Well done to Joe and Co

ONE of the first television programmes I can remember seeing as a sports-mad kid was the BBC's Sports Personality of the Year award. It must have been in the late 1950s and was hosted by the splendid Peter Dimmock or was it Raymond Glendenning. It matters not.
At the time my whole life seemed to revolve around Manchester United and I was always rooting for my boyhood hero Bobby Charlton. Bobby never won Sports Personality of the Year, although he made it as a member of England's World Cup squad in 1966 and United's European Cup conquerers of 1968 in the team awards.
One of the earlier recipients of the coveted title I can remember was John Surtees, a motor bike racer who graduated to sports car racing. Cricketer Jim Laker was another, as was showjumper David Broome.
There can be few years since when I have not watched the programme and last Sunday's was probably the best staged of all of them. Gary Linneker and Sue Barker are consummate presenters, although it is rumoured that Barker is stepping down to concentrate on her first love, Cliff Richard, sorry, tennis! Step forward Gabby Logan, tailor-made for the job.
Had the admirable Ricky Hatton won in fight in LA in the early hours of Sunday morning he would have won the much-prized BBC trophy. There can be no denying, however, that fellow boxer Joe Calzaghie was a worthy winner, having gone ten years without defeat in the toughest of sports. Pity he didn't take a suit with him to LA.
His father, the mercurial Enzo, won the coach of the year award and embraced everyone within kissing range - and that was just the blokes - before accepting his trophy. How did such a squirt of a man sire a strapping big lad like Joe. But their affection for each other and pride in their respective achievements were clear for all to see. You see, real men do hug.
I voted for Paula Radcliffe because I thought her feat of winning the New York marathon in the face of such competition just ten months after giving birth to baby daughter Isla was so impressive. I remember watching it and thinking that this was some achievement.
Adding a touch of glitz to the night was cricketer Mark Ramprakash doing a few twirls with his Strictly Come Dancing partner. What would Peter Dimmock have thought of that?
And what a speech from Young Sports Personality of the year, high diver Tom Daley, 13, who sent a message of thanks from Montreal where he picked up a gold in the CAMO invitational meet. Definitely one for the future.
Eventer Sara Phillips, the Queen's granddaughter, looked like she was dressed in a purple wasps nest but resisted the temptation to describe her year as Sports Personality of 2006 as "amazing". Remember her acceptance speech last year. "Amazing" it certainly wasn't.
The Beeb gets a lot of stick for dumbing down our TV diet - but when it comes to staging big events like Sports Personality they have no peers.