BBC Sports Personality Of The Year 2016

[stereoman]

Well...it's kneejerk reaction time and with superficially with no obvious standout so far, Anthony Joshua takes the early lead (look at the odds for Tyson Fury!) but it's an Olympic year yet football fans may hijack the vote to vote for Jamie Vardy like they did with Ryan Giggs back in 2009.

I think William Hill had 'Team of the Year' odds up with Leicester City a tentative 'evens' to win. Do you want to wait EIGHT months only for the BBC to possibly bottle it and just give it to the GB & NI Olympic & Paralympic teams instead!? All bets are off if England win Euro 2016 unlikely as that might seem.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBC_Sport ... Year_Award

If Jessica Ennis-Hill wins another Olympic heptathlon gold, she will apparently immediately retire and she's been fairly close to actually winning SPotY but she's been thwarted regularly (third in 2009, 2010 and 2015, and second in 2012), there may be whispers to hype her up something rotten for her to finally win...plus there is the usual narrative that it's about time that a female won (the last female winner is still shockingly Zara Phillips back in 2006).

The plan goes out of the window if her main rival Katarina Johnson-Thompson wins Olympic heptathlon gold instead, and I will maintain that the narrative for her is less compelling then Jessica Ennis-Hill's.

BBC SPotY winners in an Olympic year:

1988 - Steve Davis
1992 - Nigel Mansell
1996 - Damon Hill
2000 - Steve Redgrave
2004 - Kelly Holmes
2008 - Chris Hoy
2012 - Bradley Wiggins

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBC_Sport ... Year_Award

Odds as they are right now...

[stereoman]

All change in 24 hours as Jamie Vardy heads the market but Danny Willett winning the US Masters means he's almost certainly going to be in the first five on the shortlist of ten/twelve* now!

I doubt Danny Willett can sustain any support between now and December though. If Rory McIlroy couldn't win SPotY when he won two Majors and helped win the Ryder Cup than what chance has Danny got!?

* It'll very likely be twelve what with the Paralympians involved.

[Micko70]

If Danny Willett struggles in the 3 remaining Majors, he will be forgotten about by November.

[stereoman]

Considering it's an Olympic year, it's more true of an opinion than if it wasn't.

It'd have to be a really barren year of British sporting achievement for Danny Willett to win SPotY but he is the first Brit since Nick Faldo to win the US Masters since 1996 though. Will that be enough for the GBP at large to remember him come December? Surely not.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_M ... _champions

I'd assume a bad Euro 2016 and a downturn in luck for Leicester City as reigning Premier League champions* like a disastrous showing in the Champions League and not being able to defend their PL title at all well are perhaps the only things that might nobble Jamie Vardy's chances.

Mind you...Jamie Vardy has to be nominated first. Too many worthy Olympians might mean the BBC stack the proverbial deck against him.

* Famous last words!

[LustForLeith]

What exactly is the qualifying criteria for this? Has a horse ever been short listed before? Would love to see Sprinter Sacre short listed after the best comeback in years to win at Cheltenham!

[stereoman]

I think William Hill had 'Team of the Year' odds up with Leicester City a tentative 'evens' to win. Do you want to wait EIGHT months only for the BBC to possibly bottle it and just give it to the GB & NI Olympic & Paralympic teams instead!? All bets are off if England win Euro 2016 unlikely as that might seem.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBC_Sport ... Year_Award

Ladbrokes will give you *COUGH* 1/8 on Leicester City winning 'Team of the Year' and odds of 2/7 that Claudio Rainieri wins 'Coach of the Year' (Roy Hodgson is 16/1 and Jurgen Klopp 25/1).

[roostaroo]

You'd have to back 20 years since Damon Hill won the award in 1996, to have an Olympic year without an athlete winning it.

On that basis, barring Rory tearing up the majors and England winning the Euro's, you'd have to look at the 5 rings events to find someone with a bit of value. I've stopped looking down the list when I got to Adam Peaty at 50/1.

