WATER POLO star Niamh Moloney has been named as Sports Personality of the Year at the annual Dunfermline and West Fife Sports Council Awards.
The Dunfermline Water Polo Club player received the honour last night (Wednesday) at the prizegiving for 2023, which was held at Queen Anne High School.
Trophies were handed out in eight categories at the area's sporting 'Oscars', which celebrated the achievements and successes of individuals, teams, coaches and volunteers from the last 12 months.
Sponsored once more by the Press, the Sports Personality of the Year is given to an "outstanding sports person resident and training in Dunfermline and West Fife, who is a current member of a local club, and has achieved consistently high performance in 2023".
Niamh, 21, has been recognised for helping Great Britain's senior women qualify for the European Championships, which were held last month, in which they finished seventh.
Not only was that their first appearance on that stage in a decade, it ensured qualification for the water polo tournament at the World Aquatics Championships, which were held earlier this month.
Niamh, who was also named as Scottish Swimming's Senior Water Polo Player of the Year in 2023 - the second time she's won the accolade - travelled to Doha, Qatar, for that competition, which GB were taking part in for the first time in 11 years.
They went on to finish 11th, bettering their previous performance, and picked up their first-ever wins at that level, against South Africa and Kazakhstan.
Niamh was shortlisted for the Sports Personality of the Year prize alongside Pitreavie AAC's Commonwealth Youth Games 800 metres bronze medallist, Caleb McLeod; Dunfermline Track and Field duo Darcie Black and Callum Newton; badminton star, Brooke Stalker; and rising snooker star, Jack Borwick.
The Young Sports Personality of the Year, for individuals aged 16 and under, was won by Pitreavie AAC shot put and discus thrower, Murray Robb, who is ranked number one in Scotland for his age group in both disciplines, and holds the indoor and outdoor national records in shot put.
He was chosen for the prize ahead of Dunfermline Track and Field's Sophie Thomas and Amy Jenkinson; taekwondo competitor, Lily Finch; gymnast, Ella Gracie; and water polo player, Lucy McNair.
The Benny Hutton Team Award was presented to Acrobay Gymnastics Trust's 12-18 years age partnership, ahead of their 13-19 group, and Fife Cycle Speedway, Dunfermline Water Polo Club's senior women, and Dunfermline Track and Field's under-17 girls, whilst the Junior Team of the Year was jointly presented to the Dunfermline Kings Youth under-12 American Football flag team, and Dunfermline Athletic Girls Whites Under-13s.
Steve Doig, who mentors West Fife's reigning T20 1500m Paralympic champion, Owen Miller, was named as Club Coach of the Year.
He leads a training group based at Pitreavie Athletics Centre that includes Fife AC pair Miller and Ben Sandilands, both whom ran for Great Britain in the T20 1500m final at the World Para Athletics Championships in 2023, and was won by the latter.
In 2023, Steve was named as Coach of the Year at the Scottish Sports Awards, and fellow athletics coach, Keith Black, and Dunfermline Kings Youth American Football coach, Andy Meudell, were also shortlisted.
The East Kilbride Sports Council Award, which is presented to a sports person with a disability, was won by multi-sport star, Molly Dawes.
She was shortlisted alongside tennis star Anna McBride Owen Miller, badminton player, Owen Carmichael, and athletics competitors Niamh Currie and Finlay Davidson.
Ruth Gillanders and Sheila Page were both honoured with Services to Sport prizes for their contributions to golf, whilst Dunfermline High School's Sally Hill and Louise McKay were winners in the School Ambassador of the Year category, in which Caitlin Burn (Lochgelly High School), Jack McAuley (Queen Anne High School), and Joe Potter (St Columba's High School) were also nominated.
Look out for next week's Press, which will feature photos and reaction from the awards evening.
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