BBC Sports Personality of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award facts for kids

Sebastian Coe, who won the award in 2012

The BBC Sports Personality of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award is a special prize given out every December. It is part of the big BBC Sports Personality of the Year show. This award celebrates sports heroes who have made a huge difference in the world of sport during their lives. BBC Sport chooses the winner each year.

The award started in 1996. The first person to win it was Frank Bruno, a famous boxer. Some people thought it was a "consolation prize" for him. The next year, Spanish golfer Seve Ballesteros won it. After that, the award took a break for three years. It came back in 2001 when football manager Alex Ferguson won it. Since then, it has been given out every year.

Many winners have been from football. Tennis and golf are also sports that have had more than one winner. Martina Navratilova, a tennis legend, was the first woman to win the award. Seve Ballesteros is the only person to win it twice, in 1997 and 2009. He won for his amazing golf career, including winning the Open three times and the Masters twice. The most recent winner, in 2023, was football legend Kenny Dalglish.

Who Has Won the Award?

Winners by Year

Martina Navratilova, who won in 2003, was the first female winner

Pelé, the winner in 2005

Michael Phelps won in 2016. He has competed in four Olympic Games

Jessica Ennis-Hill won in 2017. She was the first female winner since 2003

Here is a list of the amazing sports stars who have won this special award:

BBC Sports Personality of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award winners

Year	Nationality	Winner	Sport	Why they won	Ref.
1996	United Kingdom	Bruno, FrankFrank Bruno	Boxing	He won the WBC heavyweight boxing title.
1997	Spain	Ballesteros, SeveSeve Ballesteros	Golf	He made a huge impact on European golf for 20 years.
2001	United Kingdom	Ferguson, AlexAlex Ferguson	Football	He led Manchester United to many wins, including the treble in 1999.
2002	United Kingdom	Best, GeorgeGeorge Best	Football	He was a brilliant footballer, named European Player of the Year in 1968.
2003	United States	Navratilova, MartinaMartina Navratilova	Tennis	She had an amazing 30-year tennis career, winning a record 167 singles titles.
2004	United Kingdom	Botham, IanIan Botham	Cricket	He was a top all-rounder for England in cricket for 15 years.
2005	Brazil	Pelé	Football	He scored 1,280 goals and won three World Cups with Brazil.
2006	Sweden	Borg, BjörnBjörn Borg	Tennis	He won 11 Grand Slam titles, including 5 Wimbledon championships.
2007	United Kingdom	Robson, BobbyBobby Robson	Football	He had a long career as both a player and a manager for over 50 years.
2008	United Kingdom	Charlton, BobbyBobby Charlton	Football	He helped England win the World Cup in 1966 and led Manchester United to European Cup glory.
2009	Spain	Ballesteros, SeveSeve Ballesteros	Golf	He won the Open three times and the Masters twice, inspiring many in golf.
2010	United Kingdom	Beckham, DavidDavid Beckham	Football	He had a great playing career and helped London get the 2012 Olympic Games.
2011	United Kingdom	Redgrave, SteveSteve Redgrave	Rowing	He made a huge impact on rowing and won many Olympic medals.
2012	United Kingdom	Coe, SebastianSebastian Coe	Athletics	He played a key role in London hosting the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
2014	United Kingdom	Hoy, ChrisChris Hoy	Cycling	He won six Olympic gold medals, more than any other British sportsperson.
2015	United Kingdom	McCoy, APAP McCoy	Horse racing	He was Champion Jockey for 20 years, winning over 4,300 races.
2016	United States	Phelps, MichaelMichael Phelps	Swimming	He won 23 Olympic gold medals, more than any other Olympian.
2017	United Kingdom	Ennis-Hill, JessicaJessica Ennis-Hill	Athletics	She is an Olympic champion and three-time world champion in athletics.
2018	United States	King, Billie JeanBillie Jean King	Tennis	She changed how people saw women in sport and won 39 Grand Slam titles.
2019	United Kingdom	Grey-Thompson, TanniTanni Grey-Thompson	Para-athletics	She is a hugely successful Paralympic athlete.
2021	United States	Biles, SimoneSimone Biles	Gymnastics	She is one of the greatest gymnasts of all time.
2022	Jamaica	Bolt, UsainUsain Bolt	Athletics	He is the fastest sprinter in history and an eight-time Olympic gold medalist.
2023	United Kingdom	Dalglish, KennyKenny Dalglish	Football	He is a legendary football player and manager.

Winners by Nationality

This table shows how many times people from different countries have won the award.

Winners by nationality

Nationality	Number of wins
United Kingdom	10
United States	4
Spain	1
Brazil	1
Sweden	1
Jamaica	1

Winners by Sport

This table shows which sports the winners are known for.