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McIlroy Clinches 'Sports Star of the Year' at Magners Sports Awards
The most prominent sponsorship in Northern Irish Sports is the established Belfast Telegraph Sports Awards, which is now in its eighth year of support by Magners Original Cider.
Rory McIlroy won ‘Sports Star of the Year’. Rory was unable to attend as he was in Dubai preparing for the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship. His award was collected by his parents Gerry and Rosie McIlroy (centre), from Nicola McCleery from Magners, and Mike Gilson, Editor of the Belfast Telegraph.
Top golfer Rory McIlroy was named Sports Star of the Year at the Magners backed Belfast Telegraph Sports Awards for 2009. The twenty year old Holywood golfer is the youngest ever winner of the award and follows in the footsteps of fellow golfer Darren Clarke and other sporting icons including Wendy Houvenaghel, David Healy, Tony McCoy and the late Joey Dunlop. Rory is also a former winner of the George Best Breakthrough and Young Player of the Year awards.
Also honoured were Olympic athlete and hockey international hockey legend Maeve Kyle OBE who was inducted into the Belfast Telegraph Hall of Fame and Special Award winner Ireland cricketer Kyle McCallan. The ONE 1918 George Best Breakthrough Award was presented to Celtic and Northern Ireland footballer Niall McGinn, Irish rugby international Stephen Ferris won Player of the Year, and the Linwoods Team the Year was awarded to Ballynahinch Rugby team.
Young athlete Ciara Mageean won Young Player of the Year and Armagh Minors clinched the Young Team of the Year trophy. This year’s Sports Person with a Disability award, sponsored by Disability Needs was presented to World Dwarf Games competitor Niall McVeigh, and Antrim GAA coach Liam Bradley was the Sport NI Manager/Coach of the Year.
This year’s Sport NI Local Heroes award was presented to Londonderry based wrestler Mohammad Ali and the NI Sports Forum WJ ‘Paddy’ Patterson trophy went to veteran badminton administrator Bob Colhoun for 50 years of outstanding voluntary service to badminton.
Nicola McCleery, Head of Marketing said: "At Magners we acknowledge the Sports Awards as a very special occasion which acknowledges the outstanding sporting achievements that have been attained over the last twelve months by so many of our talented sports men and women. Magners continues to play an important role within the Northern Ireland sporting arena and we’re delighted to partner the Belfast Telegraph as title sponsor and congratulate all the winners tonight."
