Top sportsmen to unveil Laureus nominees on Feb 26
Three world famous sportsmen will be in Malaysia next week to announce the nominees for this year's Laureus World Sports Awards.
On Feb 26, French World Cup winner Marcel Desailly, football coach André Villas-Boas and five-time world motorcycling champion Mick Doohan will reveal the names of six outstanding sportsmen, sportswomen and teams in seven different categories, following a ballot by the world’s media.
The announcement will be made in Kuala Lumpur exactly one month before the 15th edition of the most prestigious sports awards event - also known as the Oscars of sports - is staged in Kuala Lumpur.
The winners, as voted by the 46-member Laureus World Sports Academy, will be unveiled at a globally televised ceremony on March 26.
Six nominees will be announced in various categories. They are: Laureus World Sportsman of the Year, Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year, Laureus World Team of the Year, Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year, Laureus World Comeback of the Year, Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability and Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year.
The members of the Laureus World Sports Academy will then vote by secret ballot to decide the winners.
Among the sporting greats who have been named in the past as winners of Awards over the 15 years of Laureus have been Usain Bolt, Sebastian Coe, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Alex Ferguson, Lewis Hamilton, Kelly Holmes, Rafael Nadal, Pelé, Steve Redgrave, Ronaldo, Michael Schumacher, Kelly Slater, Shaun White, Serena Williams and Zinedine Zidane.
Laureus Ambassador and Malaysian squash legend Nicol David - a seven times world champion - said: “I hope that we will be able to create some programmes in Malaysia for young people. My friends and all my fellow sportsmen and women are already talking about how wonderful it’s going to be next month."
