Those in the audience at Saturday night's Annual Sports Awards might want to avoid Skipper Ingham the next time they see him in the street.

Putting on a martial arts demonstration, Ingham, now in his 70s, was oblivious to a television screen on the stage behind him.

As he flexed muscles which a man decades younger would have been proud of, whoever was in the TV control booth switched to a shot of one of the gathered throng.

Laughter broke out as the man realised he'd been singled out in a kind of Candid Camera type situation.

Still unawares, Ingham continued with his piece, punching the air and making the kind of noises usually associated with that of a 100-a-day smoker clearing his throat first thing in the morning.

After several minutes he drew to a close, the crowd clapped but Ingham raised a hand to silence them.

"Only a fool laughs at something they do not understand," he bellowed before storming off the stage in the apparent belief that the crowd had been mocking him.

Someone else caught unawares was TV presenter Mike Sharpe - a member of the judging panel who helped decide this year's honours.

For behind his back the powers that be had decided he should be a recipient of one of the evening's awards - a citation recognising his "significant contribution to sports education and broadcasting".

Sometimes referred to as "Not so" Sharpe in media circles for his gaffes, um-errs and pregnant pauses, he was singled out by Government's Director of Youth and Sport Brenton Roberts, as a shining light in sports journalism locally.

"His interviews, sports specials and positive reporting of sporting events and issues have contributed significantly to our sports education," said Roberts. "It is readily apparent that our recipient loves what he does and does it well, such that he was nominated for special recognition."

Unlike most other categories there were no other nominees for this particular award, something this reporter might have taken issue with had he not been laughing at the irony of it all.

Still he did make a mental note: `Must be more positive. Shy away from controversy.'

One of the most disappointing features of the evening was the fact that many of the award winners were not there in person to collect their rewards - and on many occasions those that did make their way to the stage went unidentified.

One can understand that people are away in college and so forth but it would have been nice if the fathers, mothers, brothers and daughters, who presumably had prior knowledge of the accolades, had let the audience know what it meant for their relatives to receive them.