Stars align as we unveil the sporting talent set to do battle for Tele honours
THE nominations are in for the 2019 Belfast Telegraph Sport Awards and, now that the shortlists have been compiled, the countdown is on to find out who will walk away prize-laden from next month’s glittering ceremony at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Belfast.
The public have made their recommendations to our expert judging panel and we are delighted to reveal who could be in with a chance of being a winner when January 20 comes around.
The ceremony, hosted for the second year running by TV personalities Claire McCollum and Ruth Gorman, will see the best of Northern Irish sport come together to recognise the amazing achievements of our sporting elite over the last 12 months.
The one they all want to win is, of course, the Sports Star of the Year and, after a phenomenal 12 months for Northern Irish sport, there’s a strong shortlist in the running for the accolade.
Chief among them is defending champion Jonathan Rea, who won his fifth consecutive World Superbike title this year and will be keen to defend his crown having been nominated once more following arguably his greatest championship win to date.
He will, however, face strong competition from boxer Carl Frampton, who bounced back into the ring with victory over Tyler McCreary last month; Ireland hockey goalkeeper Ayeisha McFerran, who helped her country qualify for their first ever Olympics; and golfer Rory McIlroy, who won four tournaments and the FedEx Cup in a stellar year.
The Sportsperson with a Disability Award has five excellent nominees, with para-swimmer Bethany Firth, who is nominated for three gongs, competing with wheelchair basketball player Ross Davidson, tennis player Brian Lenehan, boccia player Claire Taggart and the Northern Ireland powerchair football squad.
Recognising youth is a big part of our awards, with the Young Player of the Year going to one of golfer Beth Coulter, rower Molly Curry, rally driver Daniel Harper or runner Oliver Swinney; with horse riders John McEntee and Niamh McEvoy, Schools’ Cup rugby winners Methodist College, the Northern Ireland Schools football team and Hogan Cup winners St Michael’s, Enniskillen all in the running for the Young Team of the Year.
Coulter and Harper are both also vying for the Rising Star award, which recognises someone who has taken big strides in their development this year, along with Ulster Rugby ace Robert Baloucoune and golfer Tom McKibbin.
The Game Changer award, given to a female athlete who has had a major impact on the sporting landscape in 2019, will be contested by former Tyrone captain Gemma Begley, swimmer Firth, Northern Ireland footballer Ashley Hutton and Irish Football Association women’s domestic manager Gail Redmond.
Once again, several awards are split into two categories in order to recognise achievements
at various levels, with platinum covering the professional side of sport, while gold acknowledges amateur achievements.
The main award to be split in such a way is the Player of the Year, which will be contested at platinum level by Ulster Rugby star John Cooney, cyclist Mark Downey, Northern Ireland international footballer Jonny Evans and World Invitational golf champion Stephanie Meadow; while the gold award has Firth, runner Ciara Mageean, gymnast Rhys McClenaghan, Ireland hockey captain Katie Mullan and para-runner Jason Smyth in the mix.
Similarly, the Team of the Year will see the platinum award given to one of the Belfast Giants ice hockey team, the Northern Ireland men’s football team, cycling’s Team Joe Barr or Ulster Rugby; with the gold award contested by the CIYMS cricket team, Kilcoo’s gaelic football team, Slaughtneil’s camogie side and Pegasus hockey club.
The final split award will be for the Manager/ Coach of the Year, which sees Ireland women’s hockey coach Sean Dancer, Linfield manager David Healy and Northern Ireland manager Michael O’Neill in the running for the platinum gong; while Liam Haslem, swimming coach Nelson Lindsay, Kilcoo manager Micky Moran and Pegasus hockey coach Greg Thompson are up for gold consideration.
There are also several awards handed out on the night that don’t have shortlists but will instead be presented on behalf of the judging panel, who have chosen the winners already.
The George Best Breakthrough Award, named after the legendary Manchester United and Northern Ireland superstar, will recognise the up-and-coming talent of one of our newest sporting heroes who has started to make an impact in their sport in 2019 and can go on to reach higher levels in future years.
Away from the sports that are showcased on a global stage, we also give recognition to those who make a difference at grassroots level through our Local Heroes Award, which will be given to someone who has done extraordinary work at club or youth level within their sport while, similarly, the WJ Paddy Patterson Award gives recognition to someone who has devoted countless hours to the administration or coaching side of the game.
There will also be a Special Recognition Award, which will be given to someone who has achieved a significant sporting achievement this year and perhaps does not fall into one of the categories but still deserves to be celebrated for what they have done.
And, as always, the night will see one of our legendary sporting stars inducted into our Hall of Fame, joining the likes of Lady Mary Peters, George Best, Pat Jennings, Willie John McBride, Mickey Harte, Barry McGuigan and AP McCoy in being forever hailed as one of the greats of Northern Irish sport.
It is set to be a fascinating night at the Crowne Plaza as we recognise some of the top sportspeople and teams in Northern Ireland — all that’s left now is to wait and see who walks away the big winners!