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Just a quick auestion Tom;

Do you think that the handing out of so many awards for sportspeople is de-valueing the awards??

I first thought this when the Queen honoured the Ashes cricket team but now it all seems a bit out of hand. There are many people who work hard their whole lives and dedicate a lot to their community that get overlooked because they are not in the limelight.

Giving awards to successful sports people who are role models to the next generation is no more devaluing of the awards, than it is when they are given to contributors of political parties and the legion of hangers-on that surround royalty.

HealeysHairPiece;

I think that you misunderstand me, i am not having a go at the sportspeople for the achievments as i think that they have been immence.

My point is, there are people out there who find and develop these young minds, be it in sports, Science, Charity or other, that are constantly overlooked.

the last few years of the new years honour list has been largly dedicated to sports.

I suppose it depends on what you view the purpose of the awards as. The difficulty is that if Hoy now does years of charity work, how is he to be rewarded? They can hardly make him a Lord (as that is a political appointment).

In my view, a knighthood should be reserved as a reward for a lifetime of working beyond the call of duty in a particular field, and in doing so helping others. It is too late now to make that call, as the likes of Kelly Holmes and Hoy have already set a precedent. I do not mean to devalue their achievments at all, they are undoubtedly phenomenal, but where can they go from here?

A counter argument would be that having got the title, it is their duty to live up to it, and dedicate themselves to being a role model to the rest of us, and to helping those who have not had their opportunities. However I think that a CBE should suffice for that, and then it could be upgraded to a knighthood following years of selfless service.

Chris Hoy is, and doubtless will continue to be a wonderful role model and a perfect professional, and he deserves all the praise that he is getting, in my view. If he wins more golds in London though, he will have to be left out of the honours list, as there is no further for him to go, which is a shame.

Chris who??, until the summer Joe Public had never heard of him.

Kenny Dalglish not only one of the greatest footballers of all time who won countless honours as player and manager and now doing a lot for charity is still waiting for his Knighthood. Phil Neal the most decorated British footballer with winner medals which included 8 league titles and FOUR European Cup winners medals, and don't get me started on Bob Paisley the most successful British manager off all time......................

Forgot to mention about what Dalglish and his wife did after the events of Hillsborough, helping to support family's who lost loved ones.

You're quite right, davejjt.

Why we don't give knighthoods to all the Liverpool FC players, as a matter of course, is beyond me.

Phil Neal may not be the kind of role model who ought to get the big gongs:

I am saying Fergie and Busby got Knighthoods so why not Dalglish and Paisley ( and why not shankly ). Regarding Phil Neal I am sure other " Sirs" have done alot worse.

lol

A petition was sent to No 10 a couple of years back about awarding a posthumous knighthood to Bob Paisley but this got nowhere. It is sad that a man who achieved so much has not been rewarded in the same way as others.

Back to Chris Hoy though, let us not forget that he won Olympic Gold at 2 games, not just one, and has won a multitude of other titles. If this is not down to years of dedication then I don't know what is. To achieve what he has into his thirties is phenomenal.

Now, the Daily Mirror campaign to get a knighthood for Bruce Forsyth - that would be devaluing the honours system. Honours have always been privately discussed then awarded and such a blatant public campaign can only do one thing and that is backfire. Let us not forget he got his CBE in 2006 - that should suffice for a man who should have been put out to pasture a long time ago by the Beeb.

A knighthood for Brucie?

That would be nice to see; to see, nice.

Sorry, but someone had to.


Seriously, congratulations on a well deserved MBE for Marina Dalglish.

Chris Hoy has trained quietly and with great purpose in order to win a gold medal for himself and his country. Chris and the team lifted the spirits of the nation and made us proud to be British. We love our sport and we love to see our team(s) win fairly. We pride ourselves on effort, flair and fair play.

