'My journey back to competitive cricket was incredibly challenging.'
Rishabh Pant's sensational comeback from a life-threatening car crash to Test cricket glory has earned the India wicketkeeeper-batter a nomination for the prestigious Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award.
Pant will represent both India and cricket as the world's biggest sports awards celebrates its 25th anniversary.
The nominees for the 2025 Laureus World Sports Awards were selected after a vote by the world's sports media. The ceremony will take place in in Madrid, on April 21, to recognise the greatest athletic achievements of 2024 and the best sporting moments from the 25 years since the first Laureus World Sports Awards in 2000.
Pant's journey back to cricket reads like a sports movie script -- a national cricket hero who almost lost everything in an accident, endured a gruelling road to recovery before he finally made 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 but suffered multiple critical injuries. His road to recovery spanned 629-day, culminating in a triumphant return to Test cricket, as he capped his comeback in fine style by scoring a match-winning century against Bangladesh -- his sixth Test hundred to equal the great Mahendra Singh 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, 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 overcame multiple injuries to win gold at the Paris Olympics; ski racer Lara Gut-Behrami and swimmer Ariarne Titmus, who defended her Olympic 400m freestyle title after surgery to remove an ovarian tumor; Caeleb Dressel, who won two Olympic relay golds after taking a mental health break; and MotoGP star Marc Marquez, who won three Grands Prix after recovering from a career-threatening arm injury.
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.
F1 champion Verstappen nominated for Sportsman of the Year Award
The list of contenders for the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year Award is a who’s who of sporting royalty, including France’s Olympic hero Léon Marchand, tennis star Carlos Alcaraz, pole vaulting great Mondo Duplantis, all-conquering Formula One champion Max Verstappen, and Tour de France winner Tadej Pogačar.
The shortlist for the Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year Award contains some of the greatest athletes not only of the past 12 months, but of all-time. Four-time Laureus Award winner Simone Biles’ magical displays in Paris ensured she became the most decorated gymnast in history, while last year’s winner, Aitana Bonmatí, is one of the names in contention once again after winning the Ballon d’Or and treble with Barcelona. Sprinter Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is also shortlisted after winning two golds in Paris.
In 2024, San Antonio Spurs centre Victor Wembanyama was unanimously named the league’s Rookie of the Year and was also the first rookie ever to be selected in the All-Defensive First Team. His groundbreaking season was rounded off with a silver medal as part of the French national team at the 2024 Olympic Games, and he is nominated for this year’s Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year Award. So, too, is Julien Alfred, who won a first-ever Olympic gold for the Caribbean Island of St Lucia, and fellow history-maker Letsile Tebogo, who delivered a maiden gold for Botswana. They are joined on the shortlist by teenage swimming starlet Summer McIntosh, and the star of Spain’s swashbuckling Euro 2024 squad, Lamine Yamal.
The McLaren Formula One Team stand alone as the sole Nominee for the Laureus World Team of the Year Award not to hail from either Spain or the USA, but they more than merit their place after ending a 26-year wait to win the 2024 Constructors’ World Championship. Among the other representatives on the shortlist are Real Madrid and the Boston Celtics.
The Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability Award is made up of athletes whose performances lit up the Paris Paralympic Games. Swimming duo Teresa Perales and Jian Yuhan are among those nominated, as is America Matt Stutzman, who made history in the French capital after becoming the first armless para-archer to win a gold medal. He is joined by wheelchair tennis champion Tokito Oda and Catherine Debrunner, who won five golds as well as the Berlin and London Marathons.
Tom Pidcock’s recovery from a puncture in the early stages of the Olympic cross-country mountain biking race to win a second gold earns him a place on the shortlist for the Laureus Action Sportsperson of the Year Award, alongside two gold-medal winning skateboarders – Yuto Horigome and last year’s Award winner Arisa Trew, plus snowboarder Chloe Kim, surfer Caroline Marks and Polish speed climber Aleksandra Miroslaw.
In addition to the athlete awards, each year the Laureus Sport for Good Award celebrates the work carried out by a community-based programme which has helped to transform the lives of children and young people through the power of sport. Over 300 organisations in more than 40 countries carry out this inspiring work every day, and six of these have been shortlisted for this year’s Award.
Paris Basket 18 is a neighbourhood basketball club which impacts over 3,500 young people every year. Its participants benefit from programmes which seek to pass on values such as respect and tolerance through combining sport and education. They are joined on this year’s inspirational shortlist by: Kick4life, a charity using football to reach at-risk children in Lesotho; Figure Skating Harlem, which uses figure skating to support girls in the New York neighbourhood to develop confidence and leadership skills; Kind Surf, a programme helping young people in Valencia and Zaurutz, Spain, at risk of social exclusion due to intellectual disabilities; Liberi Nantes, which uses football as a lifeline for refugees and political asylum seekers in Rome, Italy; and UK-based Street League, which helps people from 14-30 secure employment and training opportunities.
