RTÉ Sports Person of the Year
The RTÉ Sports Person of the Year Award is the titular award of the RTÉ Sports Awards ceremony, which takes place each December. The winner is the sportsperson, judged by a special panel of RTÉ journalists and editorial staff, to have achieved the most that year. The winner is selected by a public-vote from a pre-determinted shortlist. The first Irish sports award ceremony took place in 1985, and was closely modelled on the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award.
Three people have won the award multiple times: athlete Sonia O'Sullivan won the award five times, including a record three successive awards, and golfers Pádraig Harrington, with three wins, and Rory McIlroy, who won it twice. The oldest recipient of the award is Christy O'Connor Jnr, who won in 1989 aged 41. Rory McIlroy, who first won in 2011, aged 22, is the youngest winner. Ten sporting disciplines have been represented; golf has the highest representation, with seven recipients.
Eamonn Darcy, Ronan Rafferty and Des Smyth, who won the Alfred Dunhill Cup in 1988, are the only non-individual winners of the award. Counting them separately, there have been twenty-seven Irish winners of the award, and five Northern Irish winners. The most recent award was made in 2014 to golfer Rory McIlroy.
Winners
By year
Year | Nat. | Winner | Sport | Rationale | Note |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1985 | IRL | Barry McGuigan | Boxing | Defeated Eusebio Pedroza to become World Boxing Association featherweight champion. | |
1986 | IRL | Seán Kelly | Cycling | He finished on a podium in a grand tour for the first time when he finished third in the 1986 Vuelta a España. | |
1987 | IRL | Stephen Roche | Cycling | Winner of the 1987 Tour de France, Giro d'Italia and World Cycling Championships. | |
1988 | IRL NIR IRL |
Eamonn Darcy Ronan Rafferty Des Smyth |
Golf | For winning the Alfred Dunhill Cup. | |
1989 | IRL | Christy O'Connor Jnr | Golf | For a stunning 2 iron shot on the last hole at the Belfry which he left just 4 feet from the hole during the successful 1989 Ryder Cup. | |
1990 | IRL | Packie Bonner | Football | For his famous penalty save from Daniel Timofte of Romania at the 1990 FIFA World Cup. | |
1991 | IRL | Ralph Keyes | Rugby union | Overall top scorer with 68 points at the 1991 Rugby World Cup. | |
1992 | IRL | Michael Carruth | Boxing | Gold medallist in the welterweight section at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games. | |
1993 | IRL | Sonia O'Sullivan | Athletics | Silver medallist in the 1500m at the World Championships. | |
1994 | IRL | Sonia O'Sullivan | Athletics | Gold medallist in the 3000m at the World Championships. | |
1995 | IRL | Sonia O'Sullivan | Athletics | Gold medallist in the 5000m at the World Championships. | |
1996 | IRL | Michelle Smith | Swimming | Triple Olympic gold medallist for the 400m individual medley, 400m freestyle and 200m individual medley, and bronze medallist for the 200m butterfly event. | |
1997 | IRL | Ken Doherty | Snooker | Winner of the 1997 World Snooker Championship. | |
1998 | IRL | Sonia O'Sullivan | Athletics | Double gold medallist at the World Cross-Country Championships and double gold medallist at the European Championships. | |
1999 | IRL | Roy Keane | Football | Captain of the Manchester United team that completed a treble of English Premier League, FA Cup, and Champions League successes. | |
2000 | IRL | Sonia O'Sullivan | Athletics | Olympic silver medallist in the women's 5000m at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. | [1] |
2001 | IRL | Mick McCarthy | Football | Secured qualification for the 2002 FIFA World Cup for the Republic of Ireland national football team. | [2] |
2002 | IRL | Pádraig Harrington | Golf | Member of the European team that won the 2002 Ryder Cup. | [3] |
2003 | IRL | Barry Geraghty | Horse racing | Winner of the Aintree Grand National on Monty's Pass. | [4] |
2004 | IRL | Ronan O'Gara | Rugby union | Member of the Ireland team that won the Triple Crown in the 2004 Six Nations Championship. | [5] |
2005 | IRL | Seán Óg Ó hAilpín | Hurling | All-Ireland-winning captain with Cork and winner of a third All-Ireland medal. | |
2006 | IRL | Henry Shefflin | Hurling | Won his fourth All-Ireland medal with Kilkenny as well as being named Hurler of the Year for a second time. | [6] |
2007 | IRL | Pádraig Harrington | Golf | Became the first Irishman in over sixty years to win the Open Championship. | [7] |
2008 | IRL | Pádraig Harrington | Golf | Retained his title as British Open championship, thus becoming the first European to win back to back major championships. | |
2009 | IRL | Brian O'Driscoll | Rugby union | Grand Slam-winning captain and member of the Leinster team that won the 2008–09 Heineken Cup | [8] |
2010 | NIR | Graeme McDowell | Golf | Winner of the 2010 US Open and member of the European team that won the 2010 Ryder Cup. | [9] |
2011 | NIR | Rory McIlroy | Golf | Winner of the 2011 US Open. | [10] |
2012 | IRL | Katie Taylor | Boxing | Olympic gold medallist in the women's lightweight section at the 2012 London Olympic Games. | [11] |
2013 | NIR | Tony McCoy | Horse racing | 18-times champion jockey who created history in November when he rode his 4,000th winner over jumps. | [12] |
2014 | NIR | Rory McIlroy | Golf | Won the 2014 Open Championship and 2014 PGA Championship, became the first European to win three different majors, and was a member of the European team that won the 2014 Ryder Cup. | [13] |
2015 | IRL | Michael Conlan | Boxing | Won the gold medal in the bantamweight division at the 2015 AIBA World Boxing Championships. | [14] |
Shortlists
The winner is in bold.
