Athlete of the Year is an award given by various sports organizations for the athlete whom they have determined to be deserving of such recognition.

Definition of "athlete"

*In many nations, an "athlete" primarily refers to someone who participates in the various disciplines of athletics ( track and field, racewalking, cross country and road running) *In other nations — including Canada and the United States — an "athlete" equals "sportsperson" (from any sport).

Similar names for the award

The awards have various titles, examples include "Player of the Year" and "Sportspersonality of the Year". In the United States, several states choose a simple "Mr." or "Miss" prefix, such as Mr. Basketball ( Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, North Dakota, Utah, and Wisconsin). Such awards — general and one-sport-only — are common at the high-school, college ( university), and professional levels in the United States.

List of athlete of the year awards

Athletics (track and field)

* World's Greatest Athlete (decathlon) * IAAF World Athlete of the Year (International Athletic Foundation of the International Association of Athletics Federations) *

European Athlete of the Year The European Athlete of the Year award is an annual prize awarded to sportspeople participating in athletics, including track and field, road running and cross country running competitions. The election has been organised by the European governin ...

(European Athletic Association) * ''Track & Field News'' Athlete of the Year * The Bowerman (collegiate track & field's athlete of the year)

All sports

;Worldwide Awards with deliberate global scope, consistently nominating an international mix of athletes * Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year (Laureus World Sports Academy) * Laureus World Sports Award for Sportswoman of the Year * L'Équipe Champion of Champions—excludes French nationals * BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year—excludes British nationals * United Press International Athlete of the Year Award
United States Sports Academy Athlete of the Year
;Nationwide Awards that focus (either predominantly or exclusively) on sportspersons from the host country * Olimpia Award * AIS Athlete of the Year * Austrian Sportspersonality of the year * Belgian Sportsman of the year * Bosnia and Herzegovina Sportsperson of the Year *

Prêmio Brasil Olímpico Prêmio Brasil Olímpico (''Brazil Olympic Prize'') is the name given to the highest recognition that a Brazilian athlete can receive nationally. History and configuration The award was created in 1999 by the Brazilian Olympic Committee (BOC), who ...

* Bulgarian Sportsperson of the Year * Lou Marsh Trophy (athlete of the year, of either sex) * Lionel Conacher Award (male athlete of the year) *

Bobbie Rosenfeld Award The Bobbie Rosenfeld Award is an annual award given to Canada's female athlete of the year. The sports writers of the Canadian Press (CP) first conducted a poll to determine the nation's top female in 1932, naming track star Hilda Strike the winn ...

(female athlete of the year) * Velma Springstead Trophy (female athlete of the year) *

Tom Longboat Awards The Tom Longboat Awards were established in 1951 to recognize Aboriginal athletes "for their outstanding contributions to sport in Canada" and continues "to honour Indigenous athletes across Canada" annually. As a program of the Aboriginal Sport C ...

(indigenous athletes) * Sportske novosti awards * Sportsperson of the Year * Danish Sports Name of the Year * Estonian Sportspersonality of the year * Finnish Sports Personality of the Year * L'Équipe Champion of Champions * German Sportspersonality of the Year *

PSAT Sports Awards The PSAT Sports Awards (Greek: Αθλητικά Βραβεία ΠΣΑΤ) are the annual sports awards that are issued by the Panhellenic Sports Press Association (PSAT). The awards are given to the year's top performing individual athletes, in the ...

* Hungarian Sportspeople of the Year * Icelandic Sportsperson of the Year * Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna * Iran Sportsperson of the year * RTÉ Sports Person of the Year * Jamaica Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year * Japan Professional Sports Grand Prize *

Kenyan Sports Personality of the Year Kenyan Athlete of the Year, Sport Personality of the Year Awards, also known as SOYA Awards, are annual national awards given for sports personalities and organisations in Kenya. The awards were initiated in 2004 by Paul Tergat. The awards for each ...

* Latvian Sportspersonality of the year *

Lithuanian Sportsman of the Year Since 1956, Lithuania honors their greatest athlete of the year Athlete of the Year is an award given by various sports organizations for the athlete whom they have determined to be deserving of such recognition. Definition of "athlete" *In man ...

* Luxembourgish Sportspeople of the Year *

Anugerah Sukan Negara for Sportsman of the Year List of winners and nominees of the Anugerah Sukan Negara: Sportsman of the Year. List of winners and nominees References See also

*Anugerah Sukan Negara for Sportswoman of the Year *Athlete of the Year {{Anugerah Sukan Negara for Sportsm ...

Anugerah Sukan Negara for Sportswoman of the Year List of winners and nominees of the Anugerah Sukan Negara: Sportswoman of the Year. List of winners and nominees References See also * Anugerah Sukan Negara for Sportsman of the Year *Athlete of the Year Athlete of the Year is an award given ...

* Dutch Sportsman of the year * Norwegian Sportsperson of the Year * Halberg Awards *

PSA Sportsman of the Year The PSA Athlete of the Year is given by the Philippine Sportswriters Association to the best Filipino athletes annually. It is part of the PSA's Annual Awards Night, one of the most prestigious sport-related awards in the Philippines. Notable ...

* Polish Sportspersonality of the Year *

CDP Awards The CDP Awards are a series of annual sporting awards given by the Sports Confederation of Portugal (''Confederação do Desporto de Portugal'', CDP) to highlight sporting achievements over the preceding year. In addition to honouring athletes and ...

