Leigh Leopards are roaring on local hero Keely Hodgkinson at the prestigious BBC Sports Personality of the Year award tomorrow night.
Keely is shortlisted for the award alongside the likes of darts player Luke Littler and footballer Jude Bellingham.
Cricketer Joe Root, triathlete Alex Yee and Para-cyclist Sarah Storey are the other nominees.
2024 was an incredible year for 22-year-old Keely who began by setting a new British 800 metres record of 1:54:61, the sixth-fastest time ever, in her preparation towards achieving Olympic Gold.
A proud member of Leigh Harriers, Keely was determined to better her incredible effort of winning silver at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
Watched by over nine million UK viewers on television on a memorable Monday evening in early August, she did just that.
Leopards’ owner Derek Beaumont, his wife Laura and son Rocky cheered her on at the Stade de France, as Keely raced to glory and won the first gold medal by a British female athlete since Jessica Ennis-Hill in 2012.
Derek Beaumont said: “It’s fantastic that Keely has been nominated for Sports Personality of the Year, something I would be delighted to see her achieve.
“She is such a great ambassador for young people, has a great image and a vibrant and fun personality.
“What she has achieved at such a young age is incredible and I was privileged to be able to watch her live in Paris.
“I will be voting for her and hope all our townsfolk do as well.”
The winner of the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award is the sportsperson, judged by a public vote, to have achieved the most that year.
The winner must be British and or reside and play a significant amount of their sport in the UK.
Voting will take place during the show on BBC One and the BBC iPlayer on Tuesday 17 December.
Derek Beaumont added: “I’d also really like to wish our neighbours and rivals Wigan Warriors the best of luck in the Team of the Year category.
“We had a great time at last year’s awards, after being nominated ourselves and hope Wigan enjoy it as much as we did and can bring another honour back to our borough.”
Presented live by Gabby Logan, Alex Scott and Clare Balding from MediaCityUK in Salford the programme will celebrate 12 months of incredible sporting action.
First awarded in 1954, when runner Chris Chataway was the inaugural recipient, previous winners include Bobby Moore, Bobby Charlton, Princess Anne, Ian Botham, Nigel Mansell, Liz McColgan, Steve Redgrave, Andrew Flintoff, Bradley Wiggins, Lewis Hamilton and Mo Farah.
A Rugby League player has never won the award, though Kevin Sinfield was runner-up to Andy Murray in 2015.
England international goalkeeper Mary Earps, who played for Manchester United women’s team based at Leigh Sports Village, was the recipient of the 2023 award.
