BATON ROUGE — Former LSU national champion sprinter Xavier Carter continues to receive recognition for his performance during his first season as a professional as he is a nominee for World Breakthrough of the Year as part of the 2007 Laureus World Sports Awards.
Carter burst onto the international scene in July in just his first professional 200-meter race as he clocked the second-fastest time in world history with a scorching time of 19.63 seconds at the Athletissima 2006 in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Carter shattered the meet record of 19.85 set by four-time Olympic medalist Ato Boldon in 1996 with the fastest 200-meter time in the world as he trails only Michael Johnson’s world record of 19.32 set at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. For his effort, Carter was also a finalist for the 2006 IAAF Male Performance of the Year awarded in November.
The Melbourne, Fla., native is also a nominee for the honor of World Breakthrough of the Year for winning an NCAA record-tying four national titles at the 2006 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Sacramento, Calif., in June, as he became the first collegiate athlete since Ohio State’s Jesse Owens in 1935 and 1936 to accomplish the feat.
Carter became the first athlete in the 85-year history of the NCAA Outdoor Championships to win national titles in both the 100 meters (10.09) and 400 meters (44.53), while also leading LSU’s 4×100 and 4×400-meter relay squads to first-place finishes for a total of four titles. He finished his two-year LSU career as a seven-time national champion and 10-time All-American.
Carter is one of six finalists for World Breakthrough of the Year as he joins Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain, Amelie Mauresmo of France, Britta Steffen of Germany, Mia Xiaoxu of China and the Ghana Men’s National Soccer Team.
The winners of the Laureus World Sports Awards, as voted by members of the Laureus World Sports Academy, will be announced April 2 during a special awards ceremony at Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona, Spain. A total of 1,068 members of the Laureus World Sports Awards Media Selection Panel from 128 countries have cast their ballot
2007 Laureus World Sports Awards
Laureus World Sportsman of the Year
Fernando Alonso (Spain) ? second straight winner of the Formula One World Championship
Fabio Cannavaro (Italy) ? captain of Italy’s FIFA World Cup winning team
Roger Federer (Switzerland) ? winner of three Grand Slam tennis events
Asafa Powell (Jamaica) ? fastest sprinter in the world
Michael Schumacher (Germany) ? retired after seven Formula One World Championships
Tiger Woods (US) ? winner of Open Championship and US PGA golf majors
Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year
Justine Henin (Belgium) ? winner of French Open Grand Slam tennis championship
Yelena Isinbayeva (Russia) ? winner of European Championship pole vault gold medal
Carolina Kluft (Sweden) ? winner of European Championship heptathlon gold medal
Laure Manaudou (France) ? winner of four gold medals in European Swimming Championships
Amelie Mauresmo (France) ? winner of Wimbledon Grand Slam tennis championship
Maria Sharapova (Russia) ? winner of US Open Grand Slam tennis championship
Laureus World Team of the Year
All Blacks Rugby Team (New Zealand) ? winners of record seventh Tri-Nations Championship
FC Barcelona (Spain) ? winners of UEFA Champions League and Spanish League
European Ryder Cup Team ? record-equaling win over the United States at K Club, Dublin
Italy Men’s Football Team ? winners of FIFA World Cup for fourth time
Renault Formula One Team (France) ? Constructors World Champions for second straight time
Spanish Basketball Team ? won the basketball World Cup for the first time
Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year
Xavier Carter (US) ? aged 20, ran second fastest 200 meters ever and won four NCAA titles
Ghana Men’s Football Team ? qualified for FIFA World Cup finals and reached last 16
Lewis Hamilton (UK) ? aged 22, became first black driver to compete in Formula One
Amelie Mauresmo (France) ? won her first Grand Slam tennis tournaments after limited success
Britta Steffen (Germany) ? won four gold medals in European Swimming Championships
Mia Xiaoxu (China) ? aged 18, won Golden Ball and Shoe in FIFA U-20 World Championships
Laureus World Comeback of the Year
Drew Brees (US) ? led New Orleans Saints to NFC Championship game after serious injury
Ben Curtis (US) ? winner of first golf tournament since 2003 Open Championship
Roy Jones, Jr. (US) ? came back to ring at 37 to win NABO light-heavyweight title
Miami Heat (US) ? fought back to win NBA Finals after losing first two games
Serena Williams (US) ? slipped out of top 100 with injury, but came back to win Australian Open
Zinedine Zidane (France) ? returned from retirement to captain France to final of World Cup
Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability
Martin Braxenthaler (Germany) ? won three golds in Alpine mono-skiing in Winter Paralympics
Kurt Fearnley (Australia) ? won New York marathon wheelchair race, breaking course record
Edith Hunkeler (Switzerland) ? won three golds in wheelchair racing at World Championships
Javier Otxoa (Spain) ? Tour de France star who returned to cycle racing after car crash
Kazem Rajabi Golojeh (Iran) ? broke two powerlifting world records in 2006
Esther Vergeer (Netherlands) ? wheelchair tennis player unbeaten in three years
Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year
Aaron Hadlow (UK) ? aged 17, won PKRA kiteboarding world tour for third time
Travis Pastrana (US) ? motocross star, won three Summer X Games gold medals
Kevin Pritchard (US) ? won windsurfing Wave World Championships
Gisela Pulido (Spain) ? aged 12, won a PKRA kiteboarding event, beating the world champion
Kelly Slater (US) ? won an unprecedented eighth world surfing championship at 34
Hannah Teter (US) ? won ESPY award for Best Action Sports Female Athlete
Shaun White (US) ? competed in and won 12 snowboarding events in 2006