PARIS – Argentina’s World Cup-winning captain Lionel Messi said it was a “unique honour” to be named the Laureus Sportsman of the Year at the awards ceremony on Monday, while sprint champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce bagged the top women’s honour.
Messi also received an award on behalf of the Argentina men’s football team, who were named World Team of the Year after their triumph at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
The 35-year-old Paris Saint-Germain forward, a seven-time Ballon d’Or winner, had won the award once before, sharing it with British Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton in 2020.
He also became the first athlete to scoop both the World Sportsman of the Year Award and the World Team of the Year Award in the same year.
“I was looking at the names of the incredible legends that won the Laureus Sportsman of the Year Award before me – (Michael) Schumacher, (Tiger) Woods, (Rafael) Nadal, (Roger) Federer, (Usain) Bolt, Hamilton, (Novak) Djokovic... it really sunk in what unbelievable company I’m in and what a unique honour this is,” he said at the prestigious ceremony in Paris.
The accolade saw Messi, who recently earned a fine and suspension from PSG for making an unauthorised promotional visit to Saudi Arabia, see off competition notably from French clubmate Kylian Mbappe, whose World Cup final hat-trick was not enough to earn him glory in Qatar.
Jamaican Fraser-Pryce enjoyed an outstanding 2022, which included winning the 100m gold at the World Athletics Championships.
“This is the sixth time I’ve been nominated in this category, so to finally hold the Laureus statuette in my hands is one of the greatest honours of my career,” she said.
“When athletes have the spotlight, it’s important the example we set is the best it can be. We have a responsibility to influence the next generation in a positive way and that’s what the Laureus Awards are all about.”
Tennis player Carlos Alcaraz, who won the 2022 US Open and rose to No. 1 in the ATP rankings, was named the Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year.
Christian Eriksen, who recovered from the cardiac arrest he suffered at the European Championship in 2021 to return to Premier League football with Brentford and then Manchester United before competing at the World Cup with Denmark, received the Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award.
Meanwhile, Chinese-American Olympic ski freestyle champion Eileen Gu won the World Action Sportsperson accolade.
The Laureus World Sports Awards nominees are selected by global media, while the winners are determined by the 71 members of the Laureus World Sports Academy.
The awards have been presented annually since their inception in 2000. REUTERS, AFP
