Bolt repeated his triple gold medal triumph of the 2008 Beijing Olympics with the sprint double and sprint relay triumph at the 2009 IAAF World Championship in Berlin, Germany. “For me it was even better because I had a car accident and bounced back and it shows me that with hard work and determination, anything is possible,” Bolt said about his repeat Laureus honour. American tennis ace Serena Williams was named World Sportswoman of the Year, Brawn GP Formula One, World Team of the Year: Brawn’s F1 driver Jenson Button World Breakthrough of the Year, and tennis star Kim Clijsters the World Comeback of the Year award.
Maintaining his total dominance of men’s sprint events, Bolt raced undefeated in 2009 and at the Berlin World Championship, he set stunning new world record times of 9.58 seconds (100 metres) and 19.19 (200 metres) before helping Jamaica claim gold in the 4×100-metre relay.
The 23-year-old Bolt is now the first man in history to hold the World and Olympic 100 and 200-metre titles at the same time. “I have got to the stage where I know what winning is and how to keep winning and I want to keep running, breaking records and winning championships,” said the 6-foot-5-inch sprint ace.
The colossal Bolt had already earned repeat Athlete of the Year honours from several other agencies and institutions for 2009 – including the Latin American and Caribbean Male Athlete of the Year; the International Sports Press Association’s 2009 Athlete of the Year, the IAAF Male Athlete of the Year, and BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year.
Among those Bolt defeated for the Sportsman award were fellow track and field athlete Kenenisa Bekele, tennis star Roger Federer, cycling’s Alberto Contador, football ace Lionel Messi, and motor cycling’s Valentino Rossi.
Williams picked up her second Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year Award, seven years after her first, following Grand Slam victories in Australia and at Wimbledon.
It was her third Laureus Award in total, after also winning the Laureus Comeback Award in 2007.
Other candidates for the Sportswoman of the Year honour included two track and field stars — Jamaican 100-metre World and Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser and Sanya Richards, the Jamaica-born American World 400-metre champion.
Skiing star Lindsey Vonn and swimming’s Federica Pellegrini and Britta Steffen were the other contenders for the women’s award.
Motorsport’s F1 was a huge winner as Britain’s Button took the Breakthrough of the Year Award following his first World Drivers’ Championship triumph, competing for Team of the Year Brawn GP.
Clijsters was a deserving winner of the Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award after her remarkable return to tennis in 2009, winning the US Open Grand Slam title in only her third tournament following a two-year absence.
There was a warm reception at the ceremony for courageous South African swimmer Natalie du Toit, who is breaking down the barriers between disabled and able-bodied sport, as she received the Laureus Disability Award.
Australia’s three-time World Surfing champion Stephanie Gilmore was named Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year.
Laureus Academy Member Nawal El Moutawakel received the Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award for her work for women in sport and the International Olympic Committee.
And the Laureus Sport for Good Award went to American basketball legend Dikembe Mutombo, for his charitable work in his native Congo.
