People

The Scottish Sports Awards 2024

Celebrating the best of Scottish sport.

The Scottish Sports Awards 2024, hosted by sportscotland and Team Scotland, took place on Wednesday 4 December at The Glasgow Science Centre and IMAX, celebrating the successes and contribution of individuals, schools, clubs, and teams across Scottish sport.

Selecting the finalists and winners has been incredibly challenging, with groundbreaking performances from athletes in the Olympics, Paralympics, World Championships, World Cups, Grand Slams, European Championships and more. While closer to home, we’ve seen the significant impact of sport in local communities, including schools, clubs, and community projects.

In what’s been a fantastic year of sporting celebration, we’ve also welcomed the news that the Commonwealth Games will be returning to Scotland in 2026, which will provide opportunities for our athletes to experience a memorable major sporting event at home and inspire people across Scotland.

Community at the heart

There were emotional celebrations for North Ayrshire Table Tennis Club in their 20th anniversary year as founders, Billy and Chris Main took to the stage to receive the Club Sport Award. The father and son duo have taken the club from a one-table wooden-hut dream to Scotland’s biggest and most successful table tennis club.

Lauren Deacon was presented with the Community Hero Award and praised for her dedication to launching Scotland’s first recreational netball league, which has grown from 5 to 16 teams and engages over 1,500 participants.

It was double delight for Boccia coach Claire Morrison who picked up the Coach of the Year award, and later watched Stephen McGuire collect the Para Male Athlete of the Year award after ending his fourth Paralympic Games with a gold medal in the men’s individual BC4.

Creating history

In 2024, Duncan Scott MBE became Scotland’s most decorated Olympian with eight Olympic medals, so it wasn’t much of a surprise that he was recognised with both the Male Athlete of the Year award and The Scottish Sportsperson of the Year award - the evening’s ultimate award for sporting excellence, selected from winners of the male, female, para-sport and young athlete of the year award categories.

Sammi Kinghorn MBE was cheered onto the stage as she was announced as the Para Female Athlete of the Year. Sammi has had a fantastic season and in Paris she was unstoppable, winning her first paralympic gold medal in the T53 100m and four silver in the 400m, 800m, 1500m and Universal Relay.

The Team of the Year Award was presented to Scotland Women’s Cricket Team who created history as they qualified for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup for the first time. Captain Kathryn Bryce who was named Player of the Tournament collected the award and expressed that the success has been a true team effort throughout, culminating in a landmark moment for the sport in Scotland!

The Scottish Sports Hall of Fame

The event also welcomed the latest inductees into the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame. Jim Anderson OBE, affectionately known as “Jim the Swim,” represented Great Britain at six Paralympic Games from 1992 to 2012, securing a remarkable six gold medals!

Golfing legend Colin Montgomerie OBE, renowned for his remarkable achievements on the European Tour and in the Ryder Cup was also inducted. With 31 victories on the European Tour, ‘Monty’ holds the record for the most wins by any British golfer and ranks fourth all-time in European Tour history.

Dame Katherine Grainger DBE was the third and final inductee for 2024. Renowned for her exceptional achievements, Katherine is the only British female athlete to win medals in five consecutive Olympic Games. There was plenty for Kathrine to celebrate on the night as on Thursday 28 November it was confirmed that Dame Katherine will becomes the first ever female Chair of the British Olympic Association since its establishment in 1905.

Chair of sportscotland, Maureen Campbell OBE said: “A massive congratulations to all the winners at this year’s Scottish Sport Awards. There have been so many incredible achievements across Scottish Sport over the last twelve months and nights like these are a great chance to recognise and celebrate together.

“Every year the Scottish Sports Awards reminds us of the power of sport and its ability to inspire and unite everyone, whether it’s Scotland’s athletes performing on the world stage, or local communities working so hard to reduce inequalities in sport. It is evident, with this list of winners, that the success of the Scottish Sporting system is a result of talent, hard work and dedication across every level.”

Chair of Commonwealth Games Scotland, Ian Reid CBE, said:

“This has been a fantastic celebration of a remarkable year of sporting achievement, from the success of our Olympians and Paralympians in Paris to the many local heroes who continue to go above and beyond to help sport to flourish in clubs, schools and communities across Scotland.

“In the third year of our partnership with sportscotland to jointly host this inspirational event it continues to go from strength to strength – working together to celebrate the best of Scottish sport.

“Congratulations to all the winners and finalists, and a huge thank you to our partners and sponsors, whose support has made this special night possible.”