Tennis duo Sabalenka and Alcaraz sweep top Laureus sports honours

Barcelona’s Yamal bags Young Sportsperson of the Year accolade a twelvemonth aft winning the Breakthrough grant successful 2025.

Tennis ruled the reddish carpet successful Madrid arsenic Aryna Sabalenka and Carlos Alcaraz were crowned Sportswoman and Sportsman of the Year astatine the Laureus Awards.

The brace were honoured connected Monday aft glittering 2025 campaigns that saw them decorativeness atop the women’s and men’s tennis rankings, respectively.

Recommended Stories

• list 1 of 3Departing Salah scores successful Merseyside derby arsenic Liverpool triumph to enactment fifth
• list 2 of 3Several injured arsenic fans clash with constabulary successful Paraguay’s Superclasico match
• list 3 of 3Tougher investigating for Indian athletes successful ‘extremely high’ doping hazard bracket

Spaniard Alcaraz, 22, reclaimed the year-end satellite fig 1 spot aft capturing 2 Grand Slam titles astatine the French Open and US Open, underlining his supremacy crossed surfaces.

Belarusian Sabalenka, 27, meanwhile, stood alongside him successful the winners’ ellipse successful New York and besides reached the last successful Australia and France, capping a play of relentless consistency.

With her triumph, Sabalenka joins a rotation telephone of Laureus Sportswoman of the Year recipients from her sport, including Serena Williams, Jennifer Capriati, Justine Henin and Naomi Osaka.

Barcelona and Spain jock Lamine Yamal, 18, won the Young Sportsperson of the Year award. It is the 2nd grant for the young Barca guardant aft being voted Breakthrough Sportsperson of the Year successful 2025, making him the youngest jock to person won 2 Laureus awards.

German shot large Toni Kroos won the satellite sporting inspiration award, and retired gymnast Nadia Comaneci got the beingness accomplishment prize.

The satellite enactment sportsperson grant went to American snowboarder Chloe Kim.

Brazilian Gabriel Araujo was the satellite sportsperson of the twelvemonth with a disability.

In a archetypal for the awards, the ceremonial was hosted by 2 athletes – some erstwhile Laureus winners – Novak Djokovic and Eileen Gu. Last year’s apical honours went to gymnast Simone Biles and pole-vaulter Mondo Duplantis.

Eileen Gu cohosted the grant amusement with Novak Djokovic[Isabel Infantes/Reuters]

McIlroy takes comeback prize

Elsewhere, Rory McIlroy claimed the World Comeback of the Year Award aft ending an 11-year hold to complete the vocation Grand Slam with a playoff triumph astatine the 2025 Masters, a rubric helium defended successful 2026.

Formula One’s Lando Norris was named World Breakthrough of the Year, portion Paris St Germain took World Team of the Year aft a trophy haul successful 2025 that included the French league and Cup, positive their archetypal Champions League crown.

The Laureus World Sports Awards nominees are selected by the planetary media, portion the winners are determined by the 69 members of the Laureus World Sports Academy.

The awards person been presented annually since 2000.

Laureus winners 2026:

• World Sportsman of the Year Award: Carlos Alcaraz
• World Sportswoman of the Year Award: Aryna Sabalenka
• World Team of the Year Award: Paris Saint-Germain
• World Breakthrough of the Year Award: Lando Norris
• World Comeback of the Year Award: Rory McIlroy
• World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability Award: Gabriel Araujo
• World Action Sportsperson of the Year Award: Chloe Kim
• World Young Sportsperson of the Year Award: Lamine Yamal
• Laureus Sporting Inspiration Award: Toni Kroos
• Lifetime Achievement Award: Nadia Comaneci
• Laureus Sport for Good Award: Futbol Mas