OUR sensational shortlist for the Evening Times 2017 Scotswoman of the Year is being unveiled this week.

Yesterday we revealed that internationally renowned forensic anthropologist Professor Dame Sue Black and broadcaster Sally Magnusson, who founded dementia charity Playlist for Life, have made it to the final six.

Today, we are delighted to announce the next two women in the running for the prestigious award, which has been celebrating female achievement for more than 50 years.

The winner will be announced at a glittering gala dinner in the City Chambers, hosted by Glasgow City Council and supported by our event partner St Enoch Centre.

SUKI SANGHA

Equal rights campaigner Suki Sangha is a force to be reckoned with.

The 31-year-old from the south side of Glasgow, who was named one of the YWCA’s 30 under 30 influential women for 2017, is passionate about gender equality, refugee rights and anti-racism.

She is a founding member of Scotland’s newest political party RISE: Scotland’s Left Alliance, she is on Unite’s Scottish Executive Committee and is vice chairperson of its Black, Asian and Ethnic Minorities Committee and is chairperson of the STUC ‘s Black Workers’ Committee.

She has written articles about the importance of engaging women at every level of politics; she’s been a huge supporter and organiser in the campaign to end zero hours contracts; she’s represented young workers on the STUC Youth Committee; and she continues to work for equality on behalf of black, Asian, and ethnic minority workers across Scotland.

Suki’s day job is as a project co-ordinator for the Connect 2 programme, which supports hard-to-reach young people and helps them take positive steps towards education, employment and training, and she volunteers to help the homeless.

Everything Suki does is about making life better for others.

“Growing up in a traditional Asian family meant I was heading for an arranged marriage – but that just wasn’t me,” she explains.

“I have always been vocal about stuff. I speak up about things that are important to me.”

As a student – she studied sociology at Strathclyde University and completed a Masters in equality and human rights at Glasgow - Suki campaigned against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and opposed education cuts.

“It was the stop-the-war protests that sparked my instinct for campaigning,” she says.

Suki is keen to pay tribute to her colleagues and fellow founding members of RISE, who stood in the Holyrood elections.

“I feel like I am just part of a bigger team,” she says. “I’m really surprised to be nominated for Scotswoman of the Year, it’s a real honour.

“Founding RISE was about giving people an alternative voice after the independence referendum. It’s so important in politics to have a range of different voices speaking out.”

SAMMI KINGHORN

Wheelchair athlete Sammi Kinghorn has had a phenomenal 2017, winning double gold in the 100m and 200m at the IPC World Championships.

At the same competition she also set a new 200m world record and won a 400m bronze medal.

Her marathon debut in Chicago in October was the fastest ever by a female and she is currently training for the 2018 Commonwealth Games, in which she will compete in the 1500m and marathon.

She is now Britain’s fastest ever female wheelchair racer.

Sammi was 14 when she broke her back in an accident in 2010 at her family farm near Gordon in the Borders.

She spent six months at the Southern General Hospital in Glasgow before being told she would never walk again.

However, she said she decided life was “too short to mope” and took up wheelchair racing.

“While I was in the Southern General, my physiotherapist recognised that I was quite athletic so she took me to Stoke Mandeville which is the national centre for disability sports,” she explains. “I tried wheelchair racing and I knew instantly that was where my future lay.”

Sammi went on to win three gold medals at the IPC European Games just four years later.

She adds: “It’s really nice to be nominated for SWOTY and to be recognised in a general award category that isn’t just about sport alongside some amazing Scots women.

“I’ve had a fantastic year and I really hope to build on what I have achieved in the years to come.”