Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year

The Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year is an annual award honoring the achievements of individual men from the world of sports. It was first awarded in 2000 as one of the seven constituent awards presented during the Laureus World Sports Awards.[1] The awards are presented by the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, a global organisation involved in more than 150 charity projects supporting 500,000 young people.[3] The first ceremony was held on 25 May 2000 in Monte Carlo, at which Nelson Mandela gave the keynote speech.[4] As of 2020, a shortlist of six nominees for the award comes from a panel composed of the "world's leading sports editors, writers and broadcasters".[1] The Laureus World Sports Academy then selects the winner who is presented with a Laureus statuette, created by Cartier, at the annual awards ceremony held in various locations around the world.[5] The awards are considered highly prestigious and are frequently referred to as the sporting equivalent of the "Oscars".[6][7][8]

Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year
Novak Djokovic, 2024 winner
Awarded for"The sportsman who best demonstrates supreme athletic performance and achievement"[1]
LocationMadrid (2024)[2]
Presented byLaureus Sport for Good Foundation
First awarded2000
Currently held bySerbia Novak Djokovic
(5th award)
Most awardsSerbia Novak Djokovic
Switzerland Roger Federer
(5 awards each)
Most nominationsUnited States Tiger Woods
Argentina Lionel Messi
(8 nominations each)
WebsiteOfficial website

The inaugural winner of the award was the American golfer Tiger Woods who finished the 1999 season with eight wins, a feat not achieved since 1974, including the PGA Championship.[9][10] He went on to become the most dominant player of his era,[11] earning a second Laureus Award the following year, and five further nominations between 2002 and 2008. The 2003 winner of the Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year was the American road cyclist Lance Armstrong. He had been nominated the previous year, and earned further nominations in 2004, 2005 and 2006. Following Armstrong's 2013 admission of doping,[12] all his Laureus awards and nominations were rescinded.[13] Tennis players dominate the winners list, with eleven awards, while athletes and Formula One drivers have won four times, and golfers twice. Excluding Armstrong, the Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year has been won by just nine individuals since its inception. Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic hold the record for the most awards with five each.[14] Lionel Messi and Tiger Woods have the nominations record (8).

List of winners and nominees

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Novak Djokovic (top) and Roger Federer (bottom) have won the award a record five times.
 
