Peaty and Daley in SPOTY top three as Brown named Young Sports Personality of the Year

Tokyo 2020 19 Dec 21

Team GB’s Olympic stars were among the big winners at the 2021 BBC Sports Personality of the Year awards.

Following a record-breaking Tokyo 2020 for Team GB, diver Tom Daley and swimmer Adam Peaty both finished in the top three of the main BBC Sports Personality of the Year award, while teenage skateboarding star Sky Brown was named Young Sports Personality of the Year.

At the age of just 18, Emma Raducanu stunned the world when she ended the 44-year wait for a British women’s Grand Slam singles tennis champion by clinching the 2021 US Open and her exploits deservedly saw her win the main award, voted for by the public.

But after becoming an Olympic champion at his fourth Games as he triumphed alongside Matty Lee in the men’s synchronised 10m platform event, Daley finished as runner-up to Raducanu.

"That kid [Daley’s nine-year-old self] had a very, very big dream of what he wanted to achieve,” explained Daley, who also become the first British diver to claim four Olympic medals when he took men’s 10m platform bronze.

"I thought Rio was my chance and I crashed out monumentally but going into Tokyo was the first time I truly believed we could win an Olympic gold.

"It was like a moment of a flashback of everything I'd done, the highs and lows."

Peaty’s status as the greatest male 100m breaststroke swimmer of all-time is undeniable – with the 16 quickest times in history in the event to his name – and he finished third in the SPOTY voting after powering to gold in Tokyo to become the first British swimmer to defend an Olympic title.

"It's very, very hard to win one Olympic gold, not many people have them,” explained Peaty, who also helped Team GB win gold in the first ever 4x100m mixed medley relay final at the Games.

"To do it again is a thousand times harder. You can't put it down to one thing – for me, it was just going for it.

"You can't sugar-coat sport. I want to inspire as many people as I can, that's my purpose. I want to make people at home feel the performance, feel the love."

Footballer Raheem Sterling, heavyweight boxer Tyson Fury and Great Britain’s most successful Paralympian Sarah Storey were also shortlisted for the main award.

Meanwhile, after making history in Tokyo, skateboard sensation Brown added the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year award to her trophy cabinet.

Aged just 13 years and 28 days, Brown took a brilliant bronze in the skateboarding park event in Tokyo – falling on her first two runs while attempting a Kickflip Indy trick but landing it during her third and final run to become Team GB’s youngest-ever Olympic medallist.

“I can’t believe it, I’m so thankful,” said Brown after winning BBC Young SPOTY ahead of footballer Jude Bellingham and Paralympic swimmer Ellie Challis. “I honestly don’t feel like I deserve it and I’m next to two amazing people.

“I just want to say thank you to everyone who supported me and especially my family. I wanted to make Britain proud, as much I could – hopefully I did.

“I want to inspire the world, especially the little girls and teach them that skateboarding is for everyone. If you believe in yourself, you can do anything.”

And Brown also took the opportunity to drop a hint as to her plans for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, when she will still only be 16 years old.

She added: “I want to get two gold medals for Team GB in Paris – for skateboarding and surfing – and hopefully I can get two medals for you guys.”