Prior to 2012, a panel of thirty sports journalists each submit a list of ten contenders. From these contenders a shortlist of ten nominees is determined—currently, in the event of a tie at the end of the nomination process, a panel of six former award winners determined the nominee by a Borda count. The shortlist was announced at the beginning of December, and the winner was determined on the night of the ceremony by a public telephone vote.
In 2011 the shortlist produced only contained male competitors, which caused media uproar. The selection process for contenders was changed for the 2012 (and future) awards as follows:
The BBC introduced an expert panel who were asked to devise a shortlist that reflected UK sporting achievements on the national and/or international stage, represented the breadth and depth of UK sports and took into account "impact" within and beyond the sport or sporting achievement in question.[7]
Nominees
The nominees for the 2013 award[8] and their share of the votes cast[4] were as follows:
Designated man-of-the-series in the victorious Lions tour of Australia (their first series victory in 16 years) and player of the tournament in the Six Nations.
Won the 5,000m and 10,000m events at the IAAF World Championships, thus becoming the first Briton to successfully defend a world title and win three. Also broke the European record in the 1,500m.
Won the 400m at the IAAF World Championships for the second time and concurrently broke the British record set by Kathy Smallwood-Cook 29 years prior. Also became the first British woman to win two outdoor world titles.
A key figure in England's 3–0 defeat of Australia in the Ashes series. His tally of 562 equalled the English record for the most runs scored in a five-match home Ashes.