In the midst of the dispute with PSG, Lionel Messi is aiming for Laureus: who will he compete against at the Oscars of world sport?

Lionel Messi, he always said, does not weigh individual titles over collective ones. But this Monday he has the chance to add another prize to his huge professional career, right in the middle of the most tense week since his arrival at Paris Saint Germain in France, where he was not called up for this Sunday’s match against Troyes. And, right in Paris, the graduate awardsthe sports Oscars, where a jury of experts chooses the best in the world in all disciplines.

The ‘Pulce’, who won FIFA’s ‘The Best’ award earlier this year, was included among the finalists in the main category of these awards for the first time as a world champion, following his title in Qatar 2022. The ceremony will be held this Monday from 12:00 (Argentina time) at the Pavillon Vendome in the French capital, and the footballer of Rosario have not confirmed their participation in the event for what there is few expectations around his presence.

Among his rivals there is only one footballer, his teammate at PSG the French Kylian Mbappé, and then the Spanish tennis player completes the roster Rafael Nadalthe Dutch pilot Max VerstappenSwedish athlete Armand Duplantisand the American basketball player Stephen Curry.

The disputed trophy is one of the highest honors awarded in the world of sport. One that many want. And of the six candidates there was one who has publicly expressed that he would like Messi to get it.

It was Rafa Nadal, who – while appreciating the nomination – publicly stated that he would prefer one of his competitors on the shortlist to win it.

“It’s an honor to be nominated again at the Laureus Awards for ‘Athlete of the Year’, but this year…”wrote Nadal in a first publication in which he also shared the official video with which he communicated to the candidates for recognition.

His sentence concluded in a subsequent post he made immediately after re-sharing the same video with all the athletes vying for the award. “Come on @leomessi, you deserve it”, she published without hiding her admiration for the Argentine 10.

Subsequently, Messi returned the praises of the former number 1: “That a great athlete like you put it on me leaves me speechless… Thank you very much Rafael Nadal”public.

Who votes?

Messi, 35, has only won this award once, although it was shared with the British Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton. For this reason, on this occasion, it could be the first in which it remains only with the award that has among the most winners for the Swiss tennis player Roger Federer (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2018).

“He inspired Argentina to glory at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and continues to raise the bar in football”he supported the Laureus Academy to justify the choice of Rosario.

The nominees for the Laureus Awards, which have been held since 2000, were determined through a vote by sports media from around the world, although the winners will be chosen by a panel of 71 members of the greatest sports legends of all timeand announced during the second quarter of this year.

Among them are only two Argentines: former rugby player Hugh Door, who is considered the best Argentine player of the sport in history and is a member of the World Rugby Hall of Fame; and the former lioness Luciana ‘Lotta’ Aymarworld star of field hockey and the only recipient of the International Federation’s (FIH) player of the year award eight times.

In the women’s branch, however, whoever aspires to the highest prize will be the Polish tennis player Iga Swiatekthe Spanish footballer Alexia Putellasthe American swimmer Katie Ledeckythe American skier Mikaela Shiffrinthe Jamaican athlete Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and his fellow American Sydney McLaughlin Levrone.

Also La Escaloneta

The Argentine football team was not excluded from the nominations and was included in the “Best Team of the Year” category, after winning the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

Joining her in the vote are England’s women’s soccer team, Spain’s Real Madrid men’s team, France’s men’s rugby union team, the NBA’s Golden State Warriors and Red Bull’s Formula 1 team. .

Furthermore, among the revelations of 2022, there is the Spanish tennis player Carlos Alcaraz, who will play the final of the Masters 1000 in Madrid this Sunday, who will face the Kazakh tennis player Elena Rybakina, the Moroccan men’s soccer team, the American skater Nathan Chen, American golfer Scottie Scheffler and Nigerian athlete Tobi Amusan.

Finally, five inspiring sports programs were shortlisted for the Laureus Sport for Good Award, given annually to an individual or organization who, in the opinion of Academy members, have made a significant contribution to transforming the lives of children and young people through sports.

This year, these include a movement-based psychosocial support intervention developed by War Child, Save the Children and UNICEF Netherlands, which uses physical activity to relieve stress in children affected by war or conflict and which is particularly active in supporting refugees from Ukraine (Team Up); a program that uses boxing to challenge stereotypes and empower young women in Kenya (boxgirls); a soccer project aimed at educating and uplifting the homeless population in India (Slum Soccer); a program whose mission is to make sport inclusive for people with disabilities in South Africa (Made For More) and a project in Germany that uses action sports to help orphan and migrant children integrate into new communities (High Five) .