​Thembisa Shologu
Nominations for its 10th edition of the Gauteng Sport Awards have opened.
The prestigious awards, scheduled for 31 October, were launched by the Department of Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation (SARC) at the SABC's Sport @ 10 programmes on Wednesday.
These awards are an important feature in the sporting calendar of the province. Last year, the awards took a break due to the COVID-19 pandemic disruption. 
MEC Mbali Hlophe said the opening of the nomination process will allow the residents of Gauteng to identify the top sporting talent which has lived up to our ambition of 'Home of Champions." 
"They (awards) look at the performance of athletes in both domestic and international platforms. Despite the general disappointment with the Olympics, we have however seen excellence by others in international stages including the ongoing Paralympics and the recent World Under 20 athletic Championships. 
"We have also seen more of this in individual and team sport including in wheelchair tennis, cycling; motorsport, women's cricket; and many others in various sport including football," said Hlophe.
The Sports Personality of The Year will be decided by public SMS vote, the Lifetime Achievement Award will be decided by the MEC. The awards will this year include a new 'Online Category' for programmes implemented through online platforms as necessitated by the existing Covid-19 environment. 
 The Categories include:​
• Sports Personality of the Year
• Sportsman of the Year
• Sportswoman of the Year
• Sports Team of the Year
• Disabled Sportswoman of the Year
• Disabled Sportsman of the Year
• Disabled Sports Team of the Year
• Coach of the Year
• Most Promising athlete of the Year
• Technical Official of Year
• Sports Federation of the Year
• Administrator of the Year
• Amayanga -yanga athlete of the year
• Sports Fan of the Year
• Community-based Sport and Recreation programme of the year
• Online sport or recreation programme implemented (include e-gaming) (new)
• Community Sports media of the Year
• Sports Journalist of the year (This includes print media, radio and television)
• Lifetime Achievement Award Life
A completed nomination form with motivation and picture of the nominee should be submitted not later than 17 September 2021 at 16h00.
Nomination forms for the can be downloaded here: https://www.gauteng.gov.za/Departments/CPM-001012/Publications​​