Chris Hoy, golden boy of Beijing, topped off a triumphant year for British cycling last night as he was named BBC Sports Personality of the Year.

The cyclist with the improbably chunky thighs won a landslide in the public poll, winning a total of 283,630 votes — almost 120,000 more than Formula One’s Lewis Hamilton and 140,000 more than the Olympic swimming sensation, Rebecca Adlington.

Hoy led a series of wins which left no doubt that, at the end of a superlative year for British sport, it was the cyclists who reigned supreme.

British Cycling was voted Team of the Year and Dave Brailsford, the performance director behind this year’s haul of 14 medals, including eight golds, won Coach of the Year.

It was still something of a surprise victory for the quiet man from Edinburgh. He may have been the first Briton in a century to win three gold medals at a single Olympic Games, but until yesterday, bookmakers still had Hoy trailing in third place, behind Hamilton and Adlington.

This was the second time that Hamilton, an early favourite for the award, has missed out.

“I really didn’t expect this,” said an emotional Hoy, 32, as he received a standing ovation from 9,000 spectators in the Liverpool Echo Arena. He seemed almost overwhelmed after accepting the award from Sir Steve Redgrave, the Olympic rower, and Michael Johnson, the US sprinter.

“British sport has enjoyed its best year, certainly in my lifetime,” he said. “After the year I’ve had and the whole team has had, to be crowned Sports Personality of the Year, it just means so much. This is the big one and this is just unbelievable.

“The first person, or the first group of people I have to thank are the public who voted for me because I’m just overwhelmed.”

Hoy, nicknamed “Hoycules” and – somewhat less imaginatively – “The Real McHoy”, is the first cyclist to win the award since Tommy Simpson in 1965.Adlington said: “It was as good as a vote for Team GB. Chris is the unofficial captain of Team GB and this was the last hurrah. There could be no better winner than Chris.”

In second place, Hamilton polled 163,864, followed by Adlington with 145,924, the sailor Ben Ainslie 35,472, the boxer Joe Calzaghe 34,077, the tennis player Andy Murray 19,415, the cyclist Nicole Cooke 18,256, the athlete Christine Ohurougu 7,677, and the cyclists Bradley Wiggins 5,633. and Rebecca Romero 4,526.

Viewers clearly wanted to reward Team GB, and not just the giants of sport but also Eleanor Simmonds, 14. Britain’s youngest Olympic victor won two golds in the pool at a glorious Paralympic Games for Team GB in Beijing, and last night she became BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year.

“I only came to have fun and meet some famous people, like Lewis Hamilton,” she said as she clutched her gleaming silver award.

And the winners are . . .

Sports Personality of the Year Chris Hoy
Overseas Personality Usain Bolt, Olympic gold 100 metres, 200 metres
Team of the Year British Cycling
Lifetime Achievement Award Sir Bobby Charlton
Coach of the Year Dave Brailsford, British Cycling
BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year Eleanor Simmonds, Paralympic double gold swimmer
Helen Rollason Award Alastair Hignell, former England rugby union international
Unsung Hero Ben Geyser, founder, Dorchester Amateur Boxing Club

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