My Picks for Best of the Best in 2011
- Joint Sportsman of the Year: Cadel Evans, Australia, cycling Tour de France Winner and Dirk Nowitski, Germany, NBA Dallas Mavericks Finals MVP.
- Sportswoman of the Year: Lindsey Vonn, USA, alpine skiing downhill champion and 2011 Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year.
- Male Sports Team of the Year: The New Zealand All Blacks, World Champions and undefeated in the Rugby World Cup, losing only one match the entire year.
- Female Sports Team of the Year: Czech Republic Fed Cup 2011 Team Champions.
- Male Captain of the Year: Richie McCaw, captain of the World No. 1 New Zealand All Blacks and 2010 IRB Player of the Year.
- Female Captain of the Year: Luciana Aymar, captain of the World No. 1 Argentina field hockey team and World Player of the Year 2010.
- Individual Record of the Year: Novak Djokovic, Serbia, World No. 1 Tennis, 70-6 overall.
- Team Record of the Year:University of Connecticut Huskies Women's Basketball team, with a record breaking 90 consecutive victories.
- Comeback of the Year: Rory McIlroy, Northern Ireland, with a complete implosion at the USPGA Masters, then rebounding to dominate the U.S. Open.
- Play of the Year: Abby Wambach, USA, whose overtime goal that tied Brazil in the quarterfinals of the soccer Women's World Cup and led to a win and a place in the final.
- Joint Match of the Year: New Zealand vs France in the final of the Rugby World Cup. NZ won 9-8, epic defensive duel.
- Joint Match of the Year: Roger Federer vs Rafael Nadal in the ATP World Tour Finals in London. Federer trounced Nadal 6-3, 6-0 in an offensive rout.
- Role Model of the Year: Roger Federer who is as gracious and encouraging either in defeat or victory; who finished the year as the ATP World Tour Finals Champion.
- Joint Player of the Week: Jamie Whincup for winning the Australasian V8 Supercar Championship for Team Vodafone.
- Joint Player of the Week: Maxim Mikhaylov who won the Most Valuable Player and Best Blocker awards at the FIVB World Championships.
- Joint Team of the Week: Holden for winning the constructors title at the Australasian V8 Supercar Championship.
- Joint Team of the Week: The Russian national volleyball team for their victory over Poland to win the FIVB men's world championship.
- Player of the Week: Roger Federer for winning the year ending ATP World Tour Final over Jo-Wilfied Tsonga.
- Player of the Week: Carolina Costagrande for her MVP play in the FIVB women's world championship.
- Team of the Week: The Italian women's volleyball team for winning their second FIVB women's world championship.
- Player of the Week: Rob Burrow for his man-of-the-match performance in the Super League Grand Final.
- Team of the Week: Leeds Rhinos for lifting the Super League trophy for the fourth time in five years, beating St. Helens 32-16.
- Coach of the Week: Brian McDermott head coach of the Leeds Rhinos.
- Dismal Record of the Week: St. Helens for losing five Super League Grand Finals in a row.
- Joint Player of the Week: Novak Djokovic for wining his third grand slam in 2011and his first U.S. Open at Flushing Meadow.
- Joint Player of the Week: Slamin' Sam Stosur defeated Serena Williams in straight sets 6-2, 6-3 for her first Grand Slam and U.S. Open title, becoming the first Australian female player to win a Grand Slam since Evonne Goolagong Cawley in 1980.
- Joint Team of the Week: Jürgen Melzer and Philipp Petzschner claimed the U.S. Open men's doubles title being only ranked 9th for the tournament.
- Joint Team of the Week:American duo Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond won their first grand slam title as a pair at the U.S. Open.
- Joint Player of the Week: Novak Djokovic in winning The Championships at Wimbledon over Rafael Nadal in the final.
- Joint Player of the Week: Petra Kvitova in winning her first Grand Slam at Wimbledon defeating Maria Sharapova in the final.
