Canoeing: Top award for Olympic gold medallist

New Zealand's first Olympic gold medal winner in women's sprint canoeing, Lisa Carrington, won the supreme Albie Pryor Memorial Sportsperson of the Year at the Maori Sports Awards in Auckland last night.

The 23-year-old Bay of Plenty sprint kayaker blitzed the field to win her final by almost half a second.

It was an Olympic debut for the paddler who took up the sport aged 16 and set an Olympic record in the semi-final.

Twenty-two Olympians, three Paralympians, 11 world champions and four world champion teams were honoured at the 2012 Maori Sports Awards - hosted by Te Tohu Taakaro o Aotearoa Charitable Trust at the TelstraClear Pacific Events Centre.