With the selection of Italy, the Laureus Awards determine the list of nominees

ROME, February 2 (ANSA) – The Laureus Award, considered the Oscar of sports, on Wednesday (2) released the list of nominees for the 2022 edition. Italy, the current European champions, is among the finalists for the event.

Several international sports stars are competing for the “Male Athlete of the Year” award, such as American football player Tom Brady, tennis player Novak Djokovic, striker Robert Lewandowski and 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 withdrawing from the mega-event, is vying for the comeback 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 Laureus “Sport for Good” Italian multi-sport program Jucà Pe Cagnà in Naples will struggle for recognition.

The initiative seeks to provide a safe way for young people to exercise and avoid the impact of organized crime.

Nominees – Male Athlete of the Year – Tom Brady (USA, football) Novak Djokovic (Serbia, Tennis) Caleb Dressel (USA, swimming) Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya, athletics) Robert Lewandowski (Poland, Football) Max Verstappen (Netherlands, Motorsports) – Female Athlete of the Year – Ashleigh Barty (Australia, tennis) Alison Felix (USA, athletics) Katie Ledecky (USA, swimming) Emma McKeon (Australia, Swimming) Alexia Putillas (Spain, football) Elaine Thompson – Hera (Jamaica, athletics) – Team of the Year – Argentina men’s soccer team Barcelona women’s team (Spain, soccer) Chinese Olympic diving team Italy Italy men’s soccer team Mercedes ( Germany, motorsports) Milwaukee Bucks (USA), basketball) – general newcomer – Neeraj Chopra (India, athletics) Daniil Medvedev (Russia, tennis) Pedri (Spain, football) Emma Radukano (UK, tuna Q) Yulimar Rojas (Venezuela, athletics) Ariarn Titmus (Australia, swimming) – Return of the Year – Simone Biles (USA, artistic gymnastics) Sky Brown (UK, skate) Mark Cavendish (UK, cycling) Tom Daly (UK, diving) Marc Marquez (Spain, motorcycling) Animek van Vleuten (Netherlands, cycling) – Disabled athlete – Diede De Groot (Netherlands, wheelchair tennis) Marcel Hug (Switzerland, wheelchair athletics) Shingo Kunieda (Japan, wheelchair tennis) Jetze Plat (Netherlands, Paracycling / Paratriathlon) Susana Rodríguez (Spain, Paratriathlon) Sarah Storey (UK, cycling) – Action Sports – Ítalo Ferreira (Brazil, surfing) Alberto Ginés (Spain, Sport Climbing) Yuto Horigome (Japan, Skate – Horigome) Karissa Moore (USA, surfing) Momiji Nishiya (Japan, skate) Bethany Shriever (UK, BMX) – Sport for Good – Will Da Rauf! (Germany, sport climbing) Jucà Pe Cagnà (Italy, various sports) Kick 4 Life (Lesotho, football) Lost Boyz Inc. (USA, baseball/softball) Monkey Magic (Japan, sport climbing) (ANSA).