Lionel Messi, who won the award in 2020 and 2023, is the only awardee to play in a team sport.[15]
Key
* Indicates individual whose award or nomination was later rescinded
Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year winners and nominees
Year Image Winner(s) Nationality Sport Nominees Refs
2000   Tiger Woods   USA Golf Andre Agassi (  USA) – tennis
Maurice Greene (  USA) – athletics
[16][17]
2001   Tiger Woods   USA Golf Steve Redgrave (  GBR) – rowing
Michael Schumacher (  GER) – Formula One
Ian Thorpe (  AUS) – swimming
Pieter van den Hoogenband (  NED) – swimming
[18][19]
2002   Michael Schumacher   GER Formula One Lance Armstrong* (  USA) – cycling
Maurice Greene (  USA) – athletics
Ian Thorpe (  AUS) – swimming
Tiger Woods (  USA) – golf
[8][20]
2003   Lance Armstrong*   USA Cycling Ole Einar Bjørndalen (  NOR) – biathlon
Ronaldo (  BRA) – football
Michael Schumacher (  GER) – Formula One
Tiger Woods (  USA) – golf
[21][22]
2004   Michael Schumacher   GER Formula One Lance Armstrong* (  USA) – cycling
Roger Federer (   SUI) – tennis
Michael Phelps (  USA) – swimming
Valentino Rossi (  ITA) – MotoGP
Jonny Wilkinson (  GBR) – rugby union
[23][24]
2005   Roger Federer    SUI Tennis Lance Armstrong* (  USA) – cycling
Hicham El Guerrouj (  MAR) – athletics
Michael Phelps (  USA) – swimming
Valentino Rossi (  ITA) – MotoGP
Michael Schumacher (  GER) – Formula One
[25][26]
2006   Roger Federer    SUI Tennis Fernando Alonso (  ESP) – Formula One
Lance Armstrong* (  USA) – cycling
Ronaldinho (  BRA) – football
Valentino Rossi (  ITA) – MotoGP
Tiger Woods (  USA) – golf
[27][28]
2007   Roger Federer    SUI Tennis Fernando Alonso (  ESP) – Formula One
Fabio Cannavaro (  ITA) – football
Asafa Powell (  JAM) – athletics
Michael Schumacher (  GER) – Formula One
Tiger Woods (  USA) – golf
[29][30]
2008   Roger Federer    SUI Tennis Tyson Gay (  USA) – athletics
Kaká (  BRA) – football
Michael Phelps (  USA) – swimming
Kimi Räikkönen (  FIN) – Formula One
Tiger Woods (  USA) – golf
[31][32]
2009   Usain Bolt   JAM Athletics Lewis Hamilton (  GBR) – Formula One
Rafael Nadal (  ESP) – tennis
Michael Phelps (  USA) – swimming
Cristiano Ronaldo (  POR) – football
Valentino Rossi (  ITA) – MotoGP
[33][34]
2010   Usain Bolt   JAM Athletics Kenenisa Bekele (  ETH) – athletics
Alberto Contador (  ESP) – cycling
Roger Federer (   SUI) – tennis
Lionel Messi (  ARG) – football
Valentino Rossi (  ITA) – MotoGP
[35][36]
2011   Rafael Nadal   ESP Tennis Kobe Bryant (  USA) – basketball
Andrés Iniesta (  ESP) – football
Lionel Messi (  ARG) – football
Manny Pacquiao (  PHI) – boxing
Sebastian Vettel (  GER) – Formula One
[37][38]
2012   Novak Djokovic   SRB Tennis Usain Bolt (  JAM) – athletics
Cadel Evans (  AUS) – cycling
Lionel Messi (  ARG) – football
Dirk Nowitzki (  GER) – basketball
Sebastian Vettel (  GER) – Formula One
[39][40]
2013   Usain Bolt   JAM Athletics Mo Farah (  GBR) – athletics
Lionel Messi (  ARG) – football
Michael Phelps (  USA) – swimming
Sebastian Vettel (  GER) – Formula One
Bradley Wiggins (  GBR) – cycling
[41][42]
2014   Sebastian Vettel   GER Formula One Usain Bolt (  JAM) – athletics
Mo Farah (  GBR) – athletics
LeBron James (  USA) – basketball
Rafael Nadal (  ESP) – tennis
Cristiano Ronaldo (  POR) – football
[43][44]
2015   Novak Djokovic   SRB Tennis Lewis Hamilton (  GBR) – Formula One
Renaud Lavillenie (  FRA) – athletics
Marc Márquez (  ESP) – MotoGP
Rory McIlroy (  NIR) – golf
Cristiano Ronaldo (  POR) – football
[45][46]
2016   Novak Djokovic   SRB Tennis Usain Bolt (  JAM) – athletics
Stephen Curry (  USA) – basketball
Lewis Hamilton (  GBR) – Formula One
Lionel Messi (  ARG) – football
Jordan Spieth (  USA) – golf
[47][48]
2017   Usain Bolt   JAM Athletics Stephen Curry (  USA) – basketball
Mo Farah (  GBR) – athletics
LeBron James (  USA) – basketball
Andy Murray (  GBR) – tennis
Cristiano Ronaldo (  POR) – football
[49][50]
2018   Roger Federer    SUI Tennis Mo Farah (  GBR) – athletics
Chris Froome (  GBR) – cycling
Lewis Hamilton (  GBR) – Formula One
Rafael Nadal (  ESP) – tennis
Cristiano Ronaldo (  POR) – football
[14][51]
2019   Novak Djokovic   SRB Tennis Lewis Hamilton (  GBR) – Formula One
LeBron James (  USA) – basketball
Eliud Kipchoge (  KEN) – athletics
Kylian Mbappé (  FRA) – football
Luka Modrić (  CRO) – football
[52][53]
2020   Lewis Hamilton   GBR Formula One Eliud Kipchoge (  KEN) – athletics
Marc Márquez (  ESP) – MotoGP
Rafael Nadal (  ESP) – tennis
Tiger Woods (  USA) – golf
[54]
  Lionel Messi   ARG Football
2021   Rafael Nadal   ESP Tennis Joshua Cheptegei (  UGA) – athletics
Armand Duplantis (  SWE) – athletics
Lewis Hamilton (  GBR) – Formula One
LeBron James (  USA) – basketball
Robert Lewandowski (  POL) – football
[55]
2022   Max Verstappen   NED Formula One Tom Brady (  USA) – American football
Novak Djokovic (  SRB) – tennis
Caeleb Dressel (  USA) – swimming
Eliud Kipchoge (  KEN) – athletics
Robert Lewandowski (  POL) – football
[56]
2023   Lionel Messi   ARG Football Stephen Curry (  USA) – basketball
Armand Duplantis (  SWE) – athletics
Kylian Mbappé (  FRA) – football
Rafael Nadal (  SPA) – tennis
Max Verstappen (  NED) – motor racing
[57][58]
2024   Novak Djokovic   SRB Tennis Armand Duplantis (  SWE) – athletics
Erling Haaland (  NOR) – football
Noah Lyles (  USA) – athletics
Lionel Messi (  ARG) – football
Max Verstappen (  NED) – motor racing
[59][60]

Statistics

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Statistics are correct as of 2024 nominations.

References

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