- Joint Team of the Week: Mike and Bob Bryan for their record equaling 11th Grand Slam doubles title at The Championships at Wimbledon.
- Joint Team of the Week: Květa Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik for winning their first grand slam doubles final. Katerina is a very charming young lady whom I had the privilege to meet with her then partner Tina Križan, at the Adidas International, in Sydney, Australia.
- Player of the Week: Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas who was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the Most Valuable Player of the playoffs.
- Team of the Week: Boston Bruins for their first Stanley Cup Finals victory in 39 years, defeating the Vancouver Canucks in Game 7.
- Player of the Week: Dirk Nowtizki, for his MVP performance, in the NBA Finals; becoming the first German and second European, to win this honor.
- Team of the Week: The Dallas Mavericks for defeating the Miami Heat to become NBA champions.
- Game of the Week: Game 6 of the 2011 NBA Finals Series between the Dallas Mavericks and the Miami Heat. The Mavs won 105-95, winning this game and the series.
- Joint Player of the Week: Rafael Nadal for winning his six French Open Championship at Roland Garros, this year over Roger Federer.
- Joint Player of the Week: Li Na in winning her first Grand Slam at Roland Garros and becoming the first Chinese and first Asian to win a Grand Slam.
- Joint Team of the Week: Max Mirnyi and Daniel Nestor who both won their third French Open men's doubles title.
- Joint Team of the Week: Andrea Hlaváčková and Lucie Hradecká who both won their first Grand Slam title at the French Open.
- Player of the Week: Englishman Luke Donald, winner of the 2011 BMW PGA Championship and new World No. 1 golfer.
- Player of the Week: Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls guard, who at 22 becomes the youngest ever league MVP.
- Game of the Week: England took a giant step towards their first Grand Slam since 2003 with a gritty and determined 17-9 victory over reigning champions France in 6 Nations rugby.
- Player of the Week: Lionel Messi was the hero for Barcelona on his 250th competitive appearance for the club scoring a late winner to overcome Athletic Bilbao side 2-1 at the Nou Camp.
- Team of the Week: The New South Wales Waratahs, after thrashing another serious contender, the Queensland Reds 30-6, in Super 15 rugby.
- Game of the Week: Celtic versus Rangers, the Old Firm battle. Celtic won 3-0.
- Joint Player of the Week: Virendar Sehwag smashes 175 to lead India to 87-run win in ICC Cricket World Cup against Bangladesh.
- Joint Player of the Week: Trevor Bayne, a 20-year-old rookie, won a wild and record-breaking NASCAR Sprint Cup Daytona 500.
- Team of the Week: Great Britain women's pursuit team won the team's only gold medal on the first day of the World Cup in Manchester.
- Rout of the Week: Waratahs gave Super Rugby's newcomers the Melbourne Rebels a lesson in competitive rugby when they beat them by 43 points to 0 in Melbourne.
- Ouch of the Week: Bolton Wanderers defender Sam Ricketts has been ruled out for the rest of the season with a ruptured Achilles tendon.
- Joint Farewell of the Week: Sarah Ayton has announced she is to retire with immediate effect, ending her quest for an historic third Olympic title at the London 2012 Games.
- Joint Farewell of the Week: Former Chicago Bears safety Dave Duerson was found dead Thursday night at his home in Miami.
- Joint Game of the Week: The local derby between Premier League heavyweights Manchester City and Manchester United. United won 2-1.
- Joint Game of the Week: Bradford Bulls versus Leeds Rhinos in Super League. Leeds won 32-28 in a real arm-wrestle.
- Player of the Week: Winger Chris Ashton scored four tries as England overwhelmed Italy at Twickenham.
- Team of the Week: England routed Italy 59-13 in Six Nations competition.
- Coach of the Week: Martin Johnstone, England's rugby mentor, who has lead his charges to two impressive wins at the start of the Six Nations season.
