nomination for his four-minute mile. However in snooker, the road has been somewhat inclined as despite a wealth of talent over the years, this prized gong has alluded practically every snooker great. Alex Higgins had his chance in 1982 after he was nominated in 1982 after claiming the World Championship, beating Ray Reardon, ten years after winning the title in 1972 when won against John Spencer. However, the Northern Irishman was pipped at the post by Daley Thompson, the gold medal decathlete.
The Nugget
The only snooker player to date that has won this prized award is Steve Davis. Steve scooped up the trophy at the height of his pomp in 1988. A player who was frankly a potting machine in his prime, sent alarm bells ringing this year, winning all three Triple Crown tournaments, the Masters, World Championship and the UK Championship, the first player to do so. A year where he defeated Terry Griffiths 18-11 to raise the World Championship trophy for the fifth time. The closest player before was Terry Griffiths who won the World Championship in 1979, the Masters in 1980 and the UK Championship in 1982. Ironically it would be the Welshman who would present Steve Davis with the trophy. A surprise presentation that was beamed into the BBC studio via video link from the Norwich Union Grand Prix in Monte Carlo. A non-ranking tournament that Davis would go on to win after defeating Jimmy White 5-4 in the final. Desmond Lynam who presented the programme joked that Davis wasn’t allowed to accept the actual trophy as it was hardware that had to be kept on-site and not let out of the country. Instead, he was presented with a replica of the trophy “to get the feel of things”.
Off the Radar
Steve Davis remains to date, the only snooker player to win the award nicknamed SPOTY. Stephen Hendry was nominated in 1990 after matching Davis’s record of winning all three Triple Crown events in one season. Unfortunately, he lost out to footballer Paul Gascoigne. Fast forward to the present and despite continued campaigning, Ronnie O’Sullivan has yet to make the shortlist for this award. Perhaps this is due to not his popularity amongst fans but to the actual panel that makes these decisions. It is very easy to pick sportspersons who are popular at the moment rather than go for someone who is the flavour of the year.
Steve Davis himself said that Ronnie should be nominated to “put the cat amongst the pigeons” but to date, this hasn’t transpired despite O’Sullivan’s massive contributions to snooker. Looking forward the likes of Judd Trump and future stars of the star may catch the attention of the powers to be at the BBC but it remains to be seen.
