FCBARCELONA.CAT

11.02.2010 11:35

Barça and Messi nominated for Laureus awards

www.fcbarcelona.cat

FC Barcelona and Lionel Messi have been nominated for the 2010 Laureus World Sports Awards as the best team and the best sportsmen, respectively, for the previous year.

The Blaugrana's incredible year has continued to see them earn praise and prizes across the board and now the club and one of their stars have been put forward for the prestigious gong. The winners will be announced on March 10 at a ceremony in Abu Dhabi. Barça have been put forward as the best international team while the Argentinian is in the best male sportsman of the year category.

Tough competition

Winning will be no mean feat as the club will be up against such elite outfits as the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team, the New York Yankees baseball side, Germany's female football team, Formula One's Brawn outfit and the South Africa rugby team.

Messi will be competing for his prize with the likes of athlete Usain Bolt, tennis star Roger Federer, long-distance runner Kenenisa Bekele, Tour de France winner Alberto Contador and Italy's seven-times MotoGP champion Valentino Rossi, among others.

46 judges

The Laureus World Sports Awards will recognise achievements between January 1 and December 31, 2009 and the winners will be decided by a panel of 46 of the world's best male and female sportsmen.