Halberg Awards history
Where it all began
Sir Murray returned to New Zealand with the goal of creating a similar charitable event to be organised on these shores. The following year Sir Murray rallied friends and colleagues to help resurrect the then defunct ‘Sportsman of the Year Awards’, as a fundraising dinner for his newly created trust. More than fifty five years on, the Awards stand as the country’s pre-eminent event to honour sporting excellence, and is the flagship fundraising event for Sir Murray’s charity - the Halberg Foundation. |
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The Original ‘Sportsman of the Year Awards’The original ‘Sportsman of the Year Awards’ traces its roots back to 1949, when NZ Sportsman Magazine founder Jack Fairbairn created the event to boost circulation for his publication. The event ran successfully for a decade, with Sir Murray Halberg ONZ, MBE winning the Award himself in 1958. However, that same year Fairbairn sold his business and the Awards ran for only another two years after that.
From 1963, Halberg’s charity organised and presented the Sportsman of the Year award annually. In 1985 Dame Susan Devoy was crowned ‘Sportsman of the Year’, and by 1987 it was clearly time to alter the Awards format to include different categories and create a gender neutral overall award title. Also in 1987, the Awards were renamed the Halberg Awards, although Sir Murray, famous for his humble nature, was not particularly enthused with this amendment! |
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The Halberg ‘Man’Who is the Halberg man? Interestingly, it is not (as most people assume) a statue of Sir Murray Halberg ONZ, MBE. When Jack Fairbairn first thought of the idea of a Sportsman of the Year Award, he contracted the noted English silversmiths, Walker and Hall, to make a suitable statuette.
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The Halberg Awards Today
The Awards also continue to generate vital funding for the Halberg Foundation, which uses the money to enhance the lives of physically disabled New Zealanders by enabling them to participate in sport and recreation.
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View previous Halberg Award winners
Click on the year below to view the previous Halberg Award winners.