BAWA awards go to Muir, McColgan and Wightman

British Athletics Writers’ Association annual prizes go to Scottish endurance runners as coach Aston Moore earns the Ron Pickering Memorial award for services to athletics

Great Britain and Northern Ireland’s sole individual gold medallist at the 2022 World Championships, Jake Wightman, has been named British Male Athlete of the Year in the annual awards overseen by the British Athletics Writers’ Association (BAWA).

And for the first time in BAWA’s 59-year history, there is a joint winner of the Female Athlete of the Year prize with Laura Muir and Eilish McColgan tied on voting for the prize.

Wightman, 28, earned the John Rodda Award for the second time in three years for his blistering surge to men’s 1500m gold in Oregon, the first global gold for a British male over that distance since Seb Coe’s Olympic triumph in Los Angeles in 1984. He later also gained a bronze at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham over the same distance and a silver in the 800m at the European Championships in Munich.

He said: “It’s a real honour in what was the busiest year we’ve ever had as athletes and I’m sure for you guys, trying to cover it, it even worse battling jetlag, different time zones and three major championships can’t have been easy. So congratulations to all of you for surviving it. Thanks for trying to put pour sport in the best light possible and for giving it the platform in Britain it deserves.”

For the second time in his career, and in recognition of his world 1500 metres title, BAWA gives the John Rodda Award for Male Athlete of the Year to Jake Wightman @JakeSWightman pic.twitter.com/ojE4xCPDJB

— BAWA (@BAWA_Athletics) December 20, 2022

Muir acquires the Cliff Temple Award for Female Athlete of the Year for the second time in her career in tandem with Eilish McColgan, her clubmate at Dundee Hawkhill Harriers.

Another spectacular summer brought Muir, 29, bronze over 1500m at the world championships, followed by a successful defence of her European title in Munich. In between, she also took 1500m gold and 800m bronze at the Commonwealth Games.

“It’s a Dundee Hawks takeover,” she said. “2022 has been pretty crazy but pretty amazing. It’s very fortunate things worked out very well at all three championships for me and I came away with a lot of medals. I’m very happy and honoured that Eilish and I were voted as Athlete of the Year because she had a fantastic year as well.”

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