Calzaghe: Whoever wins BBC gong deserves respect

Published on Thursday 11 December 2008 09:24

JOE CALZAGHE believes winning last year's BBC Sports Personality award ended interrogation about his legendary boxing career not gaining the respect it deserved.

Calzaghe became the first Welshman since showjumper David Broome in 1960 to land one of British sport's most prestigious honours.

He is among the ten short-listed nominations for this year's award – the winner will be announced on Sunday night – alongside Olympic gold medalists like Chris Hoy, Rebecca Adlington and Ben Ainslie, plus Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton.

Unlike in the boxing ring, Calzaghe could struggle to make a successful title defence, but he will relish once again rubbing shoulders with British sport's elite.

"It has been a great year with the Olympics, and whoever wins it deserves it," he said. "They are all great champions who deserve the utmost respect.

"It was fantastic last year. I won it, I think, by 50,000 votes, which put a nail in the coffin of those questions about me not getting respect or credit I deserved. I was stunned by it. It was brilliant – and my dad also got trainer of the year as well, which was fantastic."

Calzaghe will inevitably find himself subjected to questions about his boxing future, and whether or not he intends retiring after 46 undefeated fights.

But he says it will be January or February before he gives "some serious thought" to his boxing future. Current IBF light-heavyweight world champion Chad Dawson, Nottingham's newly-crowned WBC super-middleweight king Carl Froch and American Bernard Hopkins could be possible opponents in 2009.