Swimmers Katie Ledecky, Cameron Leslie Nominated for Laureus World Sport Awards
American swimmer Katie Ledecky and New Zealand paraswimmer Cameron Leslie have been nominated for the 2023 Laureaus World Sport Awards. The annual awards are presented in a variety of categories including Athlete, Female Athlete, Team, Breakthrough Athlete, Comeback Athlete, Athlete with Disabilities, Action Athlete and Sport for Good.
The best swimmers in the world are usually nominated for awards. Last year, after the Olympics, four swimmers were nominated. This year it’s just two in a disjointed global swim schedule.
Ledecky was nominated in the World Athlete of the Year Category. Her results in 2022 included winning the 400, 800 and 1500 freestyle individuals and the 800 free relay at the World Aquatics Championships in Budapest. Her world title in the 800 Free was her fifth straight at the event.
These swim routines were completed at a World Championships in the absence of her main rival, Ariarne Titmus, who won the 400m at the Olympics and was nominated for the award last year.
At the FINA World Cup Series stops in Indianapolis and Toronto, Ledecky would also break the world records for the 800 free meters (7:57.42) and 1500 free meters (15:08.24) over short distances. These were her first two short-distance world records.
This is Ledecky’s 5th nomination. She was previously nominated in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2022.
One swimmer has won this award in their history: missy franklin was honored in 2014 among 14 all-time nominations for swimmers. Franklin is now a member of the Global Board of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation.
Other nominees in this category:
- Alexia Putellas, Spain – Soccer
- Iga Swiatek, Poland – tennis
- Katie LedeckyUnited States – Swimming
- Mikaela Shiffrin, USA – Skiing
- Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Jamaica – Athletics
- Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, USA – Athletics
Cameron Lesliemeanwhile was nominated in the World athletes with disabilities forgive. At the 2022 World Championships in Madeira, he won a gold medal in the men’s S4 100 Free and added silver medals in the 50 Back, 50 Free and 200 Free.
Just four months after those world championships, he was co-captain of the New Zealand national wheelchair rugby team that qualified for the quarter-finals of the 2022 World Wheelchair Rugby Championships in Denmark.
The 33-year-old is also the Disability and Para Swimming Participation Manager at Swimming New Zealand, with the aim of making a difference in the next generation of athletes.
Born and raised in Whangarei, Leslie started para swimming at the age of 11. He is best known in New Zealand for his Paralympic gold medal performances in Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio 2016.
He has been nominated over swimmers like Stefano Raimondi of Italy, who won six world championships last summer but has been recognized for his multi-sport commitment and administrative role.
Other nominees in this category:
- Cameron Leslie, New Zealand – Paraswimming
- Catherine Debrunner, Switzerland – Athletics
- Declan Farmer, USA – for ice hockey
- Diede De Groot, Netherlands – wheelchair tennis
- Jesper Saltvik Pederson, Norway – Alpine skiing
- Oksana Masters, USA – Para-Cross Country
No swimmers were nominated in the “World Athlete of the Year” category. Swimmers have been nominated for this honor nine times but have never won (previous honorees have come from tennis, Formula 1, athletics, golf and soccer).
The Laureus World Sport Awards were created in 1999 “based on the principle that sport can bridge the divides in society and change the way people see the world”.
The winners will be announced in April. More information about the award and a full list of nominees can be found on the Laureus website here.