Earlier this month, the sporting world was rife with speculation about which outstanding sportsman or woman would be rewarded for their efforts with the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award.

Fans of Andy Murray believed that he was the obvious winner after such a successful year, whilst fans of British motorsport stated that Lewis Hamilton deserved recognition after making history at such a young age and in such impressive fashion. However, numerous other individuals were also in with a good chance of gaining the award.

It was with some shock that Chris Hoy was handed the accolade during the ceremony, which was held in the middle of December. However, although slightly surprising, nobody was able to say that the award was not fully deserved.

After all, Hoy managed to win three gold medals in the Olympic Games earlier this year, making him the most successful male Olympic cyclist ever. The cyclist revealed that he was “stunned” after being handed the award but perhaps he shouldn’t have been. After all, nearly forty per cent of the members of the public who voted had chosen him as their favourite.

Chris Hoy, who has managed to remain refreshingly humble despite his rapid rise to fame during the past year, spoke of his belief that by voting for him, the public were actually voting for the entire British cycling team. This typical modesty was followed by the touching revelation that winning this award has provided Hoy with one of the highlights of his career.