Gallagher and Evans shortlisted for BBC Sports Personality

“It’s really exciting to share our gold and do the best we could have done. Nobody has ever won a skiing gold in able-bodied or disabled skiing so I’m really proud that it was a Paralympian that got it. Go us! We fought hard for our gold."

The British para-alpine skiing duo of Kelly Gallagher and Charlotte Evans have been shortlisted for the prestigious BBC Sports Personality of the Year award following their gold medal success at the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games.

Gallagher and her guide Evans made history in March when they became the first ever alpine skiing gold medallists from Great Britain in either Olympic or Paralympic sport when they topped the podium in the women’s super-G visually impaired.

The pair is shortlisted alongside nine other British sport stars:

• Gareth Bale (football)

• Charlotte Dujardin (dressage)

• Carl Froch (boxing)

• Lewis Hamilton – (Formula 1)

• Rory McIlroy (golf)

• Jo Pavey (athletics)

• Adam Peaty (swimming)

• Max Whitlock (gymnastics)

• Lizzy Yarnold (skeleton)

Reacting to being shortlisted for the award which will be presented in Glasgow on Sunday 14 December at The Hydro in front of an estimated 12,000 crowd, Kelly Gallagher said: “I am so delighted that we are up there with other sports and athletes that are the best in their field.

“It’s really exciting to share our gold and do the best we could have done. Nobody has ever won a skiing gold in able-bodied or disabled skiing so I’m really proud that it was a Paralympian that got it. Go us! We fought hard for our gold.

“It’s great for Paralympic sport, for winter sport, and for women’s sport.”

Charlotte Evans said: “It’s massive. People are starting to recognise that the guide is doing as much as the athlete.

“When we went to Sochi, it was our goal and our achievement that we wanted to make and now we are being recognised and congratulated. It’s great that people are wanting to find out more about the sport.

“It’s not something we ever expected. It’s so surreal and I’m definitely still in a bubble of ‘pinch me’. I’m loving every minute of it!”

Other awards that will be presented on the night are: Coach of the Year, Overseas Personality, Team of the Year, Helen Rollason Award, Young Sports Personality and Unsung Hero.

Last year’s BBC Sports Personality of the year was tennis player Andy Murray following his Wimbledon success.

A panel of 12 people came up with the shortlist. They included Paralympian Tanni Grey-Thompson and Olympians Rebecca Adlington and Denise Lewis. They were joined by newspaper sports editors Mike Dunn (Independent, the i and Evening Standard), Howard Wheatcroft (Express Newspapers head of sport) and Alex Butler (Sunday Times), pan-sports broadcaster/journalist: Alison Mitchell, the chair of SportScotland Louise Martin and former footballer Jason Roberts.

The director of BBC Sport Barbara Slater also sat on the panel alongside Philip Bernie (Head of TV Sport) and Carl Doran (Executive Editor, BBC Sports Personality of the Year).