Federer, Bolt in Line for Laureus

ABU DHABI — World No.1 tennis player Roger Federer, the fastest man on earth Usain Bolt, MotoGP champion Valentino Rossi and football genius Lionel Messi are in line for the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year Award when the event will be held in Abu Dhabi on March 10.

By James Jose

Published: Sat 13 Feb 2010, 12:35 AM

Last updated: Mon 6 Apr 2015, 8:52 AM

Dubbed the ‘Oscars of Sport,’ Federer is a four-time winner of the silver figurine in winning pose award. Usain Bolt has a chance to make it a double after winning in last year. But they face competition from the mesmerising Argentine Lionel Messi and the Italian bike hero Valentino Rossi, dubbed  ‘The Doctor.’

Two-time Tour de France winner Alberto Contador and long distance runner Kenenisa Bekele are also on the list. The names of the Nominees were unveiled by Laureus World Sports Academy Chairman Edwin Moses and his fellow Laureus Academy Members, former India cricket captain Kapil Dev and former Formula One World champion Mika Hakkinen, at the 2010 Laureus Nominations Announcement at the Emirates Palace on Thursday.

Also present were Mohammed Ibrahim Al Mahmood, General Secretary of the Abu Dhabi Sports Council and Mohamed Badawy Al Husseiny, CEO of Aabar Investments PJSC, host partner of the 2010 Laureus World  Sports Awards.

The Laureus World Sports Awards recognise sporting achievement during the period January 1- December 31, 2009. The winners – as voted by the Laureus World Sports Academy, the ultimate sports jury made up of 46 of the greatest sportsmen and sportswomen of all time – will be unveiled in Abu Dhabi.

Two-time winner Serena Williams has been nominated for the Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year Award after winning two Grand Slam titles in 2009. Also among the nominees are swimmers Federica Pellegrini and Britta Steffen, athletes Shelly-Ann Fraser and Sanya Richards, and US ski racer Lindsey Vonn.

Tour de France cyclist and two-time Laureus winner Lance Armstrong, golfing legend Tom Watson and Belgian tennis star Kim Clijsters – have been nominated for the Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award. Also nominated in this category are American Football quarter-back Brett Favre and athletes Jessica Ennis and  Blanka Vlasic.

Spanish football giants FC Barcelona, who made history in Abu Dhabi last December, when they won the FIFA Club World Cup to cap a record sixth title in a season, have been nominated for the Laureus World Team of the Year. Brawn Formula One Team, NBA basketball team Los Angeles Lakers and baseball team New York Yankees are the other nominees along with the Germany Women’s Football Team.

Formula One world champion Jenson Button, who has joined forces with McLaren this season, has been short-listed for the Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year along with Tour de France cyclist Mark Cavendish and diver Tom Daley. Also nominated are Argentina’s winner of the US Open tennis star Juan Martin del Potro, South Korea’s talented young golfer Ji Yai Shin and German football team  VFL Wolfsburg.

Nominees

Laureus World Sportsman of the Year: Kenenisa Bekele (Ethiopia) Athletics – first 5,000 & 10,000m double in World Championships Usain Bolt (Jamaica) Athletics – won 100m, 200m & 4x100m relay World Championship gold medals Alberto Contador (Spain) Cycling – won his second Tour de France in three years Roger Federer (Switzerland) Tennis – broke Pete Sampras record for most Grand Slam singles titles won Lionel Messi (Argentina) Football – FIFA World Player of the Year, a star in Barcelona’s brilliant year Valentinio Rossi (Italy) Motor Cycling – won his seventh senior MotoGP world title Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year: Shelly-Ann Fraser (Jamaica) Athletics - added World Championship 100 metres gold to Olympic gold Federica Pellegrini (Italy) Swimming – broke the four minute barrier in 400m freestyle Sanya Richards (US) Athletics – won first individual 400m gold medal in a global championship Britta Steffen (Germany) Swimming – won World Championship 50m & 100m gold in world record times Lindsey Vonn (US) Skiing – won World Cup for second year and two gold medals at World Championships Serena Williams (US) Tennis – won Australian Open and Wimbledon and regained world No 1 ranking Laureus World Team of the Year: FC Barcelona (Spain) Football – won Champions League, Spanish League and Spanish Cup in 2008/09 Brawn Formula One Team (UK) – won Drivers and Constructors World Championships in debut year Germany Women’s Football Team – won their fifth straight European Championship Los Angeles Lakers (US) Basketball - won 15^th NBA title in their record 30^th play-off appearance New York Yankees (US) Baseball – won their 27^th – and record – World Series South Africa Rugby Team – international rugby team of the year, won Lions and Tri-Nations series Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year: Jenson Button (UK) Motor Racing – won Formula One World Championship after 169 Grand Prix Mark Cavendish (UK) Cycling – won six stages of the Tour de France, a record for a British cyclist Tom Daley (UK) Diving – won 10m platform gold medal in World Championship, at age 15 Juan Martin del Potro (Argentina) Tennis – beat Roger Federer in final to win US Open, at age 21 Ji Yai Shin (South Korea) Golf – rookie of the year on the US LPGA Tour, winning three events VFL Wolfsburg (Germany) Football – small club from Lower Saxony, won their first Bundesliga title Laureus World Comeback of the Year: Lance Armstrong (US) Cycling – returned to Tour de France at 37 after four year gap, finished third Kim Clijsters (Belgium) Tennis – won US Open in her third tournament back after two year absence Jessica Ennis (UK) Athletics – won World Championship heptathlon after missing Olympics Brett Favre (US) American Football – came out of retirement and created record for consecutive starts Blanka Vlasic (Croatia) Athletics – won World Championship high jump after disappointment at Olympics Tom Watson (US) Golf – came within a putt of winning the British Open at age 59 Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability: Justin Eveson (Australia) Wheelchair Basketball – winner of every tournament in which he took part Kurt Fearnley (Australia) Wheelchair Racing – won all five marathons in which he competed in 2009 Gizen Girismen (Turkey) Para-Archery – No 1 archer in the world in her category since 2007 Shingo Kunieda (Japan) Wheelchair Tennis – unbeaten in 77 matches dating back to 2007 Michael Teuber (Germany) Cycling – won three gold and one silver medal in World Championships Natalie du Toit (S.Africa) Swimming – continued to dominate able-bodied and disabled events in 2009 Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year: Antoine Albeau (France) Windsurfing – won the 2009 PWA Slalom World Championship Chris Cole (US) Skateboarding – won the Dew Cup and was named Skater of the Year Mick Fanning (Australia) Surfing – won his second World Surfing Championship in three years Stephanie Gilmore (Australia) Surfing – won her third straight World Surfing Championship, at just 21 Greg Long (US) Surfing – won big wave event at Waimea Bay, Hawaii, in front of 50,000 spectators Danny MacAskill (UK) Trials Bikes – spectacular stunt video seen by 350,000 on You Tube in 40 hours