Zara Phillips BBC Sports Personality 2006
The Queen’s grand-daughter, Zara Phillips, has won the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year award with one-third of the public’s vote.
Described as “posh tottie” by the BBC’s own presenter, Zara was soon drawing the kind of criticism you’d expect from the “all shall have prizes” crowd : “Opponents slated a success for privilege, and style over substance in a lean year for British sport.”
Even a Daily Mail sports writer, Alan Fraser, claimed it was a bad year in which “a bit of posh with blue blood” won over the rest.
To put the record straight, Zara is World and European Champion in one of the most demanding sports on the circuit. Three-Day Eventing is not only challenging to both horse and rider, it’s also dangerous. Zara’s best friend died in an event just a week before she took the world title in Germany.
The first day’s dressage is highly technical and disciplined. The second day’s cross-country is dangerous and requires both fitness and determination. On the third, the show jumping in the stadium is a real test of nerve and concentration.
Zara thoroughly deserved her BBC award — which her mother Princess Anne took 35 years ago — and should have won it even in a good year for British sport. One-third of the democratic vote proves the critics wrong.
[...] Zara Phillips BBC Sports Personality 2006 Royal Anecdotes - Royal Secrets [...]
By LifeTimes » Zara: Sportsperson of the Year on December 11th, 2006 at 3:26 pm
Anyone heard the Joke about Camilla live?Hahahahahaha.The whole panel laughed out loud,and the whole studio too.The future Queen is Universal respected surely,hahahhaah/
By shake on December 11th, 2006 at 3:58 pm
No- what joke?? Its been a long difficult week at the hospital- do tell!! I could use a good laugh by now. I am a huge equestrian fan. I admit I voted for her several times including having my address book e-mail list vote for her as well. She has worked so hard- day in and day out with training and I for one admire her accomplishments! Her having a gorgeous brother is definitely the icing on the cake! My cousin took a video of him at the horse events this summer and he is hot! Cannot believe I wrote that, but he is. My friends are all crazy about Hollywood stars, rockers, sports guys- and here I am thinking he must be the greatest guy to walk the earth-(love how supportive he is of his sis & fam.) Too bad PW is not more like his cousin!
By ann l. on December 11th, 2006 at 4:41 pm
So, you’re a Peter fan, Ann? Well, I’m a Zara fan.
By John on December 11th, 2006 at 4:49 pm
I’ve got some great photos/video of her at some events from friends and cousins(and Peter- friends & fam are getting lots of mileage at my expense now that someone let it slip how great I think he must be since. I never say much about anyone-even dates-much less admire someone thats why I stayed away at Thanksgiving- quite embarassing, my fam has been relentless!) I am planning on going to watch her at the Olympics! I can hardly wait!
John- keep me posted on Peter getting married- I’ll need to buy something black to wear because I will be in mourning!
By ann l. on December 11th, 2006 at 5:09 pm
Shake- isn’t that how she was? Training is hard work and very time consuming.
By ann l. on December 11th, 2006 at 5:10 pm
Funny I always saw her more as a camel/seahag! I’m not usually so cruel, but those books have dinned too much in my head about her tactics. Shame on her!
By ann l. on December 11th, 2006 at 5:14 pm
Ann she did great,so i wont comment further more.I think everybody can understand why she was voted.But people voted her,so her win its clear for whatever reason.
By shake on December 11th, 2006 at 5:16 pm
I like Zara. She seems quite dedicated.
By mandy on December 11th, 2006 at 6:22 pm
Zara deserves every award that has come her way. Shake if she was the drinker on par with William she would not be in the position she is in today. As said both horse and rider have to be fit and you can be sure the horse does not care if it’s rider is the Queens granddaughter or not. Zara has excelled by sure dedication and training and no one can take that away from her.
By Trudie on December 11th, 2006 at 9:47 pm
I agree with you, Trudie. People who are not horsemen do not realize how dangerous and difficult riding and jumping are and dressage is downright tedious. Zara could never have achieved as she has if she had a drinking problem. The margin very error is nil. You have to be in total possession of everything you’ve got to compete at that level. She eclipsed her Mother and her Father, who were among the best riders in Europe, if not the world. Well done, Zara!
By Gigi on December 11th, 2006 at 10:00 pm
I meant to type “…The margin for error is nil.”
