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Top sporting quitters

Novak Djokovic

The defending Australian Open champion (right) pulled out of his quarter-final match against Andy Roddick suffering from heat exhaustion. The world No 3 was trailing by two sets to one to the American and down by a game in the fourth set when he told the umpire he could no longer continue. Djokovic was clearly struggling in temperatures reaching 36C, something that he handled quite easily last year.

Roberto Duran

The Panamanian hardman had his reputation severly dented after indicating to referee Octavio Meyran that he wasn't going to continue against Sugar Ray Leonard in their world welterweight championship rematch at the Louisiana Superdome in 1980. Legend has it that Duran called out "No Mas" (No more) to the offical, although the fighter and his camp insisted he was suffering from stomach pains. The fact that he was getting his ears boxed off by Leonard, who executed a meticulous gameplan beautifully after coming off second best in their Montreal slugfest five months previously, may have had something to do with it.

Sandy Lyle

The Scot stalked off the Royal Birkdale course during the first round of last year's Open Championship as appalling weather conditions and poor form left him 11 over par on the 10th green. The 1985 winner stunned spectators as he handed his putter to his caddie and headed back to the clubhouse through the rain.

Kevin Keegan

According to David Davies, the former FA chief executive, Keegan made his decision to quit as England manager in the dressing-room toilets after watching his team lose their first 2002 World Cup Cup qualifier to Germany. Claiming that he didn't feel up to the task of leading the national team, Keegan wanted to speak to the press but was convinced by Davies to stay in the toilets with the door locked until he could inform the FA's international committee of the manager's decision.

Sports Personality: how did Hoy come up on the rails?

Chris Hoy, one of Team GB's heroes at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, was named the 55th BBC Sports Personality of the Year on Sunday night. The amiable Scot, who became the first British Olympian since Henry Taylor, in 1908, to claim three golds at one games, winning the men's keirin, the men's team sprint and the men's individual sprint, came out of nowhere to win the award, decided by BBC viewers on the night via a phone poll.

Now we are not saying that Hoy wasn't deserving his success, nor devaluing his achievements, but his success came as something as a surprise. When we checked Betfair (a bookmaker, popular on Times Online purely for research purposes) before the start of the programme, swimmer Rebecca Adlington was an odds-on favourite, Lewis Hamilton was around 5/2 and Hoy was alongside Joe Calzaghe, the boxer, the pair distant joint third favourites at 6/1. Last week, the Formula One driver was himself a distance ahead in the betting.

If you were one of those who voted for Hoy on the night, was that your intention all along, or if not, what made you change your mind? If you weren't, who did you vote for and why? And for the Hamilton fans out there: what does your man need to do to gain the recognition he deserves, isn't this further proof that he's a phenomenal driver, but just a little difficult to like?

Whatever your thoughts, please share them with us by leaving a comment in the field at the bottom of this post.

Who should be the Sports Personality of the Year?

Frank Praverman

On Sunday, the BBC present their Sports Personality of the Year award based on the votes of the public and we're eager to find out who's likely to walk off with the spoils.

So have a read of who's who and cast a vote for your favourite, telling us why they deserve to win. It looks like Chris Hoy may take some beating...

Contenders for BBC Sports Personality of the Year:

Rebecca Adlington
Won two gold medals at the 2008 Olympic Games in the 400m and 800m, breaking the 19-year-old world record of Janet Evans in the 800m final. Adlington is Britain's first Olympic swimming champion since 1988 and the first British swimmer to win two Olympic gold medals since 1908.

Nicole Cooke
Road race cyclist became the first person to win the World Championship and Olympics in the same year.

Chris Hoy
Track cyclist won three gold medals in Beijing 2008, the first Briton to collect this haul in a single Olympic Games since Henry Taylor in 1908, and the most successful Olympic male cyclist of all time.

Rebecca Romero
Former World Champion and Olympic Games medallist at rowing, followed up her World Championship victory by claiming Olympic gold on the cycling track.

Bradley Wiggins
Followed up his three medals on the cycling track at the Athens Olympics in 2004 with a further two  golds in Beijing.

Ben Ainslie
Times columnist won his third sailing gold medal in consecutive Olympic Games in the Finn class.

Christine Ohuruogu
Added to her Commonwealth and World Championship golds by collecting the Olympic winner's medal to complete her comeback from a 12-month ban for missing three drugs tests.

Lewis Hamilton
Became the youngest ever Formula One world champion in only his second year.

Joe Calzaghe (pictured above)
Last year's Sports Personality of the Year remained unbeaten in 2008 by beating Bernard Hopkins to win the Ring magazine light heavyweight title and then defending it against Roy Jones Jr.

Andy Murray
Reached No 4 in the world after losing the final of the US Open to Roger Federer. Won five times on the ATP Tour.

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Debate: how should England respond to the haka?

(Click on the highlighted text to watch video clips)

Wales did their best to ruffle Kiwi feathers in Cardiff last Saturday evening, refusing to back down in the face of the All Blacks' haka. Some have criticised their response for showing a lack of respect, while others have said Ryan Jones's men did nothing wrong.

But our question is how should England respond at Twickenham on Saturday?

Should they ignore it by huddling themselves away, or even follow David Campese's example by kicking a ball around in the in-goal area as he did before the World Cup semi-final in 1991. Or should England take it like men and respond to the challenge being thrown their way as the French did so successfully in last year's World Cup quarter final?

Stephen Jones, the Sunday Times Rugby Correspondent, says that people ceased to give a stuff about the haka a long time ago, but do you agree? Maybe it's time England tried something a little different in response. Any takers for a Morris Dance led by Steve Borthwick? Thought not.

Can Lewis Hamilton become the new Muhammad Ali?

In the frantic moments after Lewis Hamilton's dramatic world championship success, Jackie Stewart reiterated his belief that the 23-year-old world champion can go on to have the same impact on the sporting world as the great Muhammad Ali.

According to Stewart, Hamilton is breaking down barriers and going global like no racing driver before him.

Hamilton is the first black Formula One driver to win the championship as well as being the youngest. His appeal to the masses is exactly as Ali’s was.

Hamilton is an intelligent, clear thinker, he knows how to play the media game and he has already used his profile to earn millions - much the same as Ali did.

Can Hamilton have the same impact that Ali had? Will he be one of the most recognisable faces on the planet?

Have your say below.