IT WAS a perfect Sheffield night.
Almost.
The mostly South Yorkshire crowd was superb, the venue looked magnificent and the world's top sports stars were queuing up to say how much they loved being in the city.
In the nervy, nail-biting end our own golden girl Jessica Ennis finished with
the bronze behind Jenson Button and veteran winger Ryan Giggs in the BBC Sports Personality Of The Year awards show at Sheffield Arena.
And what a show.
VIDEO:
Watch our backstage video interviews with Jessica Ennis, Ryan Giggs, Jenson Button, Tom Daley and Eddie Izzard - CLICK HERE.VIDEO:
Full interview with Ryan Giggs - CLICK HERE.READ MORE: For a full report, comment, reaction and photos, see The Star on Monday, December 14, 2009.
Questions may be asked about the cost to the BBC but there's no denying
the quality of the product.
It opened for the TV cameras with Gary Lineker, Jake Humphreys and Sue Barker sweeping down a 17-step staircase bringing back memories of Eric, Ernie and Penelope Keith from Morecambe and Wise's Christmas show 1977.
Fortunately comedian James Corden had already stolen the laughs with a pre-show recording of a hilarious Sport Relief promotional film with the help of an 11,000 audience eager to join in.
That set the high-volume tone for the event which had begun with a pre-awards meal for 1,800 VIPs and invited guests at Ice Sheffield in the biggest dinner party the city has ever seen.
And at a reported £4,000 per 10-person table – there were 80 tables all together – one of the most highly sought after.
Once the VIPs had made the 400-metre journey through a specially constructed marquee 'tunnel' to the Arena the brilliant organisation, superb lighting, sound and stage set and celebrities from around the sporting world came together to see Giggs' triumphant.
"It's a shock, it's a big shock," said the former Wales winger. "As if I wasn't nervous enough, my heroes Seb Coe and Michael Johnson are here.
"I have been lucky enough to win a lot of things in my career, playing with great players and under the greatest manager that ever lived, and playing for the greatest club. This is up there with all that."
Earlier Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomery, in that sales-conference-delegate way of his, spoke to golf legend and brain tumour survivor Seve Ballesteros over a live link to Seve's home in Spain before a tearful Jose Maria Olazabel brought the house down presenting him with the Lifetime Achievement award.
Lineker joked about Tiger Woods having a lot of birdies and his driving being a problem. The England cricket team via satellite link to their South African hotel looked more bored to tears than the 'chuffed to bits' they were reported to be for winning team of the year.
The absurdly confident and poised Tom Daley – aged 15 – spoke eloquently twice, as a nominee for the main prize and winner of Young Sports Personality Of The Year for a second time.
Frank Bruno got to his seat an hour late, former Sheffield United manager Neil Warnock appeared briefly on screen, Sheffield mountain bike world champion Steve Peat got a mention as did Sheffield bobsleigh girl Nicola Minnichello and Eagles, Wednesday, United and the Steelers ice hockey teams.
Sheffield's Olympic gold medallist Sebastian Coe and Europe's top golfer Lee Westwood, from Worksop, handed out the top coach prize to England boss Fabio Capello.
Jess Ennis looked sensational in her sparkly black dress, more supermodel than heptathlete as she strode on stage.
To many third prize may seem too little for a young woman who turned the disaster of a broken ankle and missing out on the 2008 Olympics into a spur to World Championship heptathlon gold.
But there's no shame in finishing behind the reigning Formula 1 World champion and a 36-year-old footballer with 11 Premiership medals, two Champions League wins and more than 800 appearances for Manchester United.
"I have been completely overwhelmed by the support I have had from the people of Sheffield," said 23-year-old Jess after the show.
"They have been coming up to me in the street and in the supermarket to say 'good luck, we'll be voting for you'.
"People have been fantastic, I'm really proud to come from Sheffield."
And from the noise the crowd made whenever her name was mentioned, Sheffield is equally proud of her.
- Ryan Giggs gained 29.4 per cent of a public vote on the night, a total of 151,842 votes.
Others were: Jenson Button 96,770; Jessica Ennis 80,469; Mark Cavendish 55,960; Beth Tweddle 38,907; Tom Daley 36,929; Andy Murray 19,936; Andrew Strauss 17,237; David Haye 13,916; Phillips Idowu 4,507.
A total of 516,473 votes were cast.
Ten million-plus voted for contestants in the X Factor final on ITV at the same time.
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