By Tom Garry, in Salford
Beth Mead, the European Championship Golden Boot-winning forward, expresses optimism about the future of women’s sports after being named BBC Sports Personality of the Year for 2022. This historic achievement marked the first time that female athletes won the team, coach, and young personality awards in the same year. Mead, the first women’s footballer to win the top prize, hopes that she won’t be the last. The victory also continued the trend of female athletes winning the Spoty prize for two consecutive years, following Emma Raducanu’s win in 2021. Prior to this, the last time women won the prize in consecutive years was in 1971 and 1972 when Princess Anne and Mary Peters triumphed, respectively.
Ben Stokes, the captain of England’s Test cricket team, came in second place, while Eve Muirhead, the curling heroine of Team GB, finished in third. Mead, who became emotional during her acceptance speech as she thanked her family, spoke to reporters afterward, expressing her gratitude: “We are quite a soft family inside, and it comes out emotionally. They have done so much for me. Yes, I can dedicate [this award] to them, but it will still never feel like enough for what they have done for me.”
The Arsenal forward, still in disbelief of her win, jokingly stated that she could now “die happy.” She humbly added, “I’m Beth Mead, I kick a bag of air around a football pitch. It is quite humbling.”
Mead also acknowledged the progress of women’s sports and expressed her desire for it to continue moving in the right direction: “Women’s sport is heading in the right direction, and that’s where we want it to continue to head. You look at the podium tonight, and there are two women there. It is incredible how far football has come – cricket, rugby, curling, gymnastics. We want to keep pushing that even more for the next generation.”
In addition to Mead’s win, the England women’s football team was named Team of the Year for their success at the Euros. Their Dutch manager, Sarina Wiegman, became the first woman to win the coach award after remaining undefeated in her position for 15 months.
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