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Elena Isinbaeva is first Russian to win sports “Oscar” · 2007-04-04 15:11

Elena Isinbaeva, www.kommersant.ruThe Laureus World Sports Awards ceremony took place in Barcelona late Monday evening. Russian pole vaulter Elena Isinbaeva became the first Russian woman to win the award.

The award is the world’s leading sports award. Winners are chosen by journalists (more than 400 vote) and members of the Laureus World Sports Academy – 42 of the world’s most famous athletes, including Boris Becker, Sergey Bubka, Bobby Charlton, Nadia Comaneci, Tony Hawk, Michael Jordan, John McEnroe, Jack Nicklaus, Pele, Monica Seles, Mark Spitz and Katarina Witt.

Although there were no events in 2006 at which Isinbaeva could distinguish herself, she is a 20-time record holder. She has stated that she plans to break a total of 40 records. Her greatest achievement, and the one she was probably awarded for on Monday, is advancing women’s pole vaulting from a secondary event to a major sport. Nominees for sportswoman of the year included runner Kelly Holmes of Great Britain, heptathlon athlete Carolina Kluft of Sweden, cyclist Leontien Zijland-van Moorsel of The Netherlands and golfer Annika Sorenstam of Sweden. This was the third time in a row that she had been nominated for the award. Pole vaulter and 34-time record breaker Sergey Bubka presented her with the award.

French tennis champion Roger Federer won the men’s award for the third year in a row. Many experts consider him the best tennis player to have ever lived. He won against American golfer Tiger Woods, German racecar driver Michael Schumacher and American cyclist Lance Armstrong, among others, this year. Boris Becker received the award on Federer’s behalf, Kommersant informs.

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