Katongo wins BBC African player award
JOHANNESBURG (AFP) - Christopher Katongo has been named BBC African Footballer of the Year after leading outsiders Zambia to 2012 Cup of Nations glory in Gabon.
The 30-year-old striker skippered Chipolopolo (The Copper Bullets) to victories over Senegal, Equatorial Guinea, Sudan and Ghana before they pipped Ivory Coast in a penalty shoot-out in the final.
Nobody outside the landlocked southern Africa country gave Zambia a chance of winning the greatest prize in African football but China-based Katongo played with an unquenchable spirit that rubbed off on his team-mates.
Katongo topped a worldwide poll among BBC viewers, listeners and Internet users, beating Ivory Coast duo Didier Drogba and Yaya Toure, Moroccan Younes Belhanda and Demba Ba of Senegal.
"This is a fantastic moment for me. I thank the people who voted for me. It is something I will never forget in my career," the widely respected Katongo told the BBC.