Sheffield’s golden girl Jessica Ennis scooped another award last weekend after being named as Athlete of the Year by the British Athletics Supporters Club.
Ennis was presented with the award at the Aviva Indoor Trials at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield, but was forced to pull out of the competition due to a slight injury to her right foot.
The 24-year-old said: “It really is just a precautionary thing. I strained a ligament and it’s not too serious; it’s just about being careful at this stage.
“I’m absolutely gutted to be missing out as it’s really difficult to be sitting on the sidelines and not being able to compete.”
Ennis picked up the injury as she captained Britain’s team to success in the Aviva International match in Glasgow, which took place earlier this month.
The University of Sheffield graduate smashed the British 60 metre hurdles record and set a new personal best in the high jump as she inspired Team GB to glory.
The world heptathlon champion set a stunning time of 7.95 seconds to beat American sprinter Lolo Jones.
Ennis then leaped an impressive 1.94m in the high jump to claim second place.
Her performance helped Britain to claim victory over the USA by three points, with University of Bath sprinter Craig Pickering winning the final 60m event to secure the trophy for the British team.
Ennis, who graduated from the University with a Psychology degree in 2007 and received an honorary doctorate last month, now hopes to recover in time to compete at the World Indoor Championships next month.
This will feature as part of her preparation for the European Championships in Barcelona this summer.
In December, Ennis won third place at the BBC sports personality of the year awards.