Laureus Award nominations announced

Pole vault world record holder Armand Duplantis of Sweden, world champion with Argentina Lionel Messi and American swimmer Katie Ledecky are among the nominees for this year's awarding of the prestigious Laureus award for the best athletes of the past year.

More than a thousand journalists from all over the world chose six athletes for each of the seven awards that will be awarded in April, after the second vote, Hina reported today.

Candidates for the best athlete in 2022 are the athlete Armand Duplantis, who in the past year improved his world record in the pole vault three times and won the world golds in indoor and outdoor, as well as the Diamond League.

Duplantis will fight against soccer player Lionel Messi, who won the world championship with Argentina, world champion in Formula 1 Dutchman Max Verstappen, NBA champion Golden State basketball player Steph Curry, French soccer player Kylian Mbappe and Spanish tennis player Rafael Nadal.

In the women's competition, among the main candidates for the award is American swimmer Katie Ledecky, who won four gold medals at the World Championships in Budapest.

The award is also being "hunted" by the American Sidney McLaughlin, who has already won the award for the best female athlete of the year. She won two golds at the World Championships in Eugene and twice broke her world record in the 400-meter hurdles.

Jamaican athlete Shelley-Anne Fraser-Pryce won the title of world champion in 100 meters, Polish tennis player Iga Swiontek won Roland Garros and the US Open last year, scored 37 victories and ended the year at number one.

Among the candidates for the award is American skier Mikaela Šifrin, winner of the World Cup, as well as Spanish soccer player Alexija Putellas.

Candidates for the best team have also been announced, and the finals include the Argentine national football team, Real Madrid players, NBA champions Golden State Warriors, the English women's national football team, the French rugby team, as well as the Red Bull Formula 1 team.

Candidates for the discovery of the year are the Moroccan football team, Spanish tennis player Carlos Alcaraz, Kazakh tennis player Elena Rybakina, American figure skater Nathan Chen, American golfer Scotty Scheffler and Nigerian athlete Tobi Amusan.

"Sports Oscars" will also be awarded for the returnee of the year, the best athlete with a disability, the best athlete in extreme sports, as well as the "Sport for Good" award for a sports program or project.

Swiss tennis player Roger Federer is the record holder with six awards, while in the women's competition it is American tennis player Serena Williams who received this prestigious award five times.