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2004
Staffordshire's Midlands heroes of sport announced! | |
|  | | Pearson took top award |
| | Staffordshire's sporting greats tasted glory at the BBC Midlands Sports Awards, with Lee Pearson taking 'the daddy' of all the awards - the Sports Personality of the Year.
See who else was among the prizes! |
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| | Lee Pearson, Staffordshire's own Triple Paralympic Dressage Gold medallist, pipped some big names to the Sports Personality title.
The likes of Olympic medallists Kelly Sotherton and Mark Lewis Francis were among the nominees but our very own Lee was the public choice, after Midlands Today viewers and website users were invited to vote for their favourite.
What else was up for grabs?
Leek-born Lee also plucked the Disabled Sportsman of the Year award, while Paul Bailey, a clay-pigeon shooter from nearby Cheddleton was one of the nominees.
Find out more about Lee Pearson - and hear his interview
Find out more about Paul Bailey
Frommarathons to martial arts...
Ray Edensor from Stafford (AKA The Running Paramedic) picked up the Special Achievement Award for his sporting efforts in aid of charity.
Sarcha Zablocki from Stoke-on-Trent was among the runners-up, after she became the first special needs student to achieve a black belt in Tae Kwondo.
Click to read more about Ray's feats
Hear Sarcha's story
Sportsman...
Darts 'legend' (perhaps for once not too strong a word) Phil Taylor was nominated in the Sportsman Award, but Olympic double medallist Leslie Law from Worcestershire eventually landed the title.Check out Phil's achievements
Sportswoman...
Kelly Sotherton was named Sportswoman of the Year, beating our own Emma Shaw, from Great Haywood near Rugeley, who has risen to become another of Staffordshire's growing ranks of equestrian greats.
Scott Mansell, an 18 year old racing driver from Tamworth was named Young Sports Person of the Year, while 13-year-old Dannielle Wyatt was presented with the BBC Radio Stoke award for her cricketing prowess.
Unsung Hero too
There was also an award for those who quietly get on with the job of ensuring that our sportsmen and women can compete.
Of the five nominees, Edith Hemmings was selected for her efforts at Stone Wheelers Cycling Club and Jane Bagnall from Uttoxeter, was chosen for her work with blind golfers.
The dynamic duo are both 90 years old, but impressed the nominations panel with their comittment to helping their specialist sport.
However, this year’s Unsung Hero is Walter Dimmock from Wolverhampton.
Highlights of the evening will be shown in a special thirty-minute programme on BBC1 at 7pm on Wednesday 8th December
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| |  | BBC Stoke and Staffordshire
Cheapside
Hanley
Stoke-on-Trent
Staffordshire
ST1 1JJ
tel: (+44) 01782 221281
e-mail: stoke@bbc.co.uk |
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