The BBC has announced major changes to the Sports Personality of the Year award for 2018, with the contenders to be revealed on the night for the first time in history.
BBC Sport presenters Gabby Logan, Gary Lineker and Claire Balding, will once again present the prestigious award, now in its 65th year. The event will take place in the Genting Arena, Birmingham, on Sunday 16th December.
BBC ring in changes for 2018 event
Along with the novel approach that the nominees will be revealed live on the night, other major changes to the structure include the renaming of the highly-coveted BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year award to the World Sport Star award, where those living outside of the UK will be able to vote for the first time.
Furthermore, the Young Sports Personality of the Year will be presented at the BBC Radio 1 Teen Awards later this month, as opposed to on the night among the main SPOTY award itself.
Other awards to be distributed on the evening comprise the Team of the Year, Lifetime Achievement and Coach of the Year. Furthermore, the Helen Rollason award and the BBC Get Inspired Unsung Hero award will be also be presented, the former of which honours outstanding achievement in the face of adversity, the latter recognising forward-thinking volunteers in sport across the United Kingdom.
Public set to have a major role in proceedings
The British public look set to have a bigger impact than ever on the night, and will help decide another new award to be given out, the Greatest Sporting Moment of the Year.
A panel of judges will select a range of memorable moments from 2018, with the public then choosing their favourite via the BBC Sport website, with the World Sport Star award operating on a similar methodology, this time the public selecting a winner from a list of six nominees.
BBC look forward to another hugely competitive year
The event will once again be a highly-anticipated affair for both fans and athletes, with a seemingly endless list of British stars in contention for the much-revered prize. A live audience of 12,000 will take their seats in the Genting Arena for the event, with millions more set to watch from home on BBC One.
After another busy year of sport, where England reached the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup in Russia, Anthony Joshua continued his dominance in the world of boxing, and England's netball team secured a historic Commonwealth Gold against hosts Australia, there is seemingly an endless list of potential winners.
Also vying for the trophy will be Geraint Thomas, who raced to victory at the Tour de France, Alastair Cook, who ended his international cricket career as England's highest ever Test run-scorer, Lewis Hamilton, aiming for a remarkable fifth world championship in Formula 1, and indeed most recently Team Europe's Ryder Cup side after their astounding victory in France just last week.
