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Sporting quotes of the week – 15Dec06

A special awards edition of quotes of the week. So we have Zara Phillips, Joe Calzaghe, Martin Pipe, Lucinda Green and a selection of other responses from The Brewery on Wednesday and the week’s other sporting events, including Audley Harrison, Ronnie O’Sullivan, Alan Pardew and Alan Curbishley. And HM The Queen.
“You can’t believe how thrilled I am to be making this award” – Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson barely able to contain her own excitement as she was about to present the Sportsman of the Year award to another Welsh hero, Joe Calzaghe, pictured above

“The Queen is very pleased and proud her granddaughter has won” – a Buckingham Palace spokesman on Zara Phillips’ award

“It is incredible winning all these awards, and I have to thank a lot of people, including my papa, who is the bane of my life, and Sandy” – Zara Phillips expresses her gratitude to her father Mark Phillips and her step-mother, Sandy Pflueger

“It was terrific that racing received such recognition” – former champion National Hunt trainer, and recipient of the SJA’s JL Manning Trophy, Martin Pipe, collecting his award from Stuart Barnes, pictured right

“The best ever” – Lucinda Green, Sportswoman of the Year in 1975, after Wednesday’s SJA Sports Awards

“Many, many thanks for the lovely lunch. It was good to see so many old friends again” – Patrick Collins in a note to Trevor Bond

“I was at the awards lunch yesterday and have just realised that I’m not actually a member! Have sent off a membership form this morning. Really enjoyed yesterday – was good fun” – former Daily Mirror staffer Andy Lines

Alan Fraser in the Daily Mail on the BBC’s Sports Personality show:

“The BBC are to be congratulated for moving the event to Birmingham, for opening their doors to the public and further democratising the award. But they have totally given up on attempting to review the year and on showing sporting highlights. Just tiny clips, snippets, projected in a supposedly arty way on to London landmarks, for example. What on earth were they doing spending more time on someone sliding down a hill on a tray on the way to a silver medal than on the domestic football season, for example?”

“That’s total bollocks” – golfer Darren Clarke after hearing that the BBC’s Team of the Year award had gone to St Helens rugby league club rather than the European Ryder Cup team

“The selection for the first Test amazed me. Then, to be so pig-headed that you stay with Giles in the second Test after you were hopelessly outplayed, surprised me even more” – Ian Botham on the attack after Monty Panesar demonstrated, with a five-for on his Ashes debut, that he is well worth his place in the England side

“I’m sorry to let down the fans who came to see me play. It wasn’t my intention to disappoint them and for that I’m truly apologetic” — Ronnie O’Sullivan, pictured right, after walking out of snooker’s UK Championship quarter-final

“The managers who’ve been around a long time don’t wear headpieces, they don’t have three-way communication with people all round the stadium, they’re football managers and they manage” Alan Curbishley embarks on his West Ham career planning to use only very sweet tea and rub downs with the Sporting Life

“I don’t know the guy who bought West Ham well. But certainly if an English guy had bought them he would have been a bit more patient” – Arsene Wenger, Arsenal’s manager, speaking following the sacking of Alan Pardew, one of the guests at the SJA’s Sports Awards on Wednesday

“I hate to copy other countries but look at what New Zealand are doing. They’re putting the player first, the team first. And we’re trying to put out a team to play against these people” – Sir Clive Woodward, still with issues with the RFU

“You can’t be scared when you box for a world title, you have to be a warrior. When Audley boxes like that, I think he definitely has a chance” – heavyweight Danny Williams after his defeat to Audley Harrison