The Laureus Award, which is considered the Oscar of sports, on Wednesday (2) released the list of nominees for the 2022 edition. The selection of Italy, the current European champions, is one of the finalists for the event.
Several major international sports stars are vying for the “Male Athlete of the Year” category, such as American football player Tom Brady, tennis player Novak Djokovic, striker Robert Lewandowski and racing driver Max Verstappen.
In the same award, in the women’s only category are tennis player Ashleigh Barty, sprinter Alison Felix, swimmer Emma McKeon and football player Alexia Butillas.
American gymnast Simone Biles, who won a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics after pulling out of the mega-event, will run for the “Come Back of the Year” award. She will face Marquez, the Spanish MotoGP racer, who won the nearly 600-day race after recovering from a broken arm.
Surfer Ítalo Ferreira will be the sole representative of Brazil at the 2022 edition of the Laureus Awards. The athlete will compete in the “Action Sportsman” category for being the first Olympic gold medalist in surfing.
Italy, in turn, will participate in two categories of the award. Coached by coach Roberto Mancini, Azura will be seeking the Laureus “Team of the Year” award. Among the Italian national team’s opponents are the Mercedes Formula 1 team, the Argentine men’s team and the women’s team in Barcelona.
At Sport for Good at Laureus, Italian multi-sport program Jucà Pe Cagnà in Naples will fight for recognition.
The initiative seeks to provide a safe way for young people to exercise and avoid the impact of organized crime.
Candidate List
Male Athlete of the Year
Tom Brady (USA, American football)
Novak Djokovic (Serbia, tennis player)
Caleb Dressel (USA, swim)
Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya, athletics)
Robert Lewandowski (Poland, football)
Max Verstappen (Netherlands, Motorsports)
Best athlete of the year
Ashleigh Barty (Australia, Tennis)
Alison Felix (USA, athletics)
Katie Ledecky (USA, swim)
Emma McKeown (Australia, swim)
Alexia Putillas (Spain, football)
Elaine Thompson – Hera (Jamaica, athletics)
Team of the Year
Argentina football team
Barcelona women’s soccer team (Spain, soccer)
Chinese Olympic diving team
Italian men’s soccer team
Mercedes (Germany, motorsport)
Milwaukee Bucks (USA, basketball)
general inspiration –
Neeraj Chopra (India, athletics)
Daniil Medvedev (Russia, Tennis)
Pedro (Spain, football)
Emma Raducano (UK, TENNIS)
Yulimar Rojas (Venezuela, athletics)
Ariarn Titmus (Australia, swim)
return of the year
Simone Biles (USA, artistic gymnastics)
Sky Brown (UK, skate)
Mark Cavendish (UK, cycling)
Tom Daly (UK, diving)
Marc Marquez (Spain, motorcycles)
Anime Van Vleuten (Netherlands, cycling)
Athlete with a disability
Did de Groot (Netherlands, wheelchair tennis)
Marcel Haug (Switzerland, wheelchair athletics)
Shingo Konida (Japan, wheelchair tennis)
Jetze Plat (Netherlands, Paracycling / Paratriathlon)
Susana Rodriguez (Spain, Paratriathlon)
Sarah Storey (UK, Paracycling)
work athlete
Italo Ferreira (Brazil, surfing)
Alberto Guinness (Spain, climbing sport)
Yuto Horigome (Japan, Skate – Horigome)
Carissa Moore (USA, SURF)
Momiji Nishiya (Japan, skate)
Bethany Shriver (UK, BMX)
Sport for good
Ich will da rauf! (Germany, sport climbing)
Juca b Cagna (Italy, mixed sports)
Kick 4 Life (Lesotho, football)
Lost Boyz Inc. (USA, baseball/softball)
Monkey Magic (Japan, sport climbing).
Amelia Kensington is a contributor to Mediarunsearch.co.uk, covering a wide range of topics including news, politics, business, technology, sport, entertainment, and lifestyle. She focuses on delivering clear, balanced reporting and useful information that helps readers stay informed about current events and emerging developments. Her work highlights stories that matter to everyday audiences, presenting complex topics in an accessible and engaging way while maintaining a strong commitment to accuracy and relevance.