Caster Semenya to battle Serena Williams in top awards

16 January 2018 - 17:16 By Mninawa Ntloko
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Caster Semenya during the SA Sports Awards at Emperors Palace on November 12, 2017 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Caster Semenya during the SA Sports Awards at Emperors Palace on November 12, 2017 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Image: Sydney Seshibedi/Gallo Images

The nominees of the 2018 Laureus World Sports Awards were announced on Tuesday and SA’s Caster Semenya will face off against 2017 Wimbledon champion Garbiñe Muguruza and an all-American quartet led by tennis superstar Serena Williams in the World Sportswoman of the Year category.

Besides the irrepressible Williams and Muguruza‚ Semenya will also have to contend with 16-time world athletics championship medalist Allyson Felix‚ 19-year-old swimming sensation Katie Ledecky and Overall World Cup champion skier Mikaela Shiffrin in the hotly contested category.

Semenya‚ who eased to the 800m women's gold medal in the 2016 Olympic Games‚ added the gold medal in the same event to her burgeoning collection in last year's world championships in London.

Semenya also won bronze in the women's 1500m at the same World Championships.

Roger Federer’s return to form after a knee injury‚ which saw him win his fifth Australian Open and eighth Wimbledon titles‚ earned him nominations in both the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year and the Laureus World Comeback of the Year categories.

Football also features heavily on the nomination list as Cristiano Ronaldo will compete in the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year awards‚ Real Madrid in the Laureus World Team of the Year‚ Kylian Mbappé is in contention for the Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year and Barcelona and Chapecoense are nominated for the Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award.

World championships 10‚000m gold and 5‚000m silver medal-winning athlete Mo Farah‚ four-time Tour de France winner Chris Froome‚ four-time Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton and French and US Open champion Rafael Nadal join Federer and Ronaldo in the World Sportsman of the Year category.

The winners‚ as voted for by members of the Laureus World Sports Academy‚ will be revealed in Monaco on February 27.

Full list of nominees:

World Sportsman of the Year:

Mo Farah

Roger Federer

Lewis Hamilton

Rafa Nadal

Cristiano Ronaldo

Chris Froome

World Sportswoman of the Year:

Caster Semenya

Serena Williams

Allyson Felix

Katie Ledecky

Mikaele Shiffrin

Garbine Muguruza

World Team of the Year:

Real Madrid

Golden State Warriors

New England Patriots

Mercedes F1 team

New Zealand America's Cup team

World Breakthrough of the Year:

Sergio Garcia

Anthony Joshua

Kylian Mbappe

Caleb Dressel

Jelena Ostapenko

World Comeback of the Year:

Justin Gatlin

Roger Federer

Sally Pearson

Valentino Rossi

Chapecoense

Sportsperson with a disability:

Marcel Hug

Yui Kamiji

Bibian Mentel-Spee

Jetze Plat

Oksana Masters

Markus Rehm

Action Sportsman of the Year:

John John Florence

Anna Gasser

Nyjah Huston

Armel Le Cleac'h

Mark McMorris

Tyler Wright

Sporting Moment of the Year:

Billy Whizz Is Back

Brave Bradley's Fight

Eternal Champions

Wave for the Kids

When Tears Turn into Smiles


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