'Mad' - Luke Littler breaks silence after being nominated for BBC Sports Personality of the Year

Darts sensation Luke Littler says he is delighted to have been nominated for the main prize in this year’s BBC Sports Personality of the Year [SPOTY] awards. This comes after being nominated for young SPOTY last week.

The 17-year-old burst onto the scene during last year’s World Darts Championships, where he made the final before losing to world number one Luke Humphries. Littler has somewhat transcended his sport in the 12 months since and has helped to grow the game’s profile in the UK and beyond once again.

The teenager has meanwhile enjoyed a stellar year on the circuit, making five major finals and winning three of them - The Grand Slam of Darts, the Premier League of Darts and the World Series. He will now try to go one better in this year’s World Championships, which begins on Sunday.

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Littler is currently ranked fourth in the world but becomes the first darts player to be nominated for SPOTY since 2010, when Phil Taylor was named as the runner-up. The youngster is up against some star names in the list of nominees for 2024.

Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson is one of the favourites to land the trophy after winning 800-metres gold at the 2024 Paris Games. England cricketer Joe Root is up for the main prize too, having become the country’s all-time Test run scorer with the bat in October.

Jude Bellingham also makes the shortlist after a trophy-laden maiden season at Real Madrid, which included the Champions League. He also scored memorable goals for England en route to the final of Euro 2024.

Olympic triathlete Alex Yee is meanwhile named after his dramatic final-stretch gold in Paris while Team GB’s most-decorated Paralympian ever, Dame Sarah Storey, also makes the cut. The swimmer-turned-cyclist now has 30 Paralympic medals to her name following an incredible Games in Paris.

Littler clearly feels honoured to be among such sporting greats. He took to social media in the hours after being named among the nominees to share his delight.

He wrote: “This is MADDDD. First young sports personality and now sports personality of the year… huge thank you to @BBCSport for nominating me. Never thought I would be saying that.”

For the young SPOTY, Littler is up against 16-year-old Skateboarding icon Skye Brown, who overcame a shoulder injury to win bronze in Paris, and 18-year-old Para-swimming star William Ellard, who won two golds in the pool in France. 'The Nuke' was equally as happy to be nominated for the young accolade.

"It's been an amazing year and to be in the running for Young Sports Personality of the Year tops it off,” he said. “If I've brought more fans to darts, then that's all that matters to me."

Littler is on target to break the record for the most 180s in a single season, having meanwhile surpassed £1million in earnings. The SPOTY awards ceremony takes place on December 17, two weeks before the World Championships final, in which Littler - should he make it - has the chance to become the competition’s youngest-ever winner.