By Gigi on December 11th, 2006 at 10:01 pm
Trudie she is a drinker,and circumstances have brought her where she is.As i said,welldone to her,but there are other facts to how she won.Many other riders believe that too.
By shake on December 12th, 2006 at 3:58 am
Shake all I got out of this article is that the writer wanted a man to win.
By Trudie on December 12th, 2006 at 12:32 pm
Yes, typical Scottish blather, with shoulder chips and cultural cringe flying all over the place. Maybe it was written by Mel Gibson under a pseudonym.
By John on December 12th, 2006 at 12:43 pm
John, I laughed so hard at your comment about Mel Gibson! You are hilarious!
I am of mainly Scottish ancestry and very proud of it, but the writer of that article is entirely out of line. He needs a good dressing down, as my Mother would say. 
By Gigi on December 12th, 2006 at 4:03 pm
Gigi, I have some Scottish ancestry too, so it’s tongue in cheek.
Not that they’ll see the funny side up there. As PG Wodehouse wrote, “It’s not hard to tell the difference between a Scotsman with a grievance and a ray of sunshine.”
And thanks for your rays of sunshine.
By John on December 12th, 2006 at 4:12 pm
Read the readers comments further down.
By shake on December 12th, 2006 at 4:20 pm
I read them, Shake. What a disgruntled group they are! My guess is that not one of them has ever ridden a horse. At any rate, they are most ungracious. It would behoove them to remember that Zara Phillips is the great granddaughter of Queen Elizabeth, who was the daughter of a Scottish peer. Where is their loyalty to her memory and to her Royal line? Zara has Scottish blood coursing through her Royal veins and they ought to remember that.
By Gigi on December 12th, 2006 at 4:55 pm
From what i hear the Majority of Scots want nothing to do with the English and especialy the Royals.
By shake on December 12th, 2006 at 5:47 pm
Well, I am a Scot and I do not feel that way. Nor, may I say, do any of my Scottish family members. I cannot speak for John, but I doubt that he feels so negatively toward the English and the Royals either. Scottish regiments fought bravely in India, in the Crimea and in World War I and World War II. That is an odd way to signify “wanting nothing to do” with the English and the Royal Family. The Royal family has since the time of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert the Prince Consort maintained Balmoral Castle as a private vacation home where they spend time annually. Relations between the Royal family and the Scots when they are at Balmoral are said to be most cordial. The Queen Mother had a home on the Deeside, Birkhall, and was on spendid terms with her Scots neighbors. Has that all changed, then? I doubt it.
By Gigi on December 12th, 2006 at 6:08 pm
Not too long ago there were a few reports regarding Scotland considering separating from the monarch. A few of the comments referred to; not paying taxes to the Crown, did not feel represented as well as they believed they should, and rumblings on the next monarch. However, my father’s fam in Scotland says this has been reported on from time to time & it would be a matter of if or when this act might be persued. Keep in mind they are Scottish and tend to think/talk true to form.
By ann l. on December 13th, 2006 at 3:42 pm
Thank you, Ann. I didn’t see those reports, but they ring true and sound quite sensible. Time was when the American colonies wanted to separate from England, too, because they felt overtaxed and under represented. We did separate, but the USA has no closer friend than Great Britain, and many Americans consider the British to be extended family, myself among them.
By Gigi on December 13th, 2006 at 4:19 pm
I’m very happy for Zara,she deserves it.She’s a great girl and she worked very hard to be at the top of her sport today.Hope she’ll make it to the Olympics!!
By Liz on January 14th, 2007 at 11:46 am
Best wishes to Zara, hope she gets the Olympic medal her mother just missed. But I have to say Zara has had it easy compared to her mother’s heroic attempt, both Zara’s parents have been behind her all the way, Anne had to fight tooth and nail against her parents to be allowed to compete, let alone in international competitions and the Olympics to boot. I knew the Swedish equestrian commentator Anders Gernant, who knew Anne well, and he said she had a badly slashed right wrist, with attendant tendon-damage, that ment she couldn’t grasp the reins properly, this ‘would stop her from winning, you can’t compensate for a weakness like that in top competition.’ Despite her parents and despite her wrist she did quiet well. One wonder just what she might have achieved without being so hampered. I bet she’ll shed a tear or two if Zara succeeds.
By Sven on August 26th, 2007 at 1:24 pm
Thanks for the interesting information, Sven. Let’s hope Toytown is at his best for Beijing.
By John on August 26th, 2007 at 2:02 pm