- Play of the Week: Wayne Rooney's sensational overhead goal that gave Manchester United a 2-1 victory over their fierce Manchester City rivals.
- Special Effort of the Week: With a pair of first-quarter 3-pointers, Boston Celtics guard Ray Allen matched and eclipsed Reggie Miller's NBA record of 2,560 career 3-pointers Thursday night against the Los Angeles Lakers.
- Joint Gong of Week: Rafael Nadal: Laureas (International) Sportsman of the Year.
- Joint Gong of Week: Lyndsay Vonn: Laureas (International) Sportswoman of the Year.
- Rout of the Week: Nikica Jelavic scored a hat-trick and David Healy netted on his debut as Rangers hammered Scottish Premier League rivals Motherwell 6-0.
- Comeback of the Week: Super League Champions Wigan surrendered a 16-point lead with only 15 minutes left to allow rivals St Helens a draw at Millennium Stadium.
- Upset of the Week: No. 14 Wisconsin rallied from a 15-point deficit to beat No.1 Ohio State 71-67.
- Farewell of the Week: Manchester United's Gary Neville has called an end to his illustrious career. He made 85 international appearances, becoming England's most capped right-back.
- Joint Game of the Week: Superbowl 45; what more can you say?
- Joint Game of the Week: Liverpool versus Chelsea in London. Liverpool won 1-0.
- Joint Player of the Week: Aaron Rodgers, Packer Quarterback, Most Valuable Player of Superbowl XLV.
- Joint Player of the Week: Louis Saha, Everton's French striker ramming home 4 goals against a gallant Blackpool.
- Joint Team of the Week: The Green Bay Packers winning the Superbowl's Vince Lombardi Trophy, beating the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-25.
- Joint Team of the Week: The New Zealand Sevens team after beating England 29-14 in the final of the NZ Sevens in Wellington.
- Coach of the Week: Mike McCarthy for leading 'The Pack' to their 4th Superbowl title and 13th NFL crown overall.
- Joint Comeback of the Week: Australia's under-fire cricket team winning the ODI series against England 6-1 after losing the Ashes in the test matches.
- Joint Comeback of the Week: New Zealand's cricket team giving Pakistan a good hosing in the final ODI hitout prior to the World Cup despite winning only once before in their previous 15 games.
- Joint Gongs of the Week: Lions DT Ndamukong Suh for NFL Defensive, Rams QB Sam Bradford for NFL Offensive, Rookie of the Year Awards; and Tom Brady, the Pats QB, for becoming the first unanimous NFL League MVP ever.
- Rout of the Week: Saracens 50, Sale Sharks 7 in European LV=Cup rugby competition, while still failing to make the semi-finals.
- Ouch of the Week: Polish Formula One driver Robert Kubica underwent surgery after suffering serious multiple injuries in a high-speed rally crash which could place his world championship future in doubt.
- Bellyflop of the Week: The Cleveland Cavaliers, without LeBron James, set an NBA record with their 24th consecutive loss Saturday night, dropping a 111-105 home decision to the Portland Trail Blazers.
- Farewell of the Week: Fernando Torres says goodbye to Liverpool in a $55m trade to Chelsea, and if his first game performance for the Blues is any gauge, Liverpool won't miss him too much.
- Game of the Week: The Senior Bowl, with some of the 2011 NFL draft team's finest on display; with the South winning 24-10.
- Joint Player of the Week: Serbia's Novak "The Joker" Djokovic for winning the men's championship at the Australian Open tennis.
- Joint Player of the Week: Belgium's Kim "Aussie Kim" Clijsters for prevailing in the women's championship at the Australian Open tennis.
- Joint Team of the Week: The twin American brothers of Bob and Mike Bryan won their third consecutive Australian Open doubles title.
- Joint Team of the Week: France became the first nation in 37 years to retain the men's world handball title with a thrilling 37-35 victory over Denmark in Malmo.
