BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2016: Meet the Contenders (Part 1/4)

16 – Mo Farah:

Still one of the sweethearts of British athletics after his successes in London four years ago, Mo Farah will be looking to go at least one step further than his record third-place finish back in 2011, and after breaking yet more records throughout 2016, he has as good a chance as ever to finally be named BBC Sports Personality of the Year.

Arguably one of Britain’s greatest ever sportsmen, Farah broke a 34-year national record in the 3000m in Birmingham back in June. The 33 year-old then went on to become the first Brit to claim three Olympic gold medals with his 10,000m victory in Rio de Janeiro in August, before doubling up with 5,000m glory just a week later. To top off another magnificent year, Farah added a third consecutive triumph in the Great North Run, while remaining unbeaten in the 3,000m, 5,000m, and 10,000m throughout the calender year.

15 – Gareth Bale:

From one of, if not the greatest British athletes of all time, to a global superstar who is often regarded as the best player to ever put on a Welsh football shirt. Ten years after making his international debut in a friendly against Trinidad & Tobago, Gareth Bale helped his country’s football team achieve what few Welshmen and women could even imagine in the duration of their lifetimes.

Bale’s role in an incredible journey to the European Championship semi-finals for ‘The Dragons’ cannot be overestimated, as the forward moved to second on his country’s list of all-time goal scorers with the three he amassed in France and the further seven that were scored in what proved to be a fruitful qualification campaign for the 'Madridista'. 2016 also saw Bale lift a second Champions League, as club side Real Madrid secured ‘La Undecima’ with victory over their great city rivals Atletico.

14 – Danny Willett:

With many of the names on this prestigious list achieving what was perhaps expected of them, such claims simply cannot be made of 29-year-old golfer Danny Willett. The Yorkshire man only became a prominent part of the world’s more reputable golfers when he claimed a top six finish at the 2015 Open Championship at St. Andrews.

That was until 2016 and specifically the most remarkable victory at the Masters Championship in Augusta, where Willett took advantage of defending champion and home favourite Jordan Spieth’s final round demise to become the first Briton to win the title since Nick Faldo’s success back in 1996. The World Number 12 also won the Dubai Desert Classic and made his Ryder Cup debut in what was a truly unforgettable year.

13 – Dame Sarah Storey

A recipient of both an MBE and OBE in the 1998 and 2009 New Year Honours respectively, Dame Sarah Storey is no stranger to collecting awards. Storey is also rather used to collecting medals on the international stage, as Great Britain’s most decorated Paralympian with a total of 25 medals to her name since collecting six as a swimmer at her inaugural Games in Barcelona in 1992.

An additional three gold medals in Rio took Storey’s total just two shy of British record holder Mike Kenny’s 16 that were achieved at four separate Games, from Toronto in 1972, to the Seoul Paralympics in ’88. The 39 year-old also collected one gold and two silver medals at the Para-cycling Track World Championships in Montichiari as her dominance in the sport continued in 2016.

Part two of my BBC SPOTY preview will feature a Premier League winning England footballer, two members of Team GB’s Equestrian team, and a 21-year-old swimmer that is breaking World and Olympic records at every given opportunity.