Arise, Sir Gareth: Southgate given knighthood in new year honours list
Gareth Southgate has been rewarded for transforming the fortunes and culture of the England football team with a knighthood in the new year honours list.
The 54-year-old led England to consecutive European Championship runners-up finishes and the 2018 World Cup semi-finals during his eight years in charge, before stepping down after the
in the Euro 2024 final.Sir Gareth becomes only the fourth former England manager to receive a knighthood, after Sir Alf Ramsey, Sir Walter Winterbottom and Sir Bobby Robson.
Related:
The alternative 2024 sports awards: quotes, gaffes and animal cameos
Elsewhere the list is dominated by Britain’s successful stars from Paris 2024, with 14 Olympians and 24 Paralympians receiving awards.
the 800m gold medallist Keely Hodgkinson
, who becomes a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE), along with the sprinter Dina Asher-Smith and theheptathlete Katarina Johnson-Thompson
, who both won silver in Paris.“I am deeply honoured to be recognised in the king’s new years honours list for services to athletics,” Johnson-Thompson said. “My small contribution has only been possible due to the huge contributions made by so many others in helping me to chase and achieve my dreams over the last 20 years.”
The cyclist Tom Pidcock and the swimmer Duncan Scott are both upgraded to become Officers of the Order of the British Empire (OBE), along with Helen Glover, who came out of retirement to win a rowing
silver medal in the women’s four
.The 38-year-old Glover, who was a gold medallist in London and Rio before having three children, said she was honoured with her award.
“I was determined that this Olympic journey would lead to winning a medal in front of three children and I felt supported by the parenting community,” she said. “It makes me very proud to be recognised for trying to make a difference within this space.”
Lola Anderson, Georgie Brayshaw, Emily Craig, Imogen Grant, Lauren Henry and Hannah Scott are also awarded MBEs, along with the cyclists Sophie Capewell, Emma Finucane and Katy Marchant, thetrampoline gold medallist Bryony Page
and thekite-surfing champion Ellie Aldridge
.Aldridge said: “It really has been an amazing year and this feels like the cherry on the cake. I didn’t go to university and I never thought I’d ever have any letters after my name, let alone MBE.”
Hannah Cockroft, who is awarded an OBE, described it as “the perfect ending to an incredible year”. And there was also a CBE for services to sport for Penny Briscoe, the director of sport at the British Paralympic Association who led the team in Paris.Several sporting legends are also honoured in the list, including the former Wales and British & Irish Lions wing Gerald Davies, who has been knighted for services to sport and his charity work.
Davies, who won three grand slams for Wales during an international career that spanned 12 years, said: “I feel very emotional about it. I am surprised by it. Words are really quite inadequate to describe it. It comes out of the blue.”
There are also OBEs for the former Formula One driver Martin Brundle, for services to motor racing and sports broadcasting, and the former West Ham manager David Moyes.
Alan Hansen, the former Liverpool defender and longtime BBC pundit, has been made an MBE for services to football and broadcasting.
Dawn Astle, who set up the Jeff Astle Foundation to campaign for more research into head injuries in football on behalf of her father, who died of dementia in 2002, has been made an MBE.