BBC Wales Sports Personality of the Year 2017: Gareth Bale profile

Gareth Bale has won 10 trophies with Real Madrid including a Champions League and La Liga double last season.

Footballer Gareth Bale has played through the pain barrier this year to bring Wales within a whisker of World Cup qualification, and help his club side Real Madrid claim the double of Uefa Champions League and La Liga titles.

The 28-year-old had ankle surgery in November 2016 that sidelined him for three months, but returned to action to help Wales earn a draw away to the Republic of Ireland in a 2018 World Cup qualifier in March.

Bale made his 100th league appearance for Real in April 2017 as they won their 33rd La Liga title, but then suffered a calf tear 10 games into his comeback that kept him out for another six weeks.

It was touch and go whether he would be able to play in the Champions League final in his home city of Cardiff, but Bale was fit enough to be named among the substitutes and played in the last 13 minutes of Real's 4-1 win over Juventus.

After a summer of recuperation Bale played in both of Wales' wins over Austria and Moldova in September that put them back into World Cup qualifying contention.

But Bale's injury problems returned to plague him, ruling him out of Wales' last two World Cup qualifiers against Georgia and the Republic of Ireland with a calf strain - with the Republic winning in Cardiff to end Wales' hopes of making the finals in Russia.

Gareth Bale has been capped 68 times by Wales and scored 26 international goals

Bale was raised in Cardiff and attended Eglwys Newydd primary school before going to Whitchurch High School - which also produced British and Irish Lions rugby union captain Sam Warburton and fellow Welsh Sports Personality 2017 nominee, cyclist Geraint Thomas - and was then taken on as a scholar by Southampton Football Club.

In December 2006, Bale won the Carwyn James Award for the BBC Wales Young Sports Personality of the Year, and was named the Football League Young Player of the Year 2006-7. In 2010 he would also be voted the senior BBC Wales Sports Personality of the Year.

Bale made his Wales debut in a 2-1 win over Trinidad and Tobago in May 2006, aged just 16 years and 315 days, which at the time made him Wales' youngest international until Harry Wilson was capped in 2013.

Bale remains Wales' youngest goal-scorer, as the following October after making his senior debut he curled home a free-kick in a 5-1 loss against Slovakia in Cardiff.

He signed for Spurs in May 2007 in a £5m deal and, after an extended period working to establish himself as a first-team regular, found himself moved from his formative left-back position into a more attacking role on the left wing.

Bale flourished in his new role and the goals rolled in while his all-round play continued to improve, prompting Real Madrid to offer a then world record £85.3m transfer fee to sign him on 1 September 2013.

Voting for BBC Cymru Wales Sports Personality of the Year 2017 will open from 08:00 GMT on Monday, 27 November and close at 18:00 GMT on Saturday, 2 December.

Full voting terms and conditions will be available on the BBC website and will also be carried on radio and television.

The winner will be unveiled on Monday, 4 December.

This event is not connected with the UK Sports Personality of the Year and is for the Wales award only.