2010
- Katie Taylor (boxing)
- Graeme McDowell (golf)
- Gráinne Murphy (swimming)
- Tony McCoy (horse racing)
- Lar Corbett (hurling)
- Paddy Barnes (boxing)
- Tommy Bowe (rugby union)
- Derval O'Rourke (athletics)
- Rory McIlroy (golf)
- David Chaplin (spreadsheets)
2011
- Darren Clarke (golf)
- Michael Fennelly (hurling)
- Sean O'Brien (rugby union)
- Katie Taylor (boxing)
- Rory McIlroy (golf)
- John Joe Nevin (boxing)
- Kevin O'Brien (cricket)
- Alan Brogan (Gaelic football)
- Robbie Keane (soccer)
2012
- Fionnuala Britton (athletics)
- Rob Kearney (rugby union)
- Karl Lacey (Gaelic football)
- Rory McIlroy (golf)
- Michael McKillop (athletics)
- Joseph O'Brien (horse racing)
- Mark Rohan (cycling)
- Henry Shefflin (hurling)
- Jason Smyth (athletics)
- Katie Taylor (boxing)
2013
- Robert Heffernan (athletics)
- Martyn Irvine (cycling)
- Tony Kelly (hurling)
- Michael Darragh MacAuley (Gaelic football)
- Tony McCoy (horse racing)
- Michael McKillop (athletics)
- Annalise Murphy (sailing)
- Joseph O'Brien (horse racing)
- Jason Quigley (boxing)
- Jonathan Sexton (rugby union)
- Jason Smyth (athletics)
2014
- Niamh Briggs (Rugby)
- Seamus Coleman (Soccer)
- Briege Corkery (Gaelic football)
- Mark English (Athletics)
- Carl Frampton (Boxing)
- Rory McIlroy (Golf)
- Michael McKillop (Athletics)
- James O'Donoghue (Gaelic football)
- Jonathan Sexton (Rugby)
- Jason Smyth (Athletics)
- Richie Hogan (Hurling)
- Katie Taylor (Boxing)
References
- ^ "Sport: Sonia wins RTÉ Sports Award". RTÉ Sport. 14 June 2007. Retrieved 24 December 2013.
- ^ "McCarthy wins top RTÉ sporting award". RTÉ Sport. 14 June 2007. Retrieved 24 December 2013.
- ^ "Harrington wins RTÉ award". RTÉ Sport. 14 June 2007. Retrieved 24 December 2013.
- ^ "Geraghty scoops major sports award". RTÉ Sport. 14 June 2007. Retrieved 24 December 2013.
- ^ "O'Gara named Sports Personality of the Year". RTÉ Sport. 14 June 2007. Retrieved 24 December 2013.
- ^ "Shefflin named RTÉ Sports Person of the Year". RTÉ Sport. 14 June 2007. Retrieved 24 December 2013.
- ^ "Harrington named RTÉ Sports Person of Year". RTÉ Sport. 26 December 2007. Retrieved 24 December 2013.
- ^ "Rugby stars dominate RTÉ Awards". RTÉ Sport. 5 February 2010. Retrieved 23 December 2013.
- ^ "McDowell named Sportsperson of the Year". RTÉ Sport. 22 December 2010. Retrieved 23 December 2013.
- ^ "McIlroy, Leinster and Trap win RTÉ awards". RTÉ Sport. 19 December 2011. Retrieved 23 December 2013.
- ^ "Katie Taylor named RTÉ Sports Person of the Year". RTÉ Sport. 24 December 2012. Retrieved 23 December 2013.
- ^ "Tony McCoy crowned RTÉ Sports Person of the Year". Irish Independent. 22 December 2013. Retrieved 23 December 2013.
- ^ "Rory McIlroy named RTÉ Sport Sports Person of the Year". RTE Sport. Retrieved 22 December 2014
- ^ "Michael Conlan named RTÉ Sport Person of the Year". RTE Sport. 19 December 2015. Retrieved 21 December 2015.
- ^ "Shortlist for RTÉ awards named". The Irish Times. 15 December 2010. Retrieved 15 December 2010.
- ^ "RTÉ Sports Awards shortlist revealed". RTÉ Sport. 8 December 2011. Retrieved 8 December 2011.
- ^ "Nominees for RTÉ Sports Awards". RTÉ Sport. 19 December 2012. Retrieved 23 December 2013.
- ^ "RTÉ Sports Awards 2013". RTÉ Sport. 19 December 2013. Retrieved 23 December 2013.
- ^ "RTÉ Sports Awards 2014". RTÉ Sport. 8 December 2014. Retrieved 19 August 2015.