The German basketball world champions have another prestigious award. The team around national coach Gordon Herbert and captain Dennis Schröder was nominated as “Team of the Year” for the Laureus World Sports Awards 2024. The organizers announced this on Monday.
But the competition is tough. The selection of the German Basketball Federation (DBB), Germany’s “Team of the Year 2023”, has to prevail against, among others, the top English football club Manchester City, which also achieved something historic as a triple winner.
“It’s wonderful to be nominated for the Laureus Team Award,” said DBB leader Schröder, who was voted the tournament’s most valuable player at the World Cup: “The special thing about Laureus is that it is the only global award , which includes all sports.”
There are six nominees to choose from in each of the eight categories; the winners will be announced on April 22nd. In addition to the DBB athletes, another German can also hope for a Laureus Award: Para-athlete Markus Rehm is competing in the “Disabled Athlete of the Year” category. The para long jump world record holder won his sixth World Championship gold in 2023.
BVB attacker Sebastien Haller is also on the shortlist – for the “Comeback of the Year”. The center forward, who suffered from testicular cancer in the summer of 2022, recently led the Ivory Coast (Cote d’Ivoire) to the title at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Jude Bellingham, Haller’s former teammate at Borussia Dortmund, is now nominated for “Breakthrough of the Year”. The 20-year-old Englishman moved from the Bundesliga runners-up to Real Madrid last summer and has since impressed with 20 goals and eight assists in 29 competitive games for the Royals.
Another ex-Dortmunder, Erling Haaland, is also on the shortlist. Manchester City’s Norwegian striker is fighting for the award in the “Sportsman of the Year” category – against, among others, defending champion Lionel Messi, tennis icon Novak Djokovic and Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen.