Sports awards: Home-town recognition for Hall

Skier Adam Hall made history at the Dunedin Town Hall last night when he became the first Paralympian to be named the Otago sportsperson of the year.

It was a significant breakthrough for athletes with disabilities because it proves their performances are now recognised alongside the deeds of able-bodied sportspeople.

Hall (22) added home-town recognition to his list of awards in the past year when he won the title.

At the Winter Paralympics in Canada in March, Hall, who has spina bifida, aced his first run in the slalom and led by more than 2sec - a huge margin in a sport in which medals are often decided by fractions of a second.

In his second run, Hall took a tumble two-thirds of the way down the course and looked to have blown his opportunity.

But he demonstrated the importance of the intense racing experience he has had over the past four years by recovering quickly and screamed to the finish to win the gold medal.

It was the fulfillment of a dream that Hall has had since he started competitive skiing as a 7-year-old in 1995.

Hall's combined time of 1min 45.40sec was 0.57sec better than Gerd Schonfelder (Germany) and Cameron Rahles (Australia) who won the minor medals. He also finished seventh in the super G and eighth in the combined.

The Paralympic gold medal was the culmination of a series of wins and podium finishes that he accumulated last season. It included a record-breaking fifth win at the World Invitational event.

Hall also won the Otago sportsman of the year title.

Cyclist Alison Shanks won the sportswoman of the year title again this year. She was fourth at the world championships in her specialist 3000m individual pursuit, as well as gaining four podium places in World Cup events.

She was the top rider in the New Zealand team that won the bronze medal in the team pursuit in a world-record time.