March  25, 2003 – Tiger  Woods, Lance Armstrong, Serena Williams, Marion Jones and Pete Sampras  headlined a list of U.S. nominees for the 2003 Laureus World Sports Awards  announced today at a worldwide press conference held simultaneously in seven  cities around the world.

The  nominees, unveiled by some of the world's greatest sports legends in Berlin,  Johannesburg, London, Madrid, Miami, Milan, and Paris, include athletes from  around the world, yet features  more U.S. stars (eight) than any other nationality.

Serena  Williams, who currently holds all four grand slam tennis titles, is one of the  five nominees for Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year along with U.S. sprint  queen Marion Jones, while Pete Sampras is nominated for the Laureus World  Comeback of the Year award following his victory in September in the U.S.  Open.

Golf  No.1 Tiger Woods, who won the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award in 2000  and 2001, has been nominated for the fourth year running after his victories in  the 2002 Masters and U.S. Open.  He joins cycling star Lance Armstrong, who won the Tour de France for the fourth  straight year.

Dean  Potter, the speed climber, who capped a spectacular year by becoming the first  person to free-climb Half Dome and El Capitan in Yosemite in less than 24 hours;  and snowboard star Kelly Clark, aged 19, from Newport, R.I., have been nominated  for the Laureus World Alternative Sportsperson of the Year  award.

Paul  Schulte, star of the U.S. wheelchair basketball team, has been nominated for the  Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability.

Americans  will be delighted to see 7' 5″ Chinese basketball star Yao Ming, the Houston  Rockets rookie, nominated for Laureus World Newcomer of the Year after making a  brilliant debut in the National Basketball Association.

Martina  Navratilova, who won her 57th grand slam tennis title at the Australian Open in January, 29 years after winning her first, was in Miami as  part of the contingent of sports legends who announced the nominees globally.  “It's always great to have your own sport strongly represented and there is no  doubt Serena and Pete have had a brilliant 12 months,” said Navratilova.  “Serena started 2002 with an ankle  injury so it makes her achievement even more impressive.

“I'm  not sure what Pete Sampras will think about being nominated for World Comeback of the Year. It had only been two years since he won a major,” she joked. “But  Michael Jordan was nominated for this award last year, so I'm sure Pete will be delighted. And Goran Ivanisevic won it last year so it's good for tennis to have  a chance to win this award again.”

Woods  and Armstrong will be up against last year's winner, Formula One world champion  Michael Schumacher, who has been nominated along with Brazilian soccer World Cup  hero Ronaldo and Norway's biathlon Olympic gold medallist Ole Einar  Bjorndalen.

Along  with Williams and Jones, Sweden's Annika Sorenstam, who plays most of her golf  on the LPGA Tour, Britain's Paula Radcliffe, following her world record breaking  victory in the Chicago Marathon, and Croatian skier Janica Kostelic, who won  three gold and one silver in the Salt Lake City Winter Olympic Games, have been  nominated.

The  only area where it is a blank for the U.S. is the Laureus World Team of the Year  award where the Brazil World Cup winning soccer team have been nominated along  with the European Ryder Cup team, the Ferrari Formula One team, the Canadian Ice  Hockey team and Spanish soccer club Real Madrid.

Along  with Schulte, Finland's Tanja Kari (nordic skiing), Australia's Michael Milton  (alpine skiing), Canada's Chantal Petitclerc (athletics) and Germany's Michael  Teuber (cycling) have been nominated for the Laureus World Sportsperson of the  Year with a Disability award.

France's Anne-Caroline Chausson (mountain biking),  Pierre-Luc Gagnon from Canada (skateboarding) and Slovenia's Martin Strel  (ultramarathon swimming) will be challenging Clark and Potter for the Laureus  Alternative Sportsperson of the Year award.

The  Nominations were selected by 400 journalists from more than 70 countries. Now  the Laureus World Sports Academy, which is made up of 41 of the greatest  sportsmen and sportswomen of all time, will decide who should receive these  prestigious awards which will be presented in Monaco on May 20. In addition, two  special awards will be presented – the Laureus Lifetime Achievement and the  Laureus Sport for Good award.

The  Nominations were announced by members of the Laureus World Sports Academy –  including Giacomo Agostini, Franz Beckenbauer, Boris Becker, Ian Botham, Nadia  Comaneci, Kapil Dev, Morné du Plessis, Nawal El Moutawakel, Miguel Indurain,  Michael Johnson, Edwin Moses, Ilie Nastase, Martina Navratilova, Hugo Porta,  Daley Thompson and Alberto Tomba.

To  apply for media accreditation for the 2003 Laureus World Sports Awards in  Monaco, please consult www.laureus.com.