Osaka, Lewandowski named AIPS Best Athletes of 2020
2020-12-30
Naomi Osaka of Japan celebrates with the trophy after winning her Women's Singles final match against Victoria Azarenka of Belarus on Day Thirteen of the 2020 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in the Queens borough of New York City on Sept 12, 2020. [Photo/Agencies]
LAUSANNE - Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka and Polish soccer striker Robert Lewandowski have been named the Best Athletes of 2020 by the International Sport Press Association (AIPS) with Bayern Munich awarded Best Team of 2020, the organization announced on Tuesday.
The awards are from the result of a poll by the AIPS, where a panel of 422 journalists from 116 countries and regions voted for the champions of 2020.
It is the first time that Lewandowski and Osaka have won the prestigious accolade which attracts votes from a vast network of professionals across the world annually.
Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski holds a trophy after winning the Best player of the Year award in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on Dec 27, 2020. [Photo/Agencies]
Lewandowski, 32, beat Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton by 74 points in an award-laden year which saw him win the German league and cup as top scorer in a Bayern jersey and lift the UEFA Champions League trophy with the team en route to being named Bundesliga Player of the Season, UEFA Men's Player of the Year and the Best FIFA Men's Player.
Naomi Osaka, 23, won the US Open where she first caught international fame after defeating Serena Williams in 2018. Serena was third in the vote after Venezuelan triple jumper Yulimar Rojas.
Bayern dominated the best team voting with 1,317 points, while their closest rivals, English Premier League champions Liverpool received 753, and NBA champions Los Angeles Lakers earned 658.
