http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/1/newsroom/stories/?ContentID=2057 Justine Henin: Laureus Sportswoman of the Year 2008/02/18 ST. PETERSBURG, Russia - She put together the richest season in Sony Ericsson WTA Tour history last year, and so it should come as no surprise that Justine Henin was nominated for and was given one of the most prestigious awards in the entire sports world on Monday, February 18. Following a season that saw her win 10 titles, which includes two Grand Slams (Roland Garros and US Open) and the season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships, the No.1-ranked Henin was given the Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year award, beating out Swedish track and field star Carolina Kluft, Australian swimmer Libby Lenton, Mexican golf star Lorena Ochoa, Russian pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva and Brazilian soccer player Marta. Henin became the third tennis player win the award, after Jennifer Capriati and Serena Williams, who won in 2001 and 2002, respectively. She also became the first Belgian to capture a Laureus World Sports Award in the nine-year history of the ceremonies, which began in 2000. Not only was Henin the clear-cut No.1 at the end of 2007, but she also became the first female tennis player to earn more than $5 million in prize money in a single season - earning $5,429,586 - on the strength of a year that saw her win 63 of 67 matches. The previous record holder was Henin's countrywoman Kim Clijsters, who earned $4,446,345 during the 2003 Tour season. "Impossible is nothing and I proved it again this year," said Henin after her win at the Sony Ericsson Championships. "It was a very difficult season but I remained very positive and grew up a lot. A lot of things happened in my life that fueled my tennis more than ever. I have no hesitations to say it was the best season in my career so far, even if it was one of the most difficult." Another female tennis player who walked away an award winner in St. Petersburg was Dutchwoman Esther Vergeer, who was given the Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability award. Vergeer's career highlights include a 512-25 win-loss record and 232 titles, 123 in singles and 109 in doubles. The only other tennis player to walk away with an award was men's world No.1 Roger Federer, who snagged his fourth straight Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award, the first person ever to win four Laureus World Sports Awards. Men's world No.3 Novak Djokovic was nominated for the Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year award, which was won by F1 driver Lewis Hamilton. The 2008 Laureus World Sports Awards ceremony were held and televised Monday, February 18 at the Mariinsky Concert Hall in St. Petersburg, Russia. For more information, go to www.laureus.com. Henin成為了第三位贏得本獎項的女網選手，前兩位是Capriati(2001)和Serena(2002)。 "世上沒有不可能的事，而我在今年又再次地證明這句話"，在去年贏得了年終八強賽的 冠軍之後，Henin那麼說。"這個賽季對我而言非常艱辛，但我保持得非常積極而且我自 我成長了不少，許多事在這一年發生了，比以往更激起了我對網球的心。我可以毫不猶 豫地說這是至今為止我的生涯中最棒的一個賽季，即使它也是最艱苦的一個。 ※ 編輯: bog 來自: 140.129.62.1 (02/19 13:16)