BBC unveils 70th Sports Personality of the Year plans

Gary Lineker, Clare Balding, Gabby Logan, and Alex Scott will present the 70th Sports Personality of the Year on 19 December.

The programme will be live from Media City, Salford, from 7-9pm, and air on BBC1 and iPlayer. There will also be action from the red carpet, including exclusive interviews with nominees and highlights from the programme, available on the BBC Sport website.

There are eight awards up for grabs, including the headline Sports Personality of the Year prize. The other seven are World Sport Star of the Year, Helen Rollason award, Young Sports Personality of the Year, Unsung Hero, Coach of the Year, Team of the Year, and the Lifetime Achievement award.

Director of BBC Sport Barbara Slater, who is set to retire in the near future, said: “I’m so proud of the crucial role BBC Sport has played in bringing audiences a wonderful and thrilling year of sport on TV, radio and online - there will be so much to celebrate on the evening. 

“What will make this year’s awards even more special is that we are marking 70 years of the programme. Over the last seven decades the public has decided who its sporting heroes are, from grassroots to professional, and that’s what makes Sports Personality of the Year so important.”