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Organisers respond to Verstappen's strong criticism of sports award
Max Verstappen, who could secure his third world title in Formula 1 this weekend, strongly criticised the Dutch Sportsman of the Year award on Thursday. He called it "a ridiculous prize". NOC-NSF, the organisers of the awards, reacted to Verstappen's harsh words in a conversation with GPblog.
Verstappen has won the award three times before. There is a real chance that he will at least be shortlisted in 2023. If it is up to himself, however, that won't happen. "I don't even want to win it. Because it's about just appreciating all the talent we have as a country. We should just celebrate all the success that we have as a country. That's why I find it such a ridiculous prize all the time. I'm just saying that I find it unfair for some people who are putting so much effort in their sport and they achieve incredible results. And sometimes they don't get awarded for it because of this silly, stupid one prize for one particular person," the driver explained in Qatar on Thursday.
Organisers respond to Verstappen
The NOC-NSF, the umbrella organisation for sports in the Netherlands which organises the vote, says it has taken note of Verstappen's statements. "Max's statements have no influence on any nomination for an award," a spokesperson told GPblog. "He may well end up on the shortlist based on his performance, after which the expert jury led by Bas van de Goor will make a selection. He may also be among them."
"Then a selection of top athletes will make the final choice. So even then he may be eligible for an award or the title 'Sportsman of the Year'. Very fundamentally, it is about the performance, and not about statements of the athlete in question. But of course, the athletes who ultimately choose are free to weigh this in. So we will not know until the actual vote," the association stated in its response.
Eitherway, Max Verstappen will face tough competition in this season's vote from Mathieu van der Poel, the Dutch cyclist who became road world champion this season, and won the Milan-San Remo and Paris-Roubaix classics.