It is difficult to decide who should get what national award, or who should or shouldn't be knighted. Chris is deserving of something, and maybe the knighthood is the answer.
On the quesiton of those overlooked, I would agree that Bob Paisley does deserve a knighthood and I am surprised that Ronnie Corbett and Bruce Forsythe have still to recieve this award. Oh and I could do with a CBE for being a taxpayer since I was 15 - don't see why my efforts are anyless that sitting on a bike and peddling fast or kicking a ball about or wearling a wig and shouting 'Good Game'

Well done to Chris Hoy on his knighthood, but what has Bruce Forsyth got to do to get a knighthood!!!

At the start of the year nobody knew who Hoy was, and now he gets knighted for his services to sport? Forsyth on the other hand has been on TV for years and gets no recognition. MADNESS!

The list has been based on what Gordon Brown thinks will do best for the Labour Party, not necessarily who actually eserves the honour.
Why should Rebecca Adlington get an OBE and Lewis Hamilton get only an MBE. I am sure Ellie's MBE was for the public vote, otherwise she would have been awarded nothing. But why not parity with Rebecca - they both won 2 gold medals.

Do not get me wrong, Chris Hoy richly deserved his knighthood.

I think most people will agree that Paisley, Clough and Shankly not getting Knighthoods was a travesty. But you have to remember the government at the time they should've been honoured (as its them who ultimately decide who gets the biggies) weren't exactly too keen on football. And even less so on openly socialist football managers. Even with Ferguson's achievements, the Thatcher and Major's governments would never have given him a staunch labour supporter such as Ferguson a Knighthood.

As Dalglish and his wife. King Ken has already been honoured. And his wife is actually on the list for this year for her charity work.

If Phil Neal deserves a Knighthood based simply on the honours he won, then Davejj (even as a Liverpool fan) has to agree that Ryan Giggs should get one too. By his criteria, 10 league titles and two european cups should be enough.

The Daily Mash sums it all up nicely..



OBE's, MBE's...fine.. But knighthoods should be reserved for the truly deserving. Not sports stars OR managers OR bank officials !

Plenty of people who don't get knighthoods deserve them and there are some that get them that probably don't deserve them. Sir Chris certainly deserves his. As far as footballers go they get plenty more compensation. Chris Hoy is essentially the fastest (velodrome) cyclist on earth.

Hoy achieved what no brit could co for 100 years. So it was a first for queeny. Becky deserved more for breaking the 19 year-old world record of Janet Evans in the 800 m final(The oldest record in the olympics in the olympics until becky beat it). Adlington is Britain's first Olympic swimming champion since 1988, the first British swimmer to win two Olympic gold medals since 1908 and is Great Britain's most successful Olympic swimmer in 100 years. So given that a brit has won the formula one numerous times in those 100 years both deserved more than Hamilton. The next footballer/manager who gets "sired" is going to have to win the world cup. I don't even think Fergie should be a sir. As football became more about the money it lost it's credentials to be a sport of genuine achievement. You would expect the richest to win everything (MANU, Chelsea, Liverpool). If Hull won the premiership it would be a much bigger achievement than any of the big budget teams winning it.

Mel0dymaker, only one Formula One world champion has ever been knighted, Sir Jackie Stewart and I think part of that was due to the safety reforms pushed through (If I was to speak of someone I also believe was worthy of a knighthood it would be Prof Sid Watkins, who is responsible for the drive to get many F1 circuits up to increased safety levels through the 70's and 80's.

I believe the problem that arises whenever these lists are announced is whether being good at something is in your eyes is worthy of an honour. I'm Hoy's knighthood will be for services to cycling or something and I don't know enough about him to go making accusations that may be false, however, on a more general scale, comes the question is being good at a sport worthy of such a high acolade and I probably speak of a great many of sports knights here and again it's hard to criticise. For instance, David Beckham as an example, earns a lot, but I get the impression that he also does a lot with his money. He's set up a soccer academy I believe and they'll be some that will give, but don't need their name up in lights. Now, whilst that school might be a business venture, it is also giving something back. Whether it's a knightly pursuit, is another debate, but I don't believe overall whether someone becomes a knight should be wholly based on their achievements on the sporting field. The guy that trains children in his spare time each weekday night will always in my eye be more worthy than the sportsman who succeeds at what he does.

