Luca Ekler and Markus Rehm up for 2024 Laureus Sport Awards

Hungary's Luca Ekler and Germany's Markus Rehm are the Para athletics representatives among the six Para athletes who have been nominated for the 2024 Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability Award. Para swimmers Simone Baarlaam of Italy and Danylo Chufarov of Ukraine, Dutch wheelchair tennis player Diede de Groot and New Zealand’s Para cyclist Nicole Murray are the other nominees.

The Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability Award celebrates the remarkable achievements by a Para athlete in 2023. The Laureus World Sports Academy announced the nominees on Monday (26 February). The winner is set to be announced during a special awards ceremony in Madrid on 22 April.

This is Rehm's third nomination, as he was previously shortlisted in 2018 and 2019. It is the first time for Ekler, only the second Hungarian Para athlete shortlisted and the first since wheelchair fencer Zsuzsanna Krajnyak in 2006.

Para athletics athletes won the last two Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability awards with Swiss wheelchair racers Marcel Hug in 2022 and Catherine Debrunner in 2023.

The list of past Laureus Awards winners can be found here.

The nominees:

Luca Ekler (Hungary) - Para athletics

For Luca Ekler, 2023 was another huge year as she won three gold and one silver at the 2023 Para Athletics World Championships in Paris. She proved her world class track and field credentials in Paris, winning gold in the long jump T38, the 200m T38, and 400m T38. There was almost a clean sweep as she won silver in the 100m T38. At the Jesolo Grand Prix 2023, she won gold in the long jump T38, 100m T38 and 400m T38.

Markus Rehm (Germany) - Para athletics

Markus Rehm, a four-time Paralympic champion from Germany, earned his sixth straight World Championship victory in the long jump. In 2023, he achieved a new milestone by setting a new world record with a jump of 8.72m. He stands out for his exceptional willingness to help others, even during his own competitions.

Simone Barlaam (Italy) - Para swimming

Simone Barlaam had another hugely successful year, securing six gold medals at the Manchester 2023 Allianz Para Swimming World Championship. He won the men’s 50m Freestyle S9, 100m Butterfly S9, 100m Freestyle S9, 400m Freestyle S9, 100m Backstroke S9, and Mixed 4x100m Freestyle Relay with 34 pts. He also became the fastest S9 swimmer of all time as he broke the S9 50 Freestyle World Record in a time of 23.96 seconds.

Danylo Chufarov (Ukraine) - Para swimming

In spring 2022, he was under occupation in Mariupol in the Donetsk region of Ukraine, surviving with limited food and water and no electricity, heat or communication. Eventually he had to leave his home with only the clothes he had with him. The swimmer returned to the pool and at the 2023 Allianz Para Swimming World Championship in Manchester he secured three gold medals, one silver and set two world records. It was even more remarkable as Chufarov’s previous world championship gold medal was back in 2013. 

Diede de Groot (Netherlands) - wheelchair tennis

In 2023, Diede de Groot cemented her position not only as the greatest wheelchair tennis player of all time, but as one of the greatest ever tennis players. She was the first women’s wheelchair tennis player to achieve the Golden Slam in 2021, but in 2023 she became the first tennis player – not just the first wheelchair tennis player – to win three successive calendar Grand Slams since wheelchair tennis singles competition was first played at all four majors in 2016. Her record in 2023 was astonishing: she was unbeaten in 53 singles matches, and now has a winning streak stretching back 127 matches to the start of the 2021 Australian Open.

Nicole Murray (New Zealand) - Para cycling

Nicole Murray had an incredible 2023 season. She began the year with a spectacular Road Para Cycling World Cup series, earning two gold and two silver medals. She went on to claim a world title and rainbow jersey on the track during the inaugural UCI Cycling world championships in Glasgow, along with a silver and bronze medal.