Looking back at last year, the Breakthrough of the Year award went not to Chinese swimmer Qin Haiyang, but to English soccer's bright new star Bellingham. Qin's performance was outstanding, but he missed out on the honor. Since joining Real Madrid last year, Bellingham's career trajectory has changed dramatically. This season, he has started 36 games for Real Madrid, scoring 21 goals and contributing 10 key assists.
In addition, the other awards were quite topical:
The Ultimate Athlete of the Year award went to Alyssa Theroux. The young woman, who wrote a new chapter in skateboarding last year by becoming the first woman to successfully complete a 720-degree spinning maneuver, had a remarkable season.
And the Sports for Good Award of the Year went to the Nadal Foundation, a program that believes in the magical power of sport and has provided a platform for the development of nearly 1,000 disadvantaged young people in Spain and India, helping them to unlock their potential.
In the field of Para sports, Dieudel de Groot became the 2023 Para Athlete of the Year, achieving a clean sweep of 53 singles matches to win her third consecutive all Grand Slam tournament.
In gymnastics, Simon Biles was honored with the Comeback of the Year award for his four gold medals at last year's World Championships, including a record sixth all-around title.
It is worth noting that the Spanish women's soccer team won the Women's World Cup for the first time, a feat that earned them the Team of the Year award.
