Calzaghe recalls family awards double

Sports Personality of the Year
Venue: Liverpool Echo Arena Date: Sunday, 14 December Time: 1900 BST Coverage: Live on BBC One, BBC Radio 5 Live & BBC Sport website.

Welshman Joe Calzaghe has told BBC Sport that both he and his father achieved a "great double" at last year's Sports Personality of the Year event.

The 36-year-old beat both fellow boxer Ricky Hatton and Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton to win the coveted award with 28.19% of the public's vote which came after his father and trainer, Enzo, was awarded the Coach of the Year title.

The BBC accolades were just reward for the pair following a year that saw the younger Calzaghe beat Peter Manfredo and Mikkel Kessler to retain his super-middleweight titles and take him to a record of 44 wins and no losses.

606: DEBATE
Who will win the famous trophy?
"I'm proud that my dad won the coach award - it was a great double," Calzaghe told BBC Sport.

His father Enzo added: "I thought if I got my prize and Joe didn't get his then it would be murder. I was on the edge until Joe was named the winner. Last year was a massive one for him."

Calzaghe was presented the trophy in Las Vegas after having travelled to support his friend Hatton who had been beaten by Floyd Mayweather the previous night.

The Welshman admitted he had a strong chance of being one of the contenders for the main Sports Personality award in 2007, but added that he never had "great hopes" of winning.

"I thought I would be top three - I think my win against Kessler helped," said Calzaghe.

"I'm at the top, still world champion, so it should be very competitive"
Calzaghe on this year's award

"A lot of people said Hamilton would win. He was odds-on favourite at one stage. I didn't have great hopes of winning. When they announced Hatton was third and Hamilton was second I thought 'oh wow'.

"Not many boxers have won it and I became the first Welshman to win in 30 or 40 years."

In fact, the last native of Wales to win the major BBC award was showjumper David Broome in 1960, who followed golfer Dai Rees' success in 1957.

If Calzaghe beats Roy Jones Jr in his November light-heavyweight clash in Las Vegas then he will have a strong chance of once again being one of the major contenders for BBC Sports Personality of the Year, having also seen off Bernard Hopkins earlier in the year.

"There were many British gold medallists from the Olympics. But there's boxing and I'm at the top, still world champion so it should be very competitive, a close run thing," he added.

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