Madrid became the capital city of sports on Monday evening as the Laureus World Sports Awards celebrated its 25th anniversary by gathering the greatest athletes not only of the past 12 months, but of the 21st Century.
Simone Biles and Rebeca Andrade – friends, rivals and Olympic champions from the world of gymnastics – were both winners here, with Biles being named Sportswoman of the Year and Andrade Comeback of the Year after recovering from an injury and winning gold at the Paris 2024 Olymics.
Both sides of Spanish football’s great duopoly were represented on the winners’ podium, as Real Madrid and Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal were honoured; and Olympic and Paralympic heroes including Mondo Duplantis, Tom Pidcock and Jijang Yuan added a Laureus to their laurels.
The ceremony also awarded the Laureus Sporting Icon Award to tennis star Rafael Nadal.
Standing alongside the world’s greatest athletes were leaders from the inspirational Lesotho-based football programme Kick4Life, recipients of the 2025 Laureus Sport for Good Award.
Source: Africanews