But it's so grey I don't envy anyone deciding what everyone should get.

Thats a joke, iam with you EIREBILLY. I now undertand why many big names from music to sport say no to this medals and knighthood and so on... most of them
waste of time...

People like Andrews Cole who won anything you can win in club football and like many other doing they job hard to be respected of what they do, are never mentioned.

And now this guy go cycling in circle, turning left, left again, left again and left again. ( i go get a cup of tea, come back and never missed a damn thing), there he gest 3 golds... and his a hero. what about the real heros that were doing they profection for many years and succeed in the processe... I dont think I will remember him when this article is gone... will you?

Why the hell are we givening these people knighthoods, it's about time we stood up as a nation and got rid of this corrupt give it all away to others goverment. £850 million to India for what.

It's our boys coming back from the middle east and being treated no better than second class citizens that deserve these knighthoods, if these people had any courage they would give their awards back and tell the goverment were to stick them. That would be brave, but of course it won't happen

I guess people are recognising a huge pair of legs then thinking who is that with huge legs that sprinters have.
I would not know Chris Hoy from the old man of hoy but if I saw someone with outsized legs almost freaklike I would say who the heck is that, Oh its Chris Hoy.

I am not taking anything away from Chris Hoy's acheivements but this is an award too far. There are so many sportsmen/women who have acheived a great deal more than him. Although he has done well, he does not deserve a knighthood.

This is a problem that began with the England Cricket team. When you set the bar so low for awards ( and they were given for political reasons) then everything else has to follow on from that. Compare winning one game of cricket( not even a world cup ) against what was a weakened Australian team to the olympics then quite frankly a knighthood should have been given to all Olympic gold medallists (at least they achieved something notable ) and Chris Hoy should have been made a Lord.

The England Rugby team deserved to get there awards because they did something extraordinary, however the England cricket team should have been made to give there's back what they achieved was ordinary and since then have ben appalling.

captaintommyh I dont suppose you would like to enlighten us to who you believe has achieved more than Chris Hoy. The first Brit to win three golds in one olympics in nearly 100 yrs added to his world gold medals previous olympic medals and world records ,I cant think of too many.

Chris Hoy deserves a Knighthood but it should have come when he retired from sports and not now. Blame the English cricket team for that.

On the handout of honours, you can't win. Pilloried for not giving the 66 World Cup winners their dues until after the greatness of their achievements was recognised and howled at when you try to give the cricketers theirs after the Ashes (this win came following 3 years of success and now they’re solely judged on 3 years of decline).

Our fantastic Olympians dedicate 4 years of their lives for a single Olympics, to bring both personal and reflective glory. I thought this year’s honours correctly gauged the scale of our sportsmen/women’s achievements and by considering their longevity reflected the stage in their career.
I was equally delighted to see the recognition for Dave Brailsford and David Tanner.

My one quibble – surely it should be Sir Ben Ainslie.

Knighthoods are, rightly, for exceptional service over a prolonged period. Chris Hoy has won medals at three Olympics and by winning three at a single Olympics ensures that the bar remains sufficiently high so as not to devalue the honour. Ben Ainslie will, fingers crossed, be the next recipient in 2012 should he add another gold medal to his collection.

People who say that such honours should not, on occasion, be given to sportsmen and women, utterly fail to grasp the inspirational and motivational role they play within society.

We are all allowed to dream impossible dreams, and those that achieve theirs deserve our utmost adulation and respect.

Hoy should not have been knighted yet. I suppose they had to after Dame Kelly Holmes

Ian Botham did years of charity work before his knighthood. I think Hoy should have done the same before getting his.

You can't argue with his achievement, but it basically sends out a message to the world that we are not very expectant of our sport, and when it does happen we get rather giddy