LEGENDS NOMINATED FOR 2025
LAUREUS WORLD SPORTS AWARDS
Rishabh Pant’s incredible story earns a nomination for the Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award. Yuvraj Singh: ‘He is an example to all that maintaining a positive approach to setbacks is vital to returning to competitive action’. Sporting greats including Simone Biles, Carlos Alcaraz, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Max Verstappen and Lamine Yamal all shortlisted winners to be announced at the Awards Show in Madrid on April 21.
Rishabh Pant’s unforgettable comeback from a life-threatening car crash to Test glory for India has been recognised with a nomination for the prestigious Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award. Pant will represent both India and the sport of cricket as the world’s biggest sports awards celebrates its 25th anniversary.
Nominees for the 2025 Laureus World Sports Awards are decided after a vote by the world’s sports media.
The ceremony will take place in in Madrid, Spain, on April 21 and be a celebration of the greatest athletic achievements of 2024 and the best sporting moments from the 25 years since the first Laureus World Sports Awards, in 2000.
Rishabh Pant’s story has more drama than any sports movie script: a national hero and a sporting icon who almost lost everything in an accident; a long and testing road to recovery; and finally a heroic comeback on the biggest stage, cheered on by millions of Indian cricket fans.
“I felt my time in this world was up,” said Pant of the accident in December 2020 on the Delhi-Dehradun highway, in which he had to be pulled from his vehicle before it burst into flames. Pant was fortunate not to lose a leg and suffered multiple critical injuries before beginning a 629-day journey back to Test cricket. The movie script ended in the perfect finale – on his comeback Test, he scored a match-winning century against Bangladesh, equalling MS Dhoni’s record for the most Test hundreds by an Indian wicketkeeper.
Reflecting on his nomination for the Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award, Rishabh Pant said: “I have always believed that the biggest virtue of life is to be grateful for everything God has blessed you with. Over the course of my life, I have focused in being positive and happy in every situation, trusting the power of self-belief and resilience to deal with every challenge. When I survived the near fatal car crash, I realised that I have been fortunate to be a blessed soul, which inspired me to work extremely hard to undo everything and return to the pitch as a better version of myself with greater motivation. I knew that my return to normal life was only half the circle of my comeback and I needed to complete the circle by being committed towards my dream of playing for India again. In 2024, I returned to play for the Indian Test team 629 days after the car crash, the year where we also won the ICC T20 World Cup.
My journey back to competitive cricket was incredibly challenging, so when the moment eventually arrived, the culmination of a long mental and physical battle, was extremely fulfilling. It felt like a deeply personal moment, which was a victory of faith and rigorous routines. Being nominated for the Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award is very special to me and an acknowledgement to the efforts of everyone involved in my comeback, right from my family, the BCCI, doctors, medical team, support staff, trainers and the fans. This Award is a symbol of inspiration and commitment, represented by some of the greatest stories in sports. Hence, it’s an honour for me to be nominated this year. I hope my story and those of the other nominated athletes can inspire sports fans and individuals across the world to never give-up, have self-belief and always be grateful and happy in life.”
Pant is joined on the shortlist by gymnast Rebeca Andrade who successfully battled through a tortuous struggle with anterior cruciate ligament injures to win gold in Paris; ski racer Lara Gut-Behrami and swimmer Ariarne Titmus, who defended her Olympic 400m freestyle title shortly after undergoing surgery to remove a tumour on her ovary; Caeleb Dressel, who won two relay golds in the pool in Paris after a break to address his mental health, and Marc Márquez, the Spanish Moto GP ace who won three Grands Prix after an arm injury that threatened his career.
Pant’s story captured the hearts of cricket fans all over the world, including some of the game’s greatest stars.
Laureus Ambassador and legendary all-rounder Yuvraj Singh said: “I met with Rishabh in March 2023. At that point, he was well on the road to recovery from his injuries, but also still had a way to go. What struck me most was his relentless positivity. We enjoyed a good laugh in each other’s company and it was that generosity of spirit and optimism which carried him through – and saw him cap a remarkable comeback with his return to Test cricket in 2024. He is an example to all sportsmen and women that maintaining a positive approach to injury and setbacks is vital to returning to competitive action.”
It will be up to the 69 sporting icons of the Laureus World Sports Academy to cast their votes and determine who will add their names to the exclusive list of those to receive a coveted Laureus Statuette.