- Joint Coach of the Week: Jiang Shan, Li Na's husband, for helping his lovely wife into the final of the Australian open.
- Joint Coach of the Week: Sir Alex Ferguson who took January Coach of the Month honours in the English Premier League.
- Gong of the Week: Christian Ponder for his MVP performance in the 2011 Senior Bowl.
- Upset of the Week: For the third straight year, the BYU men’s #9 ranked basketball team failed to defeat the UNM Lobos at the Pit, going down 86-77.
- Farewell of the Week: Jeff Fisher, the Tennessee Titan's longest serving coach, parts ways with the team. Maybe a win-win for both, for he will surely coach again in the NFL.
- Games of the Week: The NFL Conference Championship games.
- Player of the Week: Jimmer Fredette, the BYU guard, who is lighting up collegiate basketball.
- Joint Team of the Week: The Green Bay Packers for winning the NFC Championship 21-14 over the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field.
- Joint Team of the Week: The Pittsburgh Steelers for beating the New York Jets 24-19 for the AFC Championship at Heinz Field.
- Joint Coach of the Week: Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers for bringing his team back from the edge. He is a class act and a real leader.
- Joint Coach of the Week: Mike McCarthy of the Green Bay Packers for realizing the dreams of his talented team.
- Shocks of the Week: Maria Sharapova joins Venus Williams, Justine Henin, Ana Ivanovic, Dinara Safina and Jelena Jankovic as former world No.1s to fall before the quarter-finals in the Australian Open.
- Surge of the Week: Germany's Andrea Petrovic for her exploits in getting to the semi-finals of the Australian open against LI Na of China.
- Joint Player of the Week: Mark Sanchez with 3 touchdown passes in the Jets upset over the Patriots.
- Joint Player of the Week: Lin Na of China winning at the Sydney International over Kim Clijsters in preparation for the Aussie Open.
- Shock of the Week: The NY Jets upsetting the NE Patriots 28-21 in the playoffs, after an earlier 45-7 thumping by Brady and the Pats.
- Contest of the Week: The BSC National Championship game between season ending numbers 1 and 2, the Oregon Ducks and the Auburn Tigers. In the end it was a marvelously frenetic cliffhanger.
- Joint Team of the Week: US team of Bethanie Mattek-Sands and John Isner defeated Belgium's Justine Henin and Ruben Bemelmans 2–1 to win the 2011 Hopman Cup.
- Joint Team of the Week: Auburn Tigers football team for defeating the Oregon Ducks 22-19 in the BCS National Championship game.
- Player of the Week: Freshman Michael Dyer: the BCS National Championship Most Valuable Player.
- Coach of the Week: Chip Kelly, whose Ducks only lost by 3 points, and has had them knocking on the door the last 2 seasons.
- Match-up of the Week: The Cotton Bowl, where LSU 41, beat Texas A&M Aggies 24, dealing my close friend Michael Moore's alma mater a heartbreaking loss.
- Farewell of the Week: Roy Hodgson was sacked as manager of Liverpool FC. The former Fulham boss’ time at Liverpool was plagued by inconsistency culminating in Liverpool’s worst run of matches for over 50 years.
- Joint Contests of the Week: The Orange, Fiesta and Gator Bowls, what a season ending.
- Team of the Week: England's cricket team for retaining the Ashes on tour 'downunder' in Australia.
- Coach of the Week: England's Zimbabwe-born team director, Andy Flower, better known by his nickname "Petal".
- Player of the Week: Alistair Cook: England cricket's left-handed opening batsman as player of the series in retaining the Ashes.
- Joint Rout of the Week: Alabama 49 thumping Michigan State 7 in the Capital One Bowl.
- Joint Rout of the Week: Mississippi State 52 thrashing Michigan 14 in the Gator Bowl.
- Match-up of the Week: TCU-21 over Wisconsin-19 in the Rose Bowl Game, only won in the last few seconds.
