Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
It’s that time when we look back and review the sporting year and try to determine the most outstanding performances.
But who is the best of the best? A debate can rage over the simple question as to who is the best footballer in the world. Comparisons between performances in different sports comprising different locations, gender and age of the athletes are likely to further divide opinion.
To narrow down the search it is perhaps preferable to defer judgment to leading luminaries in the world of sport – who better than the 47 members of the Laureus World Sports Academy, living legends of sport,chaired by Ed Moses?
Laureus is a universal movement that celebrates the power of sport to bring people together as a force for good. The patron of Laureus is Nelson Mandela. At the inaugural Laureus World Sports Awards in 2000, Mandela said: “Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. Sport can awaken hope where there was previously only despair.”
This has become the philosophy of Laureus; the driving force behind its work.
Proceeds from the Laureus Awards directly benefit and underpin the work of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, which supports 89 community sports projects around the world that have helped to improve the lives of more than one-and-a-half million young people since its inception.
The awards, which recognise sporting achievement, are the premier honours on the international sporting calendar. The 2012 awards ceremony, which will be attended by the greatest names in sport, past and present, and broadcast to a worldwide TV audience, will be staged at Central Hall, Westminster, in the heart of London, on the evening of February 6.
British Prime Minister David Cameron said: “I am delighted that the Laureus World Sports Awards are coming to London in 2012. These awards celebrate the world’s top sportsmen and women and highlight the incredible power of sport to make a real difference to individuals and communities around the world. I can’t think of a better way to kick off our Olympic year.”
The list of nominees for the leading sportsman of the year is as follows:
Among the leading contenders is Djokovic, who became the dominant player in men’s tennis in 2011, winning three Grand Slam tournaments and taking over the world No. 1 ranking from Rafael Nadal on July 4. He is the first Serbian to win a Grand Slam singles title and the youngest player, at 24, to have reached the semi-finals of all four Grand Slams in the open era.
Vettel won his second straight Formula One World Championship in 2011. Driving for Red Bull, he secured the title at the Japanese Grand Prix in October, four races before the end of the season. It made the German the youngest driver, at 24, to have won two world titles. In his career, he has created a succession of records, including youngest F1 driver at a Grand Prix meeting at 19 years, 53 days, and youngest to win a race, the 2008 Italian Grand Prix, at 21 years, 73 days.
Argentina’s Messi, also 24, will be seeking to become the first team player to win the individual Laureus Award, after another amazing year. The greatest footballer of his generation, he scored 53 goals in all competitions for Barcelona in the 2010/11 season. Messi played a significant role in Barcelona’s Champions League success in 2011, their third in six years, scoring a total of 12 goals, including both goals in the 2-0 first leg semi-final win against arch-rivals Real Madrid.
While it could be argued that F1 is also a team sport, I believe that Vettel’s dominance in 2011 surpasses that of Djokovic. He has consistently excelled throughout the season. However, we should also note the performances of Kelly Slater, who won his 11th World Surfing Championship at the age of 39, and Shaun White, who won the Winter (snowboarding) and Summer (skateboarding) X Games gold, as we decide on the performance of the year.
The list of nominees for the leading sportswoman of the year is as follows
In July 2011, Sawa captained Japan to its first ever FIFA Women’s World Cup with victory over the US in a penalty shootout. In addition, she was awarded the Golden Boot for being the tournament’s leading scorer, with five goals, and the Golden Ball for being the best player. Long considered Japan’s finest female footballer, she made her international debut at the age of 15 and has played more than 170 times for Japan, scoring 80 goals.
Taiwan’s Tseng has enjoyed one of the most amazing years in the history of women’s golf. By the end of October, she had 10 wins, including two Major Championships – the Wegmans LPGA Championship and the Ricoh British Open – and had amassed prize money of $2.8 million, twice the winnings of Christie Kerr in second place on the money list. She finished in the top ten 13 times in the 20 tournaments she had played at that time.
The World Athletics Championships in Daegu in August have produced several strong contenders for nomination for the Laureus Sportswoman Award. The most impressive candidate is Kenya’s Vivian Cheruiyot, who established herself as one of the great distance runners of this generation after winning the 5,000m and 10,000m gold medals. Earlier in the year, Cheruiyot won the World Cross-Country Championship in Punta Umbria in Spain.
Also in Daegu, Carmelita Jeter became the fastest woman in the world when she won the blue riband 100m gold medal. She also won gold in the 4x100m relay and silver in the 200m. Currently she holds three of the top 10 times ever run.
For me, it is the performance of Taiwan’s Yani Tseng that stands out.
While it is always fun to review the top performances of the year gone by, spare a thought for the top performers who will no longer be able to entertain us in 2012. This year we have waved goodbye to some popular sportsmen including Seve Ballesteros, one of golf’s most popular players, and Sir Henry Cooper, best remembered for his lightning fast left hook that floored Cassius Clay (who later changed his name to Mohammed Ali) at Wembley in 1963.
Boxing also lost Joe Frazier. ‘Smokin Joe’ also met Ali in a trilogy of bouts in the 1970’s, culminating in a fight widely regarded as the greatest of all times, the ‘Thrilla in Manila’.
Cricket’s departure was that of Basil D’Oliveira.
Born into the injustice of apartheid, D’Oliveira’s inspirational journey from South African youth to England Test cricketer was a result of remarkable natural ability and quiet determination.
Moving to England in 1960 D’Oliveira lied about his age to maximise his chances of making the England team. Having worked his way into the team by 1966, D’Oliveira was not picked for England’s 1968/69 trip to South Africa amidst accusations of racism. Eventually he was called to the squad, triggering protests from South Africa.
