He is competing for his fifth title in the Sportsperson of the Year category.
On Monday, April 22, the Cibeles Palace in Madrid will host the 25th edition of the Laureus Awards, making it the world’s sports capital.
A slew of sports celebrities will walk the red carpet for an annual awards presentation that recognizes great athletes from around the world.
Tennis star Novak Djokovic is expected to play a significant role in the upcoming Mutua Madrid Open at Caja Mágica. The world number one is seeking for his fifth Laureus Award, hoping to equal Roger Federer’s record as the most decorated male athlete in this category.
Djokovic has previously won the prize in 2012, 2015, 2016, and 2019. His outstanding performance in 2023, highlighted by seven victories, three Grand Slams (Australian Open, Roland Garros, and US Open), and victory in the ATP Finals, won him another nomination.Djokovic reached the Wimbledon final and remained the world’s top-ranked player for the eighth consecutive year.
Tennis has been a recurring element of the tournament.
Tennis’s ‘Big Three’ – Djokovic, Federer, and Rafael Nadal – have dominated the Laureus category, with Nadal being the most recent winner in 2021 (his second after 2011).
Djokovic is up against stiff competition this year, including two-time winner Lionel Messi (2020 and 2023) and Formula 1 driver Max Verstappen, who won in 2022.
Athletics is represented by Armand Duplantis, the pole vault world record holder and nominee in 2021 and 2023, and Noah Lyles, a triple world gold winner (100m, 200m, and 4x100m relay), both seeking their first Laureus statuettes. Erling Haaland, a Norwegian football sensation, is also a nominee in the soccer category.
“I am honored to be nominated for the Laureus Sportsman of the Year Award. “A fantastic group to be a part of,” said Djokovic on the announcement of nominations.
Tennis is also awarded in several categories at the Laureus Awards.Iga Swiatek is nominated for the women’s category, Coco Gauff for revelation, Marketa Vondrousova for best return, and Diede de Groot for Paralympics. Additionally, the Rafa Nadal Foundation is vying for the ‘Sports for Good’ prize.
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