4J Annual Awards Dinner: Melanie and Josh land our key ‘Athlete of the Year’ titles

Sunday 15th November 2026

*Details on Award winners in coach, club, Officials and volunteer categories will appear in a separate story on our website on Sunday. Thanks for your patience.

By Peter Jardine, Head of Communications

World Record holder Josh Kerr has claimed our 4J Athlete of the Year title for third time in four years.

And Melanie Woods won our 4J Para Athlete of the Year crown for the second successive year to the delight of 425 guests at our 4J Annual Awards Dinner.

Scottish track legend Tom McKean captivated the audience with his Guest of Honour chat with our event presenter, Rhona McLeod.

Tom then helped present Melanie’s top award on stage with Josh, who is based in the United States, accepting his award via a short video message.

Melanie, of course, won double gold in T54 track events at Glasgow 2026 and her Scotstoun performance further landed the wheelchair racer our Commonwealth Games Achievement special award (only presented in Games years).

In other athlete categories there were victories as follows:

Masters Athlete of the Year: Rob McHarg (Kilmarnock Harriers)

U20 Athlete of the Year: Sophie Thomas (Dunfermline Track and Field)

U18 Athlete of the Year: Alistair Street (Kilbarchan AAC)

George Dallas Memorial Trust Award: Stephen Mackenzie (Edinburgh AC)

Martin Hyman Junior Hill Running Award: Nancy Corrie (Harmeny AC)

Congratulations to these athletes and their families, coaches and clubs. Well done, also, to all those who were short-listed (see our story here)

Photo by Bobby Gavin

‘When I think about 2026 I reflect on going around Scotstoun Stadium on a lap of honour and seeing all the flags as well as friends and family who were there,’ said Melanie.

‘I tried to soak up the moments and I am so glad I did. I’ve memories there that will last for a long, long time.

‘To be honest I dreamt of double gold. I really wanted those medals. But going out there and doing it is a whole different thing from dreaming about it.’

There was controversy to cope with, too, when her initial 1500m victory was annulled and the athletes raced again (on the same day as a 400m heat).

‘The drama of the 1500m! I did a lap of honour, I celebrated and then I went back to the warm-up area and everything came crashing down when I was told there could be a rerun situation.

‘I just had to calm myself down and lower the excitement levels. I did have confidence I could go out there and do it all again. I was totally determined.

‘In the end, I celebrated the same win twice and not too many people have had that experience. Then I followed it with the 400m and I am so proud to be a double Commonwealth champion. It’s very special.’

Josh for his part has personified a fearless approach to global competition he feels all Scots can embrace.

And he noted it now effectively takes global success to win Scottish 4J Athlete of the Year.

‘The thing now with Scottish Athletics is you know you have to be right at the top of what you’re doing in the world to be able to even be in contention for the 4J Awards,’ he smiled.

‘So I am very happy to receive this trophy. I think it puts a cap on an awesome end to the year. It’s been a long, hard year, but I’m excited about it and about next year,

‘There are no limits on what Scottish athletes can achieve. Any limits are just the ones you put on yourself.

‘If you can deam a big enough goal, and you can really believe in it and put the work in, then you’re hopefully going to as close as possible to it.

‘In some instances, you might get everything that you want!

‘As we look back, this year has been that for me. It’s not always clear how much the mindset affects it, but when you train and compete for 20 odd years, sometimes it all falls together pretty well. It did for me in 2026.’