* Golden badge Sport—athlete of the year * Sportsperson of the Year * Slovenian Sportsman of the year *

South African Sportsperson of the Year ''South African Sportsperson of the Year'' are annual sporting awards given to best South African athletes. List of Winners References External linksList of winners {{National Sportsperson of the Year National sportsperson-of-the-year tro ...

Premios Nacionales del Deporte ''Premios Nacionales del Deporte'' (National Sports Awards) are annual sporting awards given to best Spanish athletes. They are awarded by Consejo Superior de Deportes The National Sports Council, also called Supreme Sports Council or High Counci ...

Svenska Dagbladet Gold Medal The Svenska Dagbladet Gold Medal ( sv, Svenska Dagbladets guldmedalj, but usually simply called ''Bragdguldet'', "The Feat Gold") is an annual award "for the most significant Swedish sports achievement of the year". It has been awarded by a jury le ...

* Radiosportens Jerringpris *

Svenska idrottsgalan The Swedish Sports Awards ''( sv, Svenska idrottsgalan) ''is a show to honor the past year's Swedish sports and athletes' achievements. It is hosted annually at Ericsson Globe in Stockholm in mid or late January. The event was first held in the ye ...

* Swiss Sports Personality of the Year * Heroes of Sports Year * BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award * BBC Scotland Sports Personality of the Year * BBC Wales Sports Personality of the Year
The presence of "Sportsman" in the name doesn't imply that the award is open solely to men; women have frequently won these awards. * Associated Press Athlete of the Year (AP) * Best Female Athlete ESPY Award *

Best Male Athlete ESPY Award The Best Male Athlete ESPY Award, known alternatively as the Outstanding Male Athlete ESPY Award, is an annual award honoring the achievements of individual men from the world of sports. It has been presented annually at the ESPY Awards (Excellenc ...

* ''Sporting News'' Sportsman/Pro Athlete of the Year * ''Sports Illustrated'' Sportsperson of the Year *

Sportswoman of the Year Award The Sportswoman of the Year Award is given by the Women's Sports Foundation every year. This foundation recognizes both an individual and a team Sportswoman on their performance over a 12-month period. This award is given based on their new records ...

(Women's Sports Foundation) * United Press International Athlete of the Year Award (UPI) (''defunct'') * NCAA Woman of the Year Award ( student-athlete) * Best Female College Athlete ESPY AwardThe Best Female and Best Male College Basketball and Best College Football Player ESPY Awards — awarded from

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

— were absorbed in

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

by the Best Female and Best Male College Athlete ESPY Awards. * Best Male College Athlete ESPY Award * Atlantic Coast Conference Athlete of the Year (ACC) * Vanuatu Sports Awards

One sport (other than track and field)

* International Baseball Federation Senior Athlete of the Year *

U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year The U.S. Soccer Player of the Year is given by the United States Soccer Federation to the American soccer players judged best in the calendar year. It is considered the highest accolade for American soccer players. The U.S. Soccer Male Player ...

(U.S. Soccer Federation) ( association football) *Golden Year Award at association football, Neymar last winner * Leigh Matthews Trophy (Australian Football League) (

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

) * Canadian Football League Most Outstanding Player Award ( Canadian football) * GAA All Stars Awards (

Gaelic games Gaelic games ( ga, Cluichí Gaelacha) are a set of sports played worldwide, though they are particularly popular in Ireland, where they originated. They include Gaelic football, hurling, Gaelic handball and rounders. Football and hurling, the ...

) ** All Stars Footballer of the Year (

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...

) ** All Stars Hurler of the Year (

hurling Hurling ( ga, iománaíocht, ') is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goals, the number of p ...

) **

Ladies' Gaelic football All Stars Awards The Ladies' Gaelic Football All Stars Awards have been hosted annually by the Ladies' Gaelic Football Association since 1980. The All Stars are sponsored by TG4. O'Neills have also helped sponsor the awards. All Stars are awarded to the best Lad ...

( Ladies' Gaelic football) ** Camogie All Stars Awards (

camogie Camogie ( ; ga, camógaíocht ) is an Irish stick-and-ball team sport played by women. Camogie is played by 100,000 women in Ireland and worldwide, largely among Irish communities. A variant of the game of hurling (which is played by men onl ...

) **

Rounders All Stars Awards This page is a list of all GAA Rounders All Star Awards winners from 2002 to present. These awards are presented annually to the best Irish rounders Rounders is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams. Rounders is a striking and fielding ...

( rounders) * National Football League Most Valuable Player Award (U.S.) ( American football) * Nippon Professional Baseball Most Valuable Player Award (Japan) * MLB Most Valuable Player Award (Major League Baseball) (U.S. & Canada) * ''Players Choice Awards'' Player of the Year (Major League Baseball) (U.S. & Canada) * ''Sporting News'' Player of the Year (Major League Baseball) (U.S. & Canada) * ''Sporting News'' MLB Athlete of the Decade (Major League Baseball) (U.S. & Canada) * ACC Men's Basketball Player of the Year (Atlantic Coast Conference) (college/university) (U.S.) * ''Baseball America'' High School Player of the Year Award (U.S.)

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Athlete Of The Year * Sports competitors Sports trophies and awards