Aged 21, already has 2 world records in the 50 and 100m breastrokes and world championship golds in them events to boot. He seems to have the best shout at being the 1st British male to win an olympic gold in the pool in 28 years and that is something Clare Balding and the BBC will absolutley love and play on to the people who vote in Deecember.

Even if he doesn't, sporting bet are playing 3 places at 5th odds. so 10/1 for the place money if he makes the top 3. Could really be a bit of value.

[stereoman]

It depends how hard he gets pimped. Double gold medals aren't enough (*COUGH* Mo Farah *COUGH*) these days.

In any other year, Alastair Cook would surely likely get at least a nomination but I think the absolute stranglehold that Sky have on cricket in the UK means he's going to be conveniently forgotten.

What's he done!? First Englishman and youngest ever cricketer to get 10,000 Test runs, that's what.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/36321836

The leading contenders according to the odds as we approach the halfway point of 2016...



Jamie Vardy is only mentioned as he's essentially what the focus of Leicester City is. If England flop, Harry Kane outshines him or Leicester City tank at the first third of the 2016/2017 season then that's going to take a lot of the proverbial shine off his achievements.

I feel Leicester City may be recognized only for 'Team of the Year' and as I've previously suggested only if they forget about the Olympics & Paralympics.

Andy Murray if he somehow wins the French Open probably jumps to the head of the queue but it'll only last up until he loses at Wimbledon & the US Open.

[stereoman]

I have no idea what the odds are on Michael Bisping are but he's just become the first Great British UFC champion by beating Luke Rockhold via KO in the first round.

He might somehow get a nomination if he survives being champion until Christmas despite it being an Olympic/Paralympic year but the win is likely very much beyond him.

[stereoman]

Betway have odds on the RTE equivalent:

9/4 Rory McIlroy
11/4 Katie Taylor
7/1 Jonathan Walters
8/1 Paddy Barnes
10/1 Ruby Walsh
12/1 Carl Frampton
12/1 Steven Davies
12/1 Annalise Murphy
14/1 Michael Conlan
14/1 Bertram Allen
14/1 Conor McGregor
16/1 Shane Long
16/1 Joe Ward
25/1 Craig Cathcart
25/1 Kyle Lafferty
33/1 Jonathan Sexton
33/1 Rob Heffernan
50/1 CJ Stander
50/1 Sam Bennett
66/1 Sanita Puspure
66/1 Liam Jegou
66/1 Mark English

Katie Taylor looks goodish to 'repeat' if she wins in Rio as she'll be in that rarefied air of being an Irish person winning gold medals at different Olympics.

http://www.independent.ie/sport/other-s ... 42550.html

Winners in an Olympic year:

1992 - Michael Carruth
1996 - Michelle Smith
2000 - Sonia O'Sullivan
2004 - Ronan O'Gara
2008 - Pádraig Harrington
2012 - Katie Taylor

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RT%C3%89_ ... f_the_Year

Paddy Barnes needs a dominant performance or a public campaign possibly to get ahead of Katie Taylor. I'd suggest if Carl Frampton beats Leo Santa Cruz then he's got more than a shot to win. Ruby Walsh has never won it but Tony McCoy has. Rory McIlroy needs to win a Major at the very least.

It could be dominated by boxers.

I wouldn't back Jonathan Walters at 777/1 let alone a piddly 7/1 (are you drunk, Betway!?).

[stereoman]

Well then...here's how William Hill have priced things up after today.



If Andy Murray backs up a second Wimbledon win with a third US Open win and/or a second Olympic gold then yeah, it looks ominous.

He's in the box seat.

[stereoman]

Chris Froome is about to win a third Tour de France but it looks like 'nobody' cares. A myriad of factors affect him and frankly, the cycling bloc vote don't seem to want to support him barring further notice.

Updated odds from William Hill: