John McGuinness honoured
John McGuinness has been awarded the MBE in this year’s New Year Honours for services to motorcycle racing.
McGuinness, 48, is most famous for his 23 victories at the Isle of Man TT since his first race in 1996. A serious accident while practicing for a North West 200 Superbike event in 2017 almost prompted the end of his racing career, but his triumphant return to racing in 2018 was enthusiastically welcomed by fans.
He joins other distinguished bikers including Mike Hailwood, Joey Dunlop, Barry Sheene and John Surtees whose contributions to motorcycle racing were also recognised with the MBE. You can find out more about McGuinness and his fellow heroes of motorcycling in our feature here.
The awards ceremony itself is yet to be held due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the announcement was made in the traditional fashion in the London Gazette. The official citation can be found here.
