Laureus World Sports Award - Djokovic & Vivian Cheruiyot

In the enthralling World of Sports, Vivian Cheruiyot joined illustrious sports women – Marion Jones, Cathy Freeman, Jennifer Capriati, Serena Williams, Aronika Sorenstam, Kelly Holmes, Yelena Isinbayeva, Justin Henon, Lindsey Vonn………   On the men, it is Novak Djokovic joining the ranks of Tiger Woods(2), Michael Schumacher(2), Lance Armstrong, Roger Federer(4), Usain Bolt (2), Rafael Nadal

Yes it is the Laureus World Sports Awards and the female and male top honoured persons…

The female winner this year - Vivian Jepkemoi Cheruiyot is an athlete from Kenya who specialises in long distance running. She represented Kenya at the 2000 Summer Olympics and the 2008 Summer Olympics. Cheruiyot won a silver medal in the 5000 metres at the 2007 World Championships in Athletics and became the world champion in the event at the 2009 edition.   She won  silver at the 2010 IAAF World Indoor Championships.  She holds the Kenyan record and Commonwealth record for the 5000 m with her best time of 14:20.89, which was set at the DN Galan in 2011.

Laureus World Sports Awards established in 1999  are awarded annually to sportspeople who have been outstanding during the previous year.  The selection process has two stages. First, a Selection Panel of the world's leading sports editors, writers and broadcasters from over 80 countries votes to create a shortlist of six nominations in each category. The voting process is monitored by independent auditors.  Then the members of the Laureus World Sports Academy vote by secret ballot to select the Award winners.  The acclaimed winners of the prestigious awards were unveiled in a globally televised ceremony that took place at the London’s Central Hall, Westminster on Monday, February 6, 2012.

World number one tennis player Novak Djokovic snatched the Laureus Sportsman of the Year Award after an outstanding 2011;  Laureus Sportswoman of the Year was awarded to Kenyan distance runner Vivian Cheruiyot, who won both 5,000 and 10,000 metres gold medals at the World Championships in Daegu and FC Barcelona won the Laureus Team of the Year Award for winning the Champions League and the Spanish League in the 2010/11 season, under coach Pep Guardiola.  Oscar Pistorius was presented with the Laureus Disability Award. His drive and performance as a double-amputee competing against able-bodied athletes at the Word Championships, where he won a silver medal in the 4 x 400 meters relay, are simply beyond words.

The event, which had the full support of the UK Prime Minister David Cameron and London Mayor Boris Johnson, raised the interest of a wide audience.   The winners were chosen by 47 sports stars who make up the Laureus sports academy.

There is another top honour for sportspersons and that is the  IAAF Athlete of the Year award  organised by the International Athletic Foundation of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), including track and field, cross country running, road running, and racewalking.  In the  recent awards in 2011, the IAAF Athlete of the Year Award for 2011 was the mercurial – Usain Bolt.  The woman alongside to receive this award this year was Sally Pearson, the hurdler becoming the first Australian to win the award.

With regards – S. Sampathkumar.