The full list of Nominees is:
LAUREUS WORLD SPORTSMAN OF THE YEAR AWARD
Carlos Alcaraz (Spain) Tennis - Won the French Open, Wimbledon and the Olympic silver medal
Mondo Duplantis (Sweden) Athletics - retained Olympic pole vault title; has now broken world record 10 times
Léon Marchand (France) Swimming - won four individual gold medals at the Paris Olympics
Tadej Pogačar (Slovenia) Cycling - 25 wins, including Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and World Championship
Max Verstappen (Netherlands) Motor Racing - won a fourth successive Formula One World Championship
LAUREUS WORLD SPORTSWOMAN OF THE YEAR AWARD
Simone Biles (USA) Gymnastics - impressive return to Olympic stage with three golds and a silver in Paris
Aitana Bonmatí (Spain) Football - second straight Ballon d’Or Feminin as Barcelona won Champions League, Liga F and Copa de la Reina
Sifan Hassan (Netherlands) Athletics - bronze in 5,000m and 10,000m plus marathon gold in Paris
Faith Kipyegon (Kenya) Athletics - became the only three-time Olympic champion in 1,500 metres in Paris
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (USA) Athletics - Olympic golds in 400m hurdles and 4 x 400m relay
Aryna Sabalenka Tennis - won Australian and US Opens; became World No.1 in singles and doubles
LAUREUS WORLD TEAM OF THE YEAR AWARD
FC Barcelona Women’s Team (Spain) Football - won Champions League, Liga F and the Copa de la Reina
Boston Celtics (USA) Basketball - claimed a record 18th NBA title, one more than their old rivals LA Lakers
McLaren Formula One Team (UK) Formula One - secured their first World Constructors’ Championship since 1998
Real Madrid (Spain) Football - won 15th Champions League/European Cup, La Liga and Supercopa de España
Spain Men’s Football Team - became most successful team in European Championship history with fourth win
USA Basketball Men's National Team - claimed USA’s fifth straight Olympic gold to emulate the famous Dream Team
LAUREUS WORLD BREAKTHROUGH OF THE YEAR AWARD
Julien Alfred (St Lucia) Athletics - won 100m in debut Olympics to take home St Lucia’s first-ever Olympic gold
Bayer 04 Leverkusen (Germany) Football - Bundesliga champions for first time in their 120-year history after unbeaten season
Summer McIntosh (Canada) Swimming - won three individual golds and a silver in Paris
Letsile Tebogo (Botswana) Athletics - won 200m gold medal, Botswana’s first-ever Olympic gold medal
Victor Wembanyama (France) Basketball - San Antonio Spurs centre won the NBA Rookie of the Year
Lamine Yamal (Spain) Football - named Best Young Player as Spain won the European Championships
LAUREUS WORLD COMEBACK OF THE YEAR AWARD
Rebeca Andrade (Brazil) Gymnastics - battling back from injury, she won Olympic gold, two silvers and bronze
Caeleb Dressel (USA) Swimming - overcame mental health issues to win two relay golds and a silver in Paris
Lara Gut-Behrami (Switzerland) Alpine Skiing - won overall World Cup title for first time since 2015/16 season
Marc Marquez (Spain) Motor Cycling - returned from serious injury to win three Grand Prix in 2024
Rishabh Pant (India) Cricket - 629 days after a life-threatening car crash, returned to play for India Test team
Ariarne Titmus (Australia) Swimming - defended her Olympic 400m freestyle title less than year after being diagnosed with a tumour
LAUREUS WORLD ACTION SPORTSPERSON OF THE YEAR AWARD
Yuto Horigome (Japan) Skateboarding - landed best trick of street competition to secure back-to-back Olympic golds
Chloe Kim (USA) Snowboarding - won her seventh X-Games superpipe gold medal
Caroline Marks (USA) Surfing - 22-year-old won the Olympic surfing gold in Tahiti
Aleksandra Miroslaw (Poland) Speed Climbing - set two world records on her way to Paris gold
Tom Pidcock (UK) Mountain Biking - won back-to-back Olympic titles in the cyclo-cross discipline
Arisa Trew (Australia) Skateboarding - became Australia’s youngest-ever Olympic champion, aged 14
LAUREUS WORLD SPORTPERSON OF THE YEAR WITH A DISABILITY AWARD
Catherine Debrunner (Switzerland) Athletics - won five gold medals and a silver at the Paris Paralympics
Teresa Perales (Spain) Swimming - won bronze in Paris, to take her Paralympic medal haul to 28
Tokito Oda (Japan) Wheelchair Tennis - came from match point down to become youngest-ever Paralympic singles winner
Matt Stutzman (USA) Archery - became first-ever armless para-archery champion to win Olympic gold
Jiang Yuyan (China) Swimming - most-decorated athlete at Paralympics, she won seven golds from seven events
Qu Zimo (China) Wheelchair Badminton - won three golds at World Championship, then two more in Paris
LAUREUS SPORT FOR GOOD AWARD
Programmes nominated by a specialist selection panel; Laureus Academy select the winner
Kick4life (Lesotho) Football x Gender Equity - uses football to reach at-risk children and young people
Figure Skating Harlem (USA) Figure Skating x Racial Equity - help girls transform their lives through figure skating
Kind Surf (Spain) Surfing x Inclusion - uses surf therapy to support young people at risk of social exclusion due to intellectual disabilities
Liberi Nantes (Italy) Football x Social Inclusion – offers wide range of sporting activities for refugees and political asylum seekers
Paris Basket 18 (France) Basketball x Gender Equity - focuses on development of women’s sport, and promotes social integration
Street League (UK) Multi-sport x Employability - uses the power of sport to help young people aged 14-30 prepare for employment and training opportunities
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