Athletes lead nominations for Sportswomen awards

It is awards season and three British para athletes and our women’s 4x100m and 4x400m relay squads have been nominated for Sunday Times Sportswomen of the Year awards. Hannah Cockroft and Sophie Hahn are shortlisted for the Disability Sportswoman of the Year whilst Sammi Kinghorn is part of the line-up for Young Sportswoman of the Year, with the relays up for Team of the Year.

Hannah Cockroft – Nominee for Disability Sportswoman of the Year

Cockroft starred once more at the World Para Athletics Championships in London this summer, adding three gold medals to her collection, increasing her total number of world golds to a staggering ten. The 24 year-old has been one of the dominant figures in British athletics in recent years, and retaining her T34 100m, 400m and 800m titles from Doha was a special achievement for the Yorkshire-born athlete this summer.

One of Cockroft’s standout moments of the championships came when setting a world record on her way to the 100m title. This added to world records in the 400m, 800m and 1500m which she had set earlier in the season during a strong run of form out in Switzerland in May and June.

Sophie Hahn – Nominee for Disability Sportswoman of the Year

It was a standout year for Sophie Hahn who won the T38 100m and 20m titles in London, and also broke world records in both events. She began with the 200m, and after unofficially setting a world record earlier in the season in Loughborough, the crowd anticipated that they may witness something pretty special on the track that evening. And they weren’t disappointed as Hahn powered around the bend and into the home straight, crossing the line in 26.11 to shave a significant chunk off her previous best.

She returned to the track in the 100m and again was at her supreme best, clocking 12.44, to make it three T38 100m titles in a row for the Nottingham-based athlete.

Sammi Kinghorn – Nominee for Young Sportswoman of the Year

One of the breakthrough stars of the World Para Athletics Championships was Sammi Kinghorn who captured her first world titles at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

On ‘Super Saturday’ at the championships, Kinghorn added to the medal rush with a spectacular gold in world record time in the T53 200m which pushed her into the spotlight. A gold followed in the T53 100m later in the week, after a bronze in the 400m to mark a memorable ten days for the Scottish athlete.

After setting personal bests in six different events this year, from 100m to half-marathon, with a debut over the marathon to come this weekend in Chicago, it has been a year of progress for the 21 year-old.

Women’s 4x100m (Asha Philip, Desiree Henry, Dina Asher-Smith & Daryll Neita) & Women’s 4x400m relay (Eilidh Doyle, Laviai Nielsen, Emily Diamond & Zoey Clark) – Nominees for Team of the Year

Silver medallists in their respective events, the relay squads earned much acclaim at the IAAF World Championships in London this summer.

The women’s 4x100m team have enjoyed a string of successful results at championships over the last few years, and after claiming Olympic bronze in 2016, they stepped up to silver this time, comfortably beating the Jamaican team to the second spot on the podium. High quality changeovers put the quartet into an excellent position as they pushed the USA team close to the gold; an exceptional achievement for the young squad.

Silver was also the colour of medal collected by the 4x400m quartet on the final day of action. Within the barmy atmosphere, the team of Doyle, Clark, Nielsen and Diamond maintained their composure throughout the race, and used the roaring crowd to claim second spot on the podium and continue the British team’